''Bursera glabrifolia'' is a species of tree native to central Mexico (

Guerrero Guerrero is one of the 32 states that comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 81 municipalities and its capital city is Chilpancingo and its largest city is Acapulcocopied from article, GuerreroAs of 2020, Guerrero the pop ...

, Morelos, Michoacán, México State, Puebla,

Oaxaca Oaxaca ( , also , , from nci, Huāxyacac ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Oaxaca ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca), is one of the 32 states that compose the political divisions of Mexico, Federative Entities of Mexico. It is ...

). ''Bursera glabrifolia'' is one of two species commonly referred to as copal. Copal is the wood most commonly used by the woodcarvers in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. The woodcarvers refer to ''Bursera glabrifolia'' as "macho" or male copal, which they like less than ''

Bursera bipinnata ''Bursera bipinnata'' is a Mesoamerican species of trees widespread across Mexico and Central America from Chihuahua to Honduras. ''Bursera bipinnata'' is one of two species commonly referred to as copal. Copal is the wood most commonly used by ...

'', which they refer to as "Hembra" or female copal. ''Bursera glabrifolia'' is a small tree native to the tropical dry forests of Mexico. It was first described by

Carl Sigismund Kunth Carl Sigismund Kunth (18 June 1788 – 22 March 1850), also Karl Sigismund Kunth or anglicized as Charles Sigismund Kunth, was a German botanist. He is known for being one of the first to study and categorise plants from the American continents, ...

in 1824 as ''Elaphrium glabrifolium'' and then transferred to the genus ''Bursera'' by

Adolf Engler Heinrich Gustav Adolf Engler (25 March 1844 – 10 October 1930) was a German botanist. He is notable for his work on plant taxonomy and phytogeography, such as ''Die natürlichen Pflanzenfamilien'' (''The Natural Plant Families''), edited with ...

in 1896.

References

glabrifolia Flora of Mexico Plants described in 1824 Woodcarving {{sapindales-stub