Araceae
Dracontium

Dracontium spruceanum (Schott) G.H.Zhu

First published in Novon 6: 308 (1996)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Costa Rica to S. Tropical America. It is a tuberous geophyte and grows primarily in the wet tropical biome. It is used to treat unspecified medicinal disorders, as a medicine and for food.

Descriptions

Bernal, R., Gradstein, S.R. & Celis, M. (eds.). 2015. Catálogo de plantas y líquenes de Colombia. Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá. http://catalogoplantasdecolombia.unal.edu.co

Distribution
Nativa en Colombia; Alt. 0 - 1900 m.; Amazonia, Andes, Guayana y Serranía de La Macarena, Orinoquia, Pacífico, Valle del Cauca, Valle del Magdalena.
Morphology General Habit
Hierba
Conservation
No Evaluada
[CPLC]

Bernal, R., G. Galeano, A. Rodríguez, H. Sarmiento y M. Gutiérrez. 2017. Nombres Comunes de las Plantas de Colombia. http://www.biovirtual.unal.edu.co/nombrescomunes/

Vernacular
chupadera, coronilla, mapaná, palo de la equis, papa de culebra, papaculebra, papaindia
[UNAL]

Distribution
Biogeografic region: Amazonia, Andean, Guiana Shield, Orinoquia, Pacific. Elevation range: 0–1900 m a.s.l. Native to Colombia. Colombian departments: Amazonas, Antioquia, Boyacá, Caquetá, Cauca, Chocó, Meta, Nariño, Putumayo, Santander, Valle del Cauca, Vaupés.
Habit
Herb.
Conservation
National Red List of Colombia (2021): Potential LC.
Ecology
Habitat according IUCN Habitats Classification: forest and woodland, savanna, shrubland, native grassland, wetlands (inland), artificial - terrestrial.
[UPFC]

CATE Araceae, 17 Dec 2011. araceae.e-monocot.org

Diagnostic
Dracontium spruceanum is the most morphologically plastic and widely distributed species in the genus. It is characterized by its usually erect or slightly arching (non-cymbiform) spathe, which differentiates into a proximal tube and distal lamina (blade), with the translucent area of the inner spathe surface 1.5 to 3 times longer than the spadix, and by having the rachises of the leaf blades usually naked. Further, specimens collected near the type locality usually have a single ovule in each of two or three locules per ovary. Dracontium spruceanum shares a long peduncle with D. asperispathum, D. croatii, D. grandispathum, D. longipes, D. peruvianum, D. pittieri, and D. plowmanii. Dracontium croatii, D. pittieri, and D. peruvianum differ in having a cymbiform spathe that is not differentiated into a proximal tube and a distal lamina, whereas the others listed above have a non-cymbiform spathe that is constricted at the base to form a proximal tube and distal lamina. Dracontium powmanii differs from D. spruceanum (as well as D. aslperispathum and . D. grandispathum) in having smaller seeds with a single dorsal ridge and a spathe usually wrinkled along the margins. Dracontium asperispathum also differs from D. .spruceanum in having the inner spathe surface densely covered with translucent scales (vs. the inner spathe surface semiglossy in D. spruceanum). Finally, D. grandispathum differs from D. spruceanum in having a much larger spathe that is abruptly acuminate at the apex (45-50cm long and 10-15cm wide vs. 20-35cm long and 3-6cm wide and gradually acuminate for D. spruceanum).
Habitat
It occurs in Tropical moist forest (T-mf), Premontane wet forest (P-wf), and Tropical wet forest (T-wf) life zones (Holdridge et al., 1971).
Vernacular
"Tamá kida bari" ( La Rotta 586, COL); "chupadera" ( Archer 1729, US); "papayuëla" ( Idrobo & Cuatrecasas 2685, COL); "machaqui mandi" ( Alarcon 62, QCA); "jergón sacha" ( V á squez & Jaramillo 4938, MO)
Distribution
Dracontium spruceanum ranges from the Caribbean coastal plain of Costa Rica (Limón) to Colombia and Ecuador (on both sides of the Andes) and Amazonian Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela, and Brazil. It has also been collected from Surinam.
Phenology
Flowering throughout the year; mature fruits throughout the year.
[CATE]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

The Useful Plants of Boyacá project

Distribution
Native from Colombia.
Morphology General Habit
Herb.
Ecology
Alt. 0 - 1900 m.
Conservation
Not Evaluated.
[UPB]

Uses

Use Food
Used for food.
Use Medicines
Medical uses.
[UPFC]

Use Medicines Unspecified Medicinal Disorders
Medicinal (State of the World's Plants 2016, Instituto Humboldt 2014).
[UPB]

Common Names

Spanish
Coronilla, yerba de la equis, pa culebra.

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • CATE Araceae

    • Haigh, A., Clark, B., Reynolds, L., Mayo, S.J., Croat, T.B., Lay, L., Boyce, P.C., Mora, M., Bogner, J., Sellaro, M., Wong, S.Y., Kostelac, C., Grayum, M.H., Keating, R.C., Ruckert, G., Naylor, M.F. and Hay, A., CATE Araceae, 17 Dec 2011.
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Catálogo de Plantas y Líquenes de Colombia

    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Colombian resources for Plants made Accessible

    • ColPlantA 2021. Published on the Internet at http://colplanta.org
    • https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Universidad Nacional de Colombia

    • ColPlantA database
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Useful Plants and Fungi of Colombia

    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Useful Plants of Boyacá Project

    • ColPlantA database
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/