Cariniana legalis is a species of emergent rainforest tree in the Monkeypot family Lecythidaceae. It is found in the Atlantic forest of south-eastern Brazil, where is known as jequitibá-branco or jequitibá-rosa, and possibly found in Colombia, and Venezuela. These trees can be very large. A C. legalis measured by botanical explorer David Fairchild was 62 feet (19 meters) in circumference with no buttresses at six feet (two meters) above ground.[2]
| Cariniana legalis | |
|---|---|
Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Ericales |
| Family: | Lecythidaceae |
| Genus: | Cariniana |
| Species: | C. legalis |
| Binomial name | |
| Cariniana legalis (Martius) Kuntze | |
One of the biggest trees in the Atlantic Forest, there are some old trees in Santa Rita do Passa Quatro and near Petrópolis. One of these trees is more than 3 000 years old.
It is threatened by habitat loss.
Taxon identifiers | |
|---|---|
| Cariniana legalis |
|
| Couratari legalis |
|