Dipteryx oleifera
Species of tree
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dipteryx oleifera (syns. Dipteryx panamensis and Coumarouna panamensis), the tonka bean, eboe, choibá, or almendro tree (almond in Spanish), is a species of emergent rainforest tree up to 55 m (180 ft) tall[2] in the family Fabaceae (the subfamily Papilionoideae), native to Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, and Ecuador.[1][3][4]
| Dipteryx oleifera | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Fabales |
| Family: | Fabaceae |
| Subfamily: | Faboideae |
| Genus: | Dipteryx |
| Species: | D. oleifera |
| Binomial name | |
| Dipteryx oleifera | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
A valuable hardwood timber tree, its almond-flavored seeds are edible and sold in local markets.[5] Its seedpods are so oily that locals use them as torches.[6] It has "great potential" as an ornamental due to its spectacular bloom of pink flowers which lasts for weeks,[6] and is used as a street tree in Medellín, Colombia.[7] The flowers are followed by green fruit up to 6 cm (2.4 in) with seeds which are a critical food item for the great green macaw (Ara ambigua).[8]
Remarkably, this species has been identified as benefiting from being struck by lightning: it is almost undamaged while its parasitic vines and nearby competitors are killed.[2][9] The trees’ unusual height and wide crown make them up to 68 percent more likely to be struck by lightning relative to other similar trees, and trees living near a large almendro tree are 48 percent more likely to be killed by lightning than those living near another species. [10]
