Tiliaceae

From Rainforest Plants

Basswood Family

Apeiba membranacea Spruce ex Benth., a low canopy tree in the Tiliaceae. The venation patterns are very typical of the family, but other Malvales can look very similar. Un árbol del bajo dosel. Los patrones de las venas son característicos de esta familia; sin embargo, otros grupos en las Malvales tienen patrones similares.

Description: Tiliaceae are mainly canopy trees, especially prevalent in second-growth forest. Most of them have yellow flowers with many free stamens, and each genus has a distinctive and often bizarre-looking fruit (e.g. the “sea urchin” fruit of Apeiba membranacea). Vegetatively, Tiliaceae are hard to distinguish from other Malvalean families. Several leaf characters are important for identification. The genera here have leaves that are always simple and unlobed, and usually serrate. Most of them have a contrasting leaf underside (whitish or brownish).

Economic uses: In the temperate zone, the linden or plane tree (Tilia americana) is frequently planted as a shade tree.

Descripción: La mayoría de las Tiliaceas son árboles de dosel, muy comunes en bosque secundario. Muchas tienen flores amarillas con muchos estambres libres, y cada género tiene un fruto distintivo y usualmente de forma particular (p. ej. el fruto de Apeiba membranacea, que parece un erizo del mar). Por lo general, es difícil distinguir las Tiliaceas de otras familias de Malvales. Varias características de la hoja son útiles para identificación: los géneros de esta área tienen hojas simples, sin lóbulos, y usualmente con la margen serrada. Muchas tienen un contraste entre el haz y el envés (con el envés blancuzco o castaño).

Usos económicos: En las zonas templadas, se siembran muchos árboles de Tilia americana como sombrio.

Genera/species at La Selva: 7/7 (all trees/ todos árboles): Apeiba, Goethalsia, Heliocarpus, Luehea, Mortoniodendron, Triumfetta, Trichospermum.

FIELD MARKS – All have traits found in the large Malvaceae sensu lato, including alternate leaves, 3 main veins originating from base of leaf, serrate leaf margins, stellate hairs, mucilage, bark that peels in long strings, monadelphus stamens

Genera are best determined by their fruits.

Apieba membranacea – fruits resemble a sea urchin with a dense coating of short spines.

Apieba membranacea with palmate venation and rusty undersides due to a coating of stellate hairs. Apieba is common in the swamp forests of La Selva.	The fruit of Apieba membranacea resembles a sea urchin.
Flowers, fruit, and leaves of Apeiba tibourbou. There are two species of Apieba in Costa Rica. A. tibourbou is found in Pacific side of the country while A. membranacea is restricted to the Altantic lowlands. They are similar in appearance, except that the fruits of A. membranacea have spines that are shorter and stiffer.	Fruit of Apieba tibourbou, commonly called “monkey comb”. Note palmate venation of the leaf.

Trichospermum – fruit is a capsule containing flattened seeds with hairs.

Fruit and seed of Trichospermum.

Goethalsia meiantha

Goethalsia has alternate finely toothed leaves with palmate venation, swollen petioles, and elongate tips.	Goethalsia leaf showing palmate venation and swollen petiole common in Malvales.
Flowering branch of Goethalsia meiantha. This is one of the most common tree species at La Selva. Photo by R. Aguilar courtesy of La Flora Digital de la Selva.	The trunk of Goethalsia is light in color, buttressed, and fluted.