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Ceiba pentandra
Ceiba pentandra is a tropical tree of the order Malvales and the family Malvaceae (previously placed in the family Bombacaceae), native to Central America, the Caribbean, and the northern half of South America; some authors also consider it native in western and central Africa. It is widely introduced in other tropical regions including South and Southeast Asia, where it is cultivated.
The tree and the cotton-like fluff obtained from its seed pods are commonly known in English as kapok, a Malay-derived name which originally applied to the related species Bombax ceiba, a native of tropical Asia. In Spanish-speaking countries the tree is commonly known as "ceiba" and in French-speaking countries as fromager. The tree is cultivated for its cottonlike seed fibre, particularly in south-east Asia, and is also known as the Java cotton, Java kapok, silk-cotton or samauma.
The tree grows up to a maximum verified height of 60.4 metres (198 ft) tall as confirmed by laser measurement, but with unverified claims of specimens up to 77 m (253 ft) tall.[better source needed] These very large trees are in the Neotropics or tropical Africa. In Southeast Asia C. pentandra often only reaches 27 m (90 ft). Trunks can often be up to 3 m (10 ft) in diameter above the extensive buttress roots. The very largest individuals, however, can be 5.8 m (19 ft) thick or more above the buttresses.
The buttress roots can be clearly seen in photographs extending 12 to 15 m (40 to 50 ft) up the trunk of some specimens and extending out from the trunk as much as 20 m (65 ft) and then continuing below ground to a total length of 50 m (165 ft)
The trunk and many of the larger branches are often crowded with large simple thorns. These major branches, usually 4 to 6 in number, can be up to 1.8 m (6 ft) thick and form a crown of foliage as much as 60 m (200 ft) in width. The palmately divided leaves are composed of 5–9 (–15) leaflets, the leaflets 5–21 cm (2–8 in) long and 2–6.5 cm (1–3 in) broad.
The tree is briefly deciduous, and it is during this leafless period that it flowers, with umbels of large flowers ranging from creamy white to red. After blooming, the trees produce several hundred 15 cm (6 in) pods containing seeds surrounded by a fluffy, yellowish fibre that is a mix of lignin and cellulose.
Ceiba pentandra originated in the American tropics. Although it is generally thought to have been introduced to Africa by humans, there is no historical evidence of this, and there is strong ecological, botanical and cytological evidence that the tree is native to western and central Africa. The dispersal mechanism by which the tree may have crossed the Atlantic Ocean is uncertain, but the fruits float, and could have been transported by ocean currents. Domesticated in West Africa, Ceiba pentandra is possibly native from Cape Verde eastwards to Chad and southwards to Angola. It has been introduced from there to East Africa and Asia.
Ceiba pentandra is generally considered monotypic with no infraspecific taxa, though some authors have divided it into three genetic varieties:
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Ceiba pentandra
Ceiba pentandra is a tropical tree of the order Malvales and the family Malvaceae (previously placed in the family Bombacaceae), native to Central America, the Caribbean, and the northern half of South America; some authors also consider it native in western and central Africa. It is widely introduced in other tropical regions including South and Southeast Asia, where it is cultivated.
The tree and the cotton-like fluff obtained from its seed pods are commonly known in English as kapok, a Malay-derived name which originally applied to the related species Bombax ceiba, a native of tropical Asia. In Spanish-speaking countries the tree is commonly known as "ceiba" and in French-speaking countries as fromager. The tree is cultivated for its cottonlike seed fibre, particularly in south-east Asia, and is also known as the Java cotton, Java kapok, silk-cotton or samauma.
The tree grows up to a maximum verified height of 60.4 metres (198 ft) tall as confirmed by laser measurement, but with unverified claims of specimens up to 77 m (253 ft) tall.[better source needed] These very large trees are in the Neotropics or tropical Africa. In Southeast Asia C. pentandra often only reaches 27 m (90 ft). Trunks can often be up to 3 m (10 ft) in diameter above the extensive buttress roots. The very largest individuals, however, can be 5.8 m (19 ft) thick or more above the buttresses.
The buttress roots can be clearly seen in photographs extending 12 to 15 m (40 to 50 ft) up the trunk of some specimens and extending out from the trunk as much as 20 m (65 ft) and then continuing below ground to a total length of 50 m (165 ft)
The trunk and many of the larger branches are often crowded with large simple thorns. These major branches, usually 4 to 6 in number, can be up to 1.8 m (6 ft) thick and form a crown of foliage as much as 60 m (200 ft) in width. The palmately divided leaves are composed of 5–9 (–15) leaflets, the leaflets 5–21 cm (2–8 in) long and 2–6.5 cm (1–3 in) broad.
The tree is briefly deciduous, and it is during this leafless period that it flowers, with umbels of large flowers ranging from creamy white to red. After blooming, the trees produce several hundred 15 cm (6 in) pods containing seeds surrounded by a fluffy, yellowish fibre that is a mix of lignin and cellulose.
Ceiba pentandra originated in the American tropics. Although it is generally thought to have been introduced to Africa by humans, there is no historical evidence of this, and there is strong ecological, botanical and cytological evidence that the tree is native to western and central Africa. The dispersal mechanism by which the tree may have crossed the Atlantic Ocean is uncertain, but the fruits float, and could have been transported by ocean currents. Domesticated in West Africa, Ceiba pentandra is possibly native from Cape Verde eastwards to Chad and southwards to Angola. It has been introduced from there to East Africa and Asia.
Ceiba pentandra is generally considered monotypic with no infraspecific taxa, though some authors have divided it into three genetic varieties: