General information
Angico tree in a countryside area (nearby Mossoró/RN, Brazil).
Scientific nomenclature
According to Carvalho (2007), Anadenanthera colubrina‘s taxonomy follows this hierarchy: Division – Magnoliophyta (Angiospermae); Class – Magnoliopsida (dicotiledonae); Order – Fabales; Family – Mimosaceae (Leguminosae Mimosoideae); Species – Anadenanthera colubrina (Vellozo). Botanical synonyms: Acacia colubrina Martius; Anadenahtera colubrine (Vellozo) Brenan; Mimosa colubrina Vellozo; Piptadenia colubrina (Vellozo) Bentham.
Local names
Depending on where it is found, it may known as: angico (states of Bahia, Minas Gerais, Paraná, Rio de Janeiro, and São Paulo); angico-branco-liso, curupaí and curupaíba (state of São Paulo); angico-vermelho (states of Paraná and Rio de Janeiro; and aperta-ruão.
Geographical distribution
It is established in distinct fragments of the Cerrado biome, and others Brazilian biomes as well, especially in the deciduous seasonal forest, in the Caatinga (PEGADO et al., 2006) and dry limestone areas of Pantanal (POTT; POTT; DAMASCENO JÚNIOR, 2009). On the other side, in a study made by Lorenzi (2008), this species was found in areas between the states of Maranhão, Paraná, and Goiás, in rain forests located 400 m above sea level.
Cultural and economic importance
Used in the construction industry, hydraulic projects, and fabrication of railroad ties. May also be used in beautification of park and town squares, and in a reconstitution of degraded areas for preservation. In addition, angico-branco is a plant with great potential use in apiculture and medicine (CARVALHO, 2003).
Ecological importance
For Maia (2004) Anadenanthera colubrina (Vell.) is a deciduous and heliophyte plant, which tolerates light shading in its juvenile phase. It is a pioneer species or of secondary succession, with fast growth, growing indifferently under shade or in sunlight, in dry or moist soils, with a preference for fertile and deep soils. Great adaptability to different kinds of soil; tolerates shallow and compacted soils, but does not grow very well in flooded areas.
Botanic description
Size, crown shape, color, growth habit
Brazillian species averaging heights of 12 to 15 m, with trunks between 30 and 50 cm (98.4 to 164in) in diameter. Fast growth but it does not grow too old.
Vegetative characteristics
- Stem
Straight trunk when grown in deep fertile soil, while in tablelands and slopes trunks are tortuous.
Tortuous trunk of an Angico tree.
- Bark
A great variability is seen for color (light, grayish, reddish-brown, dark) and texture (filled with thorns, dark, rough, with protruding edges; or with few thorns; or smooth, with no thorns at all, and shallow longitudinal cracks). If injured, exudates a yellowish and reddish resin.
Details of an Angico’s trunk.
- Leaves
Alternate compound leaves in a spiral, stipulated, with glands in the petiole, presenting 15-20 pair of leaflets. 20 to 80 pairs of opposite leaflets, from glabrous to glabrascent, with 4 to 6 mm length.
Leaves of an Angico tree.
- Flower/inflorescence
White actinomorphic flowers, with calyx and corolla and with long pedicels, are gathered in a globose umbel along terminal and axillary panicles.
- Fruit and seeds
Flattened follicle, rough, dehiscent, with brown and similarly flattened seeds that show a pleurogram on its surface. Dehiscent pods stay attached to mother-plant after seed dispersion until next fruiting season. Angico may begin flowering as early as 3 years old.
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REFERENCES
- CARVALHO, P. E. R. Espécies arbóreas brasileiras. Brasília/Colombo: Embrapa Informação Tecnológica & Embrapa Florestas. p. 1-15. 2003.
- LORENZI, H. Árvores brasileiras: manual de identificação e cultivo de plantas arbóreas do Brasil. 5. ed. Nova Odessa, SP: Instituto Plantarum. 2008. 384 p.
- MAIA, G. N. Caatinga: árvores e arbustos e suas utilidades. 1. ed. São Paulo: D & Z Computação Gráfica e Editora, 2004. 413p.
- PEGADO, C. M. A. et al. Efeitos da invasão biológica de algaroba – Prosopis juliflora (Sw.) DC. sobre a decomposição e a estrutura do estrato arbustivo-arbóreo da caatinga no município de Monteiro, PB, Brasil. Acta Botanica Brasilica, Belo Horizonte v. 20, n. 4, p. 887-898, 2006.
- POTT, A.; POTT, V. J.; DAMASCENO JÚNIOR, G. A. Fitogeografia do Pantanal. In: CONGRESSO DE ECOLOGIA DO BRASIL, 9, 2009, São Lourenço. Anais… Sociedade de Ecologia do Brasil: São Lourenço, 2009, p. 1-3.