ChristineBabbidg at 16:22, 14 May 2026

2026-05-14T16:22:48Z

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{{short description|Species of flowering plant}}
{{Speciesbox
|image = CanonBall tree with flowers panmana kollam.jpg
|status = LR/lc
|status_system = IUCN2.3
|status_ref = <ref name="iucn status 18 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=Mitré, M. |date=1998 |title=''Couroupita guianensis'' |volume=1998 |article-number=e.T33969A9825349 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.1998.RLTS.T33969A9825349.en |access-date=18 November 2021}}</ref>
|genus = Couroupita
|species = guianensis
|authority = [[Jean Baptiste Christophore Fusée Aublet|Aubl.]]<ref name="POWO">{{cite web |url=https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:592385-1 |title=''Couroupita guianensis'' Aubl. |website=[[Plants of the World Online]] |publisher=[[Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew]] |year=2024 |access-date=29 August 2024}}</ref>
|synonyms = *''Couratari pedicellaris'' Rizzini
*''Couroupita acreensis'' R.Knuth
*''Couroupita antillana'' Miers
*''Couroupita froesii'' R.Knuth
*''Couroupita guianensis var. surinamensis '' (Mart. ex Berg) Eyma
*''Couroupita idolica '' Dwyer
*''Couroupita membranacea'' Miers
*''Couroupita peruviana '' O.Berg
*''Couroupita saintcroixiana '' R.Knuth
*''Couroupita surinamensis'' Mart. ex O.Berg
*''Couroupita venezuelensis '' R.Knuth
*''Lecythis bracteata '' Willd.
*''Pekea couroupita '' Juss. ex DC.
|synonyms_ref = {{R|POWO}}
}}

'''''Couroupita guianensis''''', known by a variety of common names including Salakalyana and '''cannonball tree''',<ref>{{cite EB1911 |wstitle=Cannon-ball Tree|volume=5|page=189}}</ref> is a [[deciduous]] tree in the [[flowering plant]] family [[Lecythidaceae]]. It is native to lowland tropical rainforests of Central and South America, from Costa Rica, south to Brazil and northern Bolivia<ref name="iucn status 18 November 2021" /> and it is cultivated in many other tropical areas throughout the world because of its fragrant flowers and large fruit, which are brownish grey.<ref name=grin>{{GRIN | accessdate = 21 December 2017}}</ref> There are potential medicinal uses for many parts of ''Couroupita guianensis'', and the tree has cultural and religious significance in South and Southeast Asia.{{R|ALDHABI}} In Sri Lanka and India, the cannonball tree has been widely misidentified as the [[Shorea robusta|Sal]] tree (''Shorea robusta''), after its introduction to the island by the British in 1881, and has been included as a common item in Buddhist temples as a result.{{R|MONGABAY}}

==Description==
''Couroupita guianensis'' is a tree that reaches heights of up to {{convert|35|m|ft|-1}}. The leaves, which occur in clusters at the ends of branches, are usually {{cvt|8|to|31|cm}} long, but can reach lengths of up to {{cvt|57|cm|in|abbr=on}}.{{R|NYBG}}

===Flowers===
The flowers are borne in [[raceme]]s up to {{cvt|80|cm|in|abbr=on}} long produced directly on the tree's trunk. They are considered an extreme example of [[cauliflory]] named flagelliflory.{{whom|date=August 2024}}{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}} Some trees flower profusely until the entire trunk is covered with racemes. One tree can hold as many as 1000 flowers per day. The flowers are strongly scented, and are especially fragrant at night{{R|BROWN}} and in the early morning.<ref name="NYBG"/> They are up to {{cvt|6|cm|in|abbr=on}} in diameter, with six petals, and are typically brightly coloured, with the petals ranging from shades of pink and red near the bases to yellowish toward the tips. There are two areas of [[stamen]]s: a ring of stamens at the centre, and an arrangement of stamens that have been modified into a hood.<ref name="NYBG"/>

===Fruit===
The fruit is spherical with a woody shell, and reaches a diameter of up to {{cvt|25|cm|in|0|abbr=on}}, giving the species the common name '''"cannonball tree"'''. Smaller fruit may contain about 65 seeds, while large ones can hold as many as 550.<ref name="NYBG"/> One tree can bear 150 fruit at a time. The fruit takes up to a year to mature in most areas, sometimes as long as 18 months.<ref>American Horticulture, (Summer 1971) p. 136</ref> The fruit flesh is white and turns blue upon oxidation, a reaction with air. Tropical nature photographer [[Kjell Sandved]] was nearly hit by a falling cannonball fruit, which weighed {{cvt|1|kg|lb}}, probably an average weight.<ref>{{ cite book | last1= Sandved | first1= Kjell | last2= Emsley | first2= Michael | date= 1979 | title= Rain Forests and Cloud Forests | location= New York | publisher= Harry N. Abrams Inc | pages= 20-21 | isbn= 0-8109-1551-0 }}</ref>

==Scientific name==
The tree was named ''Couroupita guianensis'' by the French botanist [[Jean Baptiste Christophore Fusée Aublet]] in 1775.

The Latin [[binomial nomenclature|specific epithet]] ''guianensis'' means "of the [[Guianas]]", an area of northeastern South America.<ref name=RHSLG>{{cite book |last=Harrison |first=Lorraine |title=RHS Latin for Gardeners |year=2012 |publisher=Mitchell Beazley |location=United Kingdom |isbn=978-1-84533-731-5}}</ref>

==Pollination==
Although the flowers lack nectar, they are very attractive to bees, which come for the pollen. The flowers produce two types of pollen: fertile pollen from the ring stamens, and sterile pollen from the hood structure. The pollinators must work their way between the two areas of stamens as they gather the pollen. The [[carpenter bee]] ''[[Xylocopa brasilianorum]]'' is a common pollinator of cultivated trees in Rio de Janeiro, just outside the tree's native range. Other carpenter bees such as ''[[Xylocopa frontalis]]'', as well as wasps, flower flies, and bumblebees, are also known to visit the flowers.<ref name="NYBG"/>

==Dispersal==
The seeds are dispersed by animals that feed on the fruit. When the fruit falls to the ground, the hard, woody shell usually cracks open, exposing the pulp and seeds. Fruit that remain whole may be broken open by animals such as [[peccary|peccaries]]. Many animals feed on the pulp and seeds, including peccaries, the [[Lowland paca|paca]], and domestic chickens and pigs. The seeds are covered with [[trichome]]s which may protect them as they pass through the animals' digestive systems.<ref name="NYBG"/>

==Human uses==
''Couroupita guianensis'' is planted as an ornamental tree for its showy, scented flowers, and as a botanical specimen for its fruit.<ref name="NYBG"/>

The fruit is edible but is not usually eaten by people because, in contrast to its intensely fragrant flowers, it can have an unpleasant smell.{{R|LIM}}

Parts of the plant have been used in traditional medicine. It has been used to treat hypertension, tumors, pain, and inflammation, the common cold, stomachache, skin conditions and wounds, malaria, and toothache, although data on its efficacy are lacking.{{R|ALDHABI}}

The fruit and flowers are known to contain the chemical compounds [[indigotin]] and [[indirubin]], the same blue dye compounds contained by the indigo plant (''Indigofera tinctoria''), and studies are being made of its possible use as a natural dye for fibres.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Tayade |first1=Priti B. |last2=Adivarekar |first2=Ravindra V. |date=2014-10-01 |title=Extraction of Indigo dye from ''Couroupita guianensis'' and its application on cotton fabric |journal=Fashion and Textiles |volume=1 |issue=1 |page=16 |doi=10.1186/s40691-014-0016-3 |doi-access=free |issn=2198-0802}}</ref>

==Cultural significance==
While the tree is not native to Asia, having only been introduced there in the last 300 years, its identity has been conflated with other trees mentioned in Hindu and Buddhist scripture, especially the Sal tree. In India and Sri Lanka, the tree is venerated by Hindus, who believe its hooded flowers look like the [[nāga]] under which the white stigma looks like a [[Lingam]], and hence, it is grown at [[Jyotirlinga|Shiva temples]].{{R|ALDHABI}} The cannonball tree has since then been planted at Buddhist and Hindu religious sites in Asia in the belief that it is the tree of sacred scriptures. In Sri Lanka, Thailand and other Theravada Buddhist countries it has been planted at Buddhist monasteries and other religious sites.{{R|MONGABAY}}

==Gallery==
<gallery>
Image:Flower of couroupita guianensis.jpg|A flower ([[Singapore Botanic Gardens]])
Image:Naglingam (Couroupita guianensis) young leaves in Hyderabad, AP W IMG 6606.jpg|Leaves (Hyderabad, India)
Image:নাগলিঙ্গম ফুলের কলি.jpg|Inflorescences with flowers in bud (Dhaka, Bangladesh)
Image:Cannonball tree flower buds.JPG|Flower buds close up (Maharashtra, India)
Image:Canonball Flower P1030858.JPG|Flowers
Image:Couroupita guianensis fleur en coupe.jpg|Flower in longitudinal section showing ovary (Jardín Botánico de Cienfuegos, Cuba)
Image:Couroupita_guianensis_fruits.JPG|Fruit (Tamil Nadu, India)
Image:Cannonball tree fruit, Waimea Botanical Garden (2024)-104A4065.jpg|Fruit at Waimea Botanical Garden on the island of O'ahu, Hawaiʻi
Image:Cannonball tree (Couroupita guianensis) trunk.jpg|Tree trunk (Kolkata, India)
</gallery>

==References==
{{Commonscat}}
{{Wikispecies|Couroupita guianensis}}
{{Reflist|refs=
<ref name="BROWN">{{cite web |last1=Brown |first1=Stephen H. |title=Couroupita guianensis |url=http://lee.ifas.ufl.edu/Hort/GardenPubsAZ/CouroupitaGuianensisCannonballTree.pdf |website=UF/IFAS Extension |publisher=University of Florida |access-date=28 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170630075751/http://lee.ifas.ufl.edu/Hort/GardenPubsAZ/CouroupitaGuianensisCannonballTree.pdf |archive-date=30 June 2017 }}</ref>

<ref name="MONGABAY">{{Cite web |last=Rodrigo |first=Malaka |date=27 July 2020 |title=In Sri Lanka, a South American flower usurps a tree sacred to Buddhists and Hindus |website=Mongabay |url=https://news.mongabay.com/2020/07/in-sri-lanka-a-south-american-flower-usurps-a-tree-sacred-to-buddhists-and-hindus/ |access-date=29 August 2024}}</ref>

<ref name="NYBG">{{cite web |last1=Mori |first1=Scott A. |last2=Smith |first2=Nathan P. |last3=Cornejo |first3=X. |last4=Prance |first4=Ghillean T. |title=Lecythidaceae – the Brazil nut family |url=https://sweetgum.nybg.org/science/projects/lp/?irn=133473 |website=New York Botanical Garden |access-date=29 August 2024}}</ref>

<ref name="LIM">{{cite book |last1=Lim |first1=T.K. |title=Edible Medicinal And Non-Medicinal Plants |volume=3 |date=2012 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-94-007-2533-1 |pages=133–137 |doi=10.1007/978-94-007-2534-8_14}}</ref>

<ref name="ALDHABI">{{cite journal |last1=Al-Dhabi |first1=N. A. |last2=Balachandran |first2=C. |last3=Raj |first3=M. K. |last4=Duraipandiyan |first4=V. |last5=Muthukumar |first5=C. |last6=Ignacimuthu |first6=S. |last7=Khan |first7=I. A. |last8=Rajput |first8=V. S. |title=Antimicrobial, antimycobacterial and antibiofilm properties of ''Couroupita guianensis'' Aubl. fruit extract |journal=BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine |date=2012 |volume=12 |issue=242 |page=242 |doi=10.1186/1472-6882-12-242 |doi-access=free |pmid=23206492|pmc=3537531 }}</ref>
}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q161823}}

[[Category:Lecythidaceae]]
[[Category:Trees of western South America]]
[[Category:Trees of northern South America]]
[[Category:Trees of Brazil]]
[[Category:Least concern flora of Central America]]
[[Category:Least concern flora of South America]]
[[Category:Medicinal plants]]
[[Category:Plants described in 1775]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Jean Baptiste Christophore Fusée Aublet]]

Couroupita guianensis - Revision history

ChristineBabbidg at 16:22, 14 May 2026