Species of flowering plant
Theobroma speciosum is an
arboriform species of
flowering plant in the
mallow family native to northern
South America . It is the 35th most
abundant species of tree in the
Amazon rainforest .
[3]
Name
Specific epithet
The
specific epithet 'speciosum' is used to indicate that a plant is aesthetically pleasing;
[4] it is a
neuter form of 'speciosus',
[5] which is
Latin for 'beautiful'.
[6]
Common names
Theobroma speciosum has a number of
common names :
[7]
In
Bolivia it is called chocolatillo
In
Brazil it is called cacauí or cacau de macaco
[8]
In
Peru it is called cacaoy , cacaoíllo , cacau-rana , cacao biaro , cupuyh or cacao sacha
Description
Theobroma speciosum is an
evergreen tree that grows up to 15 m (49 ft) tall.
[9] The
trunk is straight,
[7] with plagiotropic (horizontally growing)
[10] side
branches .
[11] The
canopy is small.
[7] Its
leaves are simple, and have a
coriaceous (leather-like)
[12] surface with
trichomes (hairs).
[11]
[13]
Leaf arrangement is distichous (leaves alternate between one side of the
stem and the other).
[11]
[14]
Flowers are red,
[15] and
grow on the trunk in dense clusters.
[7]
[16]
Fruits are 10 cm (3.9 in) in length, and comprise approximately 20
seeds surrounded by a white flesh,
[7] which in turn is surrounded by a
capsule .
[11]
Distribution
Theobroma speciosum is
native to:
[2]
Bolivia
Brazil, where it has been recorded as present in the following
states :
[8]
Peru
Venezuela
Ecology
The fruit of T. speciosum is a food source for
primates and
rodents .
[17] Its flowers are pollinated by flying insects.
[18]
Uses
The fruit of T. speciosum is the third from the left.
Food
The flesh of the fruit of is eaten by the
Ka'apor and
Tacana peoples.
[19] The seeds are used to make
chocolate ,
[13] and could also be used to make
cocoa butter substitutes.
[20]
The flowers are
edible , and contain high concentrations of
antioxidants .
[21]
Hygiene
The fruit capsules can be used to make
soap and
deodorant .
[19]
Genetic resource
As a
crop wild relative ,
[22] T. speciosum could be used as a source of
genetic variability for
T. cacao ,
[17] which is widely cultivated for its
cocoa beans .
Ornamental
T. speciosum is occasionally grown in
gardens as an
ornamental plant .
[3]
[23]
Diseases
Colletotrichum luxificum , a species of
pathogenic fungus ,
[24] can cause
witch's broom disease in Theobroma speciosum.
[25]
[26]
Notes
^ Theobroma speciosum Willd. ex Spreng. is not to be confused with Theobroma speciosum Willd. ex
Mart. , a synonym of
Theobroma grandiflorum (Willd. ex Spreng.) K.Schum. , which is a different species of Theobroma .
[1]
References
^
"Theobroma speciosum Willd. ex Mart" . Plants of the World Online . Kew Science. Retrieved 2021-04-03 .
^
a
b
"Theobroma speciosum Willd. ex Spreng" . Plants of the World Online . Kew Science. Retrieved 2021-04-03 .
^
a
b Levis, C.; Costa, F. R. C.; Bongers, F.; Peña-Claros, M.; Clement, C. R.; Junqueira, A. B.; Neves, E. G.; Tamanaha, E. K.; Figueiredo, F. O. G.; Salomão, R. P.; Castilho, C. V. (2017-03-03).
"Persistent effects of pre-Columbian plant domestication on Amazonian forest composition" . Science . 355 (6328): 925–931.
Bibcode :
2017Sci...355..925L .
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hdl :
10871/31028 .
ISSN
0036-8075 .
PMID
28254935 .
S2CID
206654277 . See Supplementary Materials,
Table S2 .
^ Hecklau, Edmund F.; Mori, Scott A.; Brown, John L. (2005).
"Specific Epithets of the Flowering Plants of Central French Guiana" . Brittonia . 57 (1): 68–87.
doi :
10.1663/0007-196X(2005)057[0068:SEOTFP]2.0.CO;2 .
ISSN
0007-196X .
JSTOR
4099040 .
S2CID
22235597 .
^ Baker, R. E. D.; Sandwith, N. Y. (1953).
"Review of The Gender of Theobroma" . Kew Bulletin . 8 (4): 591.
doi :
10.2307/4117388 .
ISSN
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JSTOR
4117388 .
^
"Definition of specious" . www.merriam-webster.com . Retrieved 2021-04-03 .
^
a
b
c
d
e Souza, M. S.; Venturieri, G. A. (July–August 2010).
"Floral Biology of Cacauhy (Theobroma speciosum - Malvaceae)" (PDF) . Brazilian Archives of Biology and Technology . 53 (4): 861–872.
doi :
10.1590/S1516-89132010000400016 .
^
a
b Colli-Silva, M.; Pirani, J. R. (2020).
"Theobroma in Flora do Brasil 2020" . floradobrasil.jbrj.gov.br . Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro. Retrieved 2021-04-03 .
^
"Theobroma speciosum Willd. ex Spreng" . eol.org . Retrieved 2021-04-03 .
^
"Definition of plagiotropic" . Lexico.com . Oxford University Press. 2020. Retrieved 2021-04-03 . [
dead link ]
^
a
b
c
d Klitgård, Bente B. (2013).
"Neotropical Malvaceae (Byttnerioideae). In: Milliken, W., Klitgård, B. & Baracat, A. (2009 onwards), Neotropikey - Interactive key and information resources for flowering plants of the Neotropics" . www.kew.org . Retrieved 2021-04-03 .
^
"Definition of coriaceous" . www.merriam-webster.com . Retrieved 2021-04-03 .
^
a
b Garcia, Tarcymara Barata; Potiguara, Raimunda Conceição de Vilhena; Kikuchi, Tatiani Yuriko Souza; Demarco, Diego; Aguiar-Dias, Ana Cristina Andrade de (September 2014).
"Leaf anatomical features of three Theobroma species (Malvaceae s.l.) native to the Brazilian Amazon" . Acta Amazonica . 44 (3): 291–300.
doi :
10.1590/1809-4392201300653 .
ISSN
0044-5967 .
^
"Definition of distichous" . Lexico.com . Oxford University Press. 2020. Archived from
the original on August 24, 2022. Retrieved 2021-04-03 .
^
"Cocoa Genebank" (PDF) . sta.uwi.edu . Retrieved 2021-04-03 .
^ Sharma, Santosh Kumar (June 2011).
"Cauliflory & Cannonball tree" (PDF) . NISCAIR Online Periodicals Repository . Retrieved 2021-04-03 .
^
a
b Barbosa, Lucinéia; Isadora; Hernández Ruz, Emil (2019-09-25).
"Primer registro de la dispersión de frutos de Theobroma speciosum" . Revista de la Academia Colombiana de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales . 43 (168): 518–520.
doi :
10.18257/raccefyn.891 .
ISSN
2382-4980 .
^ Young, Allen M.; Erickson, Barbara J.; Erickson, Eric H. (1989).
"Pollination biology of Theobroma and Herrania (Sterculiaceae)—III. Steam-distilled floral oils of Theobroma species as attractants to flying insects in a Costa Rican cocoa plantation*" . International Journal of Tropical Insect Science . 10 (1): 93–98.
doi :
10.1017/S1742758400003404 .
ISSN
0191-9040 .
S2CID
87003929 .
^
a
b Dardengo, Juliana De Freitas Encinas; Rossi, Ana Aparecida Bandini; Silva, Bruna Mezzalira da; Silva, Ivone Vieira da; Silva, Carolina Joana da; Sebbenn, Alexandre Magno (2016-07-01).
"Diversity and spatial genetic structure of a natural population of Theobroma speciosum (Malvaceae) in the Brazilian Amazon" . Revista de Biología Tropical . 64 (3): 1091–1099.
doi :
10.15517/rbt.v64i3.21461 .
ISSN
2215-2075 .
PMID
29461785 .
^ Gilabert‐Escrivá, M. Victoria; Gonçalves, Lireny A. G.; Silva, C. Rogério S.; Figueira, Antonio (2002).
"Fatty acid and triacylglycerol composition and thermal behaviour of fats from seeds of Brazilian Amazonian Theobroma species" . Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture . 82 (13): 1425–1431.
Bibcode :
2002JSFA...82.1425G .
doi :
10.1002/jsfa.1107 .
ISSN
1097-0010 .
^ Moreira Mar, Josiana; Souza da Silva, Laiane; Picanço Moreira, Wagner; Moraes Biondo, Matheus; Lada Degaut Pontes, Flávia; Ramos Campos, Francinete; Ferreira Kinupp, Valdely; Henrique Campelo, Pedro; Aparecido Sanches, Edgar; de Araújo Bezerra, Jaqueline (2021-03-29).
"Edible flowers from Theobroma speciosum: aqueous extract rich in antioxidant compounds" . Food Chemistry . 356 : 129723.
doi :
10.1016/j.foodchem.2021.129723 .
ISSN
0308-8146 .
PMID
33845252 .
^ Giustina, L. D.; Luz, L. N.; Vieira, F. S.; Rossi, F. S.; Soares-Lopes, C. R. A.; Pereira, T. N. S.; Rossi, A. A. B. (2014).
"Population structure and genetic diversity in natural populations of Theobroma speciosum Willd. Ex Spreng (Malvaceae)" (PDF) . Genetics and Molecular Research . 13 (2): 3510–3519.
doi :
10.4238/2014.February.14.5 .
PMID
24615108 .
^ Dardengo, Juliana De Freitas Encinas; Rossi, Ana Aparecida Bandini; Varella, Tatiane Lemes (2017-12-13).
"The effects of fragmentation on the genetic structure of Theobroma speciosum (Malvaceae) populations" . Revista de Biología Tropical . 66 (1): 218.
doi :
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ISSN
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^ Hyde, K. D.; Cai, L.; McKenzie, E. H. C.; Yang, Y. L.; Zhang, J. Z.; Prihastuti, H. (December 2009).
"Colletotrichum: A catalogue of confusion" . Fungal Diversity . 39 : 1–17 – via ResearchGate.
^
"Fungus Notes: Coco-Nut and Cacao Diseases" . Agricultural News . 14 : 30. 16 January 1915 – via Biodiversity Heritage Library.
^ Evans, H. C.; Bezerra, J. L.; Barreto, R. W. (2013).
"Of mushrooms and chocolate trees: aetiology and phylogeny of witches' broom and frosty pod diseases of cacao" . Plant Pathology . 62 (4): 728–740.
doi :
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ISSN
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