''Dalbergia stevensonii'', also called Honduras rosewood, is a

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

n tree species in the

legume A legume () is a plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seed of such a plant. When used as a dry grain, the seed is also called a pulse. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consumption, for livestock f ...

family. It grows in broadleaf evergreen swamp forests in southern

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

and adjacent

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

and

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 wood is highly valuable, which has led to population loss from

illegal logging Illegal logging is the harvest, transportation, purchase or sale of timber in violation of laws. The harvesting procedure itself may be illegal, including using corrupt means to gain access to forests; extraction without permission, or from a pro ...

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Description

It is a medium-sized tree, reaching 15–30 m in height and 91 cm in diameter. The bole tends to fork 6–8 m above the ground.

Habitat

''Dalbergia stevensonii'' is found in seasonally and permanently flooded tropical evergreen broad-leaved lowland swamp forests. The rarity of this habitat limits the distribution of this species. It can be found in the Toledo district of Belize. In Honduras and Guatemala, it is found in broad-leaved forests; in Mexico, the species has been found in evergreen rainforests and oak forests. The population is likely to be shrinking from habitat loss and timber extraction. Information about the role of ''Dalbergia stevensonii'' in the wider forest ecosystem is very limited. Like other legumes, it fixes nitrogen, which is important for improving soil fertility.

Wood

''Dalbergia stevensonii'' is known for its colorful wood. There is a clear border between sapwood and heartwood and distinct light and dark bands that form beautiful tree rings. The color of the surface is greyish and in the middle of the tree, it is pinkish or purple-brown. The wood is very heavy and durable; dry wood weighs on average 960 kg per cubic meter. ''Dalbergia stevensonii'' is regarded as a good material for musical instruments. It is used for making the bars of

marimba The marimba () is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars that are struck by mallets. Below each bar is a resonator pipe that amplifies particular harmonics of its sound. Compared to the xylophone, the timbre ...

s and

xylophone The xylophone (; ) is a musical instrument in the percussion family that consists of wooden bars struck by mallets. Like the glockenspiel (which uses metal bars), the xylophone essentially consists of a set of tuned wooden keys arranged in the ...

s. Due to its high density and toughness, it is a better choice than

Brazilian rosewood ''Dalbergia nigra'', commonly known as the Bahia rosewood, jacarandá-da-Bahia, Brazilian rosewood, Rio rosewood, jacarandá-do-brasil, pianowood, caviúna, graúna, jacarandá-una or obuina is a species of legume in the family Fabaceae. Descri ...

. It is widely used in guitars, furniture, banjos, and sculptures. In Asia, it is used to make furniture and veneer. In Belize, it used to make small items such as bowls and woodcarvings.

Global market

Global demand for ''Dalbergia stevensonii'' is high and increasing. Since the tree is rare in the wild and does not grow very large, and only the inner heartwood is considered commercially valuable, wood production is very limited, adding to its value. It is used as a substitute for Brazilian rosewood, and the decreased trade volume of that species has also increased the demand for ''Dalbergia stevensonii''. ''Dalbergia stevensonii'' is exported from Guatemala mainly to Japan, El Salvador, the USA, Germany, Belize and the Netherlands. As in the early 20th century, logging is a main economic activity in Belize. Belize banned the export of ''Dalbergia stevensonii'' in 1992 except for finished or half-finished products. In 1996, legislation was changed to allow the export of logs. The increased accessibility of its habitat and the decline in stocks of other rosewoods could lead to increasing logging of the species.

Protection

Efforts to protect the species have not always been successful. Some workers trying to protect this species have even been killed in Guatemala. Illegal logging, including cross-border logging, is the most serious danger to ''Dalbergia stevensonii''. It is difficult for governments to control the smuggling of ''Dalbergia stevensonii'', and buyers may not know the real country of origin of the wood products. In addition, timber is often transported at night and there may be no official forest sector stamp. It may also be indirectly harmed by farm activities. One example is when farmers disregard the rule that new farms carved out from forest should leave a belt of 20 m of forest along the waterway. This is important to plants like ''Dalbergia stevensonii'' that are found near rivers. Belize has restricted the cutting of ''Dalbergia stevensonii'' and requires a license to do so, but there is not enough funding for environmental protection. In response to the widespread damage caused by the 2001 hurricane in the Toledo region of Belize, the Yaksak Conservation Trust established a tree-planting program focusing on planting seedlings of species that have historically been harvested, including ''Dalbergia stevensonii''. Belize already protects 36% of its land area.

Artificial propagation

''Dalbergia stevensonii'' has not been widely grown in plantations, despite its commercial suitability. For instance, tree stumps sprout freely, produce heartwood quickly, and with careful attention can produce valuable wood in a relatively short period of time. However, germination is difficult. A germination test in southern Belize in 2012 found tiny white caterpillars in most of the seeds. Very few seeds germinate and seedlings cannot survive for more than a few months. This may partially explain why there are no known plantations in Belize. In Guatemala, there are no data on acreage and plantation harvest.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q15532192 stevensonii