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Erythrina
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Erythrina is a genus of tropical and subtropical flowering trees in the Family Fabaceae and distributed in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide. They grow up to 30 meters in height. There are about 130 species in the genus Erythrina
Particularly in horticulture, the name coral tree is used as a collective term for these plants. "Flame trees" is another vernacular name, but may refer to a number of unrelated plants as well.
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Erythrina is a genus of tropical and subtropical flowering trees in the Family Fabaceae and distributed in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide. They grow up to 30 meters in height. There are about 130 species in the genus Erythrina
Particularly in horticulture, the name coral tree is used as a collective term for these plants. "Flame trees" is another vernacular name, but may refer to a number of unrelated plants as well. Many species of Erythrina have bright red flowers – cf. Greek erythrós (e????ó?, "red") –, and this may be the origin of the common name. However, the growth of the branches can resemble the shape of sea coral rather than the color of Corallium rubrum specifically, and this is an alternative source for the name. Other popular names, usually local and particular to distinct species, liken the flowers' red hues to those of a male chicken's wattles, and/or the flower shape to its leg spurs. Commonly-seen Spanish names for any local species are bucaré, frejolillo or porotillo, and in Afrikaans some are called kaffirboom. Mullumurikku is a widespread name in Kerala.
Description and ecology
Not all species of Erythrina have bright red flowers; the Wiliwili (E. sandwicensis) has extraordinary variation in its flower colour, with orange, yellow, salmon, green and white all being found within natural populations. This striking color polymorphism is likely unique in the genus.
All species have bean-like seed pods, except the sterile hybrid E. × sykesii. The resilient buoyant seeds are often carried by the sea for large distances and are commonly-found "sea beans".
Erythrina leaves are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including the swift moth Endoclita damor and the woolly bears Hypercompe eridanus and Hypercompe icasia. The mite Tydeus munsteri is a pest on the Coastal Coral Tree (E. caffra).
Many birds visit the nectar-rich Erythrina flowers. In the Neotropics, these are usually larger hummingbirds, for example the Swallow-tailed Hummingbird (Eupetomena macroura) and the Black-throated (Anthracothorax nigricollis) and Green-breasted Mango (A. prevostii) – though they seem not to be especially fond of E. speciosa at least, which they visit rather opportunistically. In Southeast Asia, the Black Drongo (Dicrurus macrocercus) which usually does not eat nectar in quantity has been observed feeding on E. suberosa flowers, and mynas and of course more specialized nectar feeders also utilize coral tree flowers. Lorikeets such as the Collared Lory (Phigys solitarius) and the possibly extinct New Caledonian Lorikeet (Charmosyna diadema) are known to consume (or have consumed) large amounts of Erythrina nectar. The seeds are eaten by many birds, including the common Eurasian Blackbird (Turdus merula).
Use by humans
Some coral trees are used widely in the tropics and subtropics as street and park trees, especially in drier areas. In some places, such as Venezuela, bucarés are used as shade trees for coffee or cocoa crops. In the Bengal region, they are used for the same purpose in Schumannianthus dichotoma plantations. E. lanceolata in particular is considered highly suitable as "frame" tree for vanilla vines to grow up on.
The conspicuous, even dramatic coral trees are widely used as floral emblems. Cockspur Coral Tree (E. crista-galli) is the national flower of Argentina. The Coastal Coral Tree (E. caffra) is the official city tree of Los Angeles, California, where it is referred to simply as the "coral tree". The state trees of Mérida and Trujillo in Venezuela are bucare ceibo (E. poeppigiana) and Purple Coral Tree (bucare anauco, E. fusca), respectively. Yonabaru, Okinawa as well as the Okinawa Prefecture and Pathum Thani Province have the Indian Coral Tree (E. variegata) as floral emblems. Known as thong lang in Thailand, the latter species is also one of the thong ("trees") referred to in the name of Amphoe Chom Thong, Chiang Mai Province. In a similar vein, Zumpahuacán in Mexico derives its name from Nahuatl tzompahuacá, "place of the Erythrina americana".
In Hinduism, the mandara tree in Indra's garden in Svarga is held to be Erythrina stricta. The same motif is found in Tibetan Buddhism, where the man da ra ba growing in Sukhavati is identified as an Indian Coral Tree (E. variegata). The concept of the Five Trees of Paradise is also found in Christian Gnosticism. Though as none of the trees is identified as an Erythrina here, the concept might not be as directly related to the Asian religions as some presume.
The seeds of at least one-third of the species contain potent erythrina alkaloids, and some of these are used for medicinal and other purposes by indigenous peoples. They are all toxic to some degree however, and the seeds of some can cause fatal poisoning. The main active compounds in this genus generally seem to be alkaloids, such as Scoulerine, Erysodin and Erysovin (namely in E. flabelliformis), and the putative anxiolytic Erythravine (isolated from Mulungu, E. mulungu). Except for ornamental purposes, growing, selling or possessing Erythrina is prohibited by Louisiana State Act 159 (where the genus is misspelt Erythina).
Selected species
* Erythrina abyssinica DC.
- Erythrina americana Mill. – árbol de colorín
- Erythrina ankaranensis
- Erythrina atitlanensis Krukoff & Barneby
- Erythrina berteroana Urb.
- Erythrina burana
- Erythrina caffra – Coastal Coral Tree
- Erythrina corallodendron L.
- Erythrina coralloides – Flame Coral Tree, Naked Coral Tree
- Erythrina crista-galli – Cockspur Coral Tree, ceibo, seíbo, bucaré
- Erythrina decora Harms
- Erythrina edulis Micheli – Basul
- Erythrina eggersii – Cock's-spur, espuelo de gallo, pinon espinoso
- Erythrina elenae
- Erythrina euodiphylla
- Erythrina falcata – Brazilian Coral Tree
- Erythrina flabelliformis Kearney
- Erythrina fusca – Purple Coral Tree, bois immortelle, bucare anauco, bucayo, gallito
- Erythrina haerdii
- Erythrina hazomboay
- Erythrina herbacea – Coral Bean Cherokee Bean, Red Cardinal, Cardinal Spear
- Erythrina humeana – Natal Coral Tree, Dwarf Coral Tree, Dwarf Kaffirboom, Dwarf Erythrina
- Erythrina lanceolata Standl.
- Erythrina latissima E.Mey.
- Erythrina lysistemon – Common Coral Tree, Transvaal Kaffirboom, Lucky Bean Tree
- Erythrina madagascariensis
- Erythrina megistophylla
- Erythrina mulungu – Mulungu
- Erythrina perrieri
- Erythrina poeppigiana (Walp.) O.F.Cook – bucare ceibo
- Erythrina polychaeta
- Erythrina rubrinervia Kunth
- Erythrina sacleuxii
- Erythrina sandwicensis – Wiliwili
- Erythrina schimpffii
- Erythrina schliebenii – Lake Latumba Erythrina (extinct: 1938)
- Erythrina senegalensis DC.
- Erythrina speciosa Andrews
- Erythrina stricta Roxb. – Mandara
- Erythrina suberosa Roxb.
- Erythrina tahitensis
- Erythrina tuxtlana
- Erythrina variegata – Indian Coral Tree, Tiger's Claw, Sunshine Tree, Roluos Tree (Cambodia), deigo (Okinawa), drala (Fiji), madar (Bangladesh), man da ra ba (Tibet), thong lang (Thailand)
- Erythrina velutina Willd.
- Erythrina vespertilio – Bat's Wing Coral Tree, Grey Corkwood, "bean tree"
- Erythrina zeyheri Harv.
Horticultural hybrids:
- Erythrina × bidwillii Lindl.
- Erythrina × sykesii Barneby & Krukoff
E. monosperma is now Butea monosperma.
See also
External links
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