''Fusaea peruviana'' is a species of

plant Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae exclud ...

in the family Annonaceae. It is native to

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...

and

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

Robert Elias Fries (Klas) Robert Elias Fries (11 July 1876, Uppsala – 29 January 1966, Stockholm), the youngest son of Theodor Magnus Fries (1832–1913) and grandson of Elias Magnus Fries(1794–1878) and an expert on mushrooms. A Swedish botanist who was a mem ...

, the Swedish botanist who first formally described the species, named it after Peru where the specimen he examined was found near the

Huallaga River The Huallaga River is a tributary of the Marañón River, part of the Amazon Basin. Old names for this river include ''Guallaga'' and ''Rio de los Motilones''. The Huallaga is born on the slopes of the Andes in central Peru and joins the Marañón ...

and the city of

Yurimaguas Yurimaguas is a port town in the Loreto Region of the northeastern Peruvian Amazon. Historically associated with the Mainas missions, the culturally diverse town is affectionately known as the "Pearl of the Huallaga" (''Perla del Huallaga''). Yuri ...

Description

It is a tree reaching 15 meters in height and 15 centimeters in diameter. Its petioles are 3-8 by 2–4.5 millimeters and covered in 0.8 millimeter, gold-colored hairs. Its papery, oblong to oval leaves are 10-40 by 3-14 centimeters and come to tapering point that is up to 5 centimeters long. Its leaves. have 10-20 secondary veins emanating from either side of their midribs. The secondary veins emerge from the midrib at an angle of 50°-75°. Its inflorescences consist of 1-5 by 3-4 millimeter peduncles with 1-3 flowers. The inflorescences are in

internodes A stem is one of two main structural axes of a vascular plant, the other being the root. It supports leaves, flowers and fruits, transports water and dissolved substances between the roots and the shoots in the xylem and phloem, stores nutrien ...

. The peduncles are covered in white to yellow hairs up to 1.2 millimeters long. Each flower is on a 14-22 by 2-7 millimeter

pedicel Pedicle or pedicel may refer to: Human anatomy *Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures ...

covered in white to yellow hairs that are up to 1.2 millimeters long. Its creamy white flowers have 3 oval to triangular

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...

s that are 1-1.3 by 1.3-1.6 centimeters, with tips that come to a point. The outer surface of the sepals are sparsely to densely covered in white to yellow hairs, while their inner surface is hairless. Its flowers have 6 petals in two rows of 3. The outer petals are fused over the bottom 1/3 of their length and are 24-35 by 8-13 millimeters. The inner petals are 2-4 by 1.5-2 centimeters with tips that come to a point. The outer surfaces of the petals are covered in white to yellow hairs up to 1.2 millimeters long, while the hairs on the inner surfaces are up to 0.5 millimeters long, except the lower 1/3 which is hairless. Its flowers have numerous

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s. The roughly 40 oblong to oval outer stamens have a petal-like appearance and are 3.5-5 by 1.5-2 millimeters. The 200-300 inner stamens are yellow, and 2.5-3.5 millimeters long. Its flowers have 30-100

carpels Gynoecium (; ) is most commonly used as a collective term for the parts of a flower that produce ovules and ultimately develop into the fruit and seeds. The gynoecium is the innermost whorl of a flower; it consists of (one or more) ''pistils'' ...

situated in a concave receptacle. Its

ovaries The ovary is an organ in the female reproductive system that produces an ovum. When released, this travels down the fallopian tube into the uterus, where it may become fertilized by a sperm. There is an ovary () found on each side of the body. T ...

are 2-2.5 millimeters long. Its styles are2-2.5 millimeters. Its green to whitish fruit are 5-8 centimeters in diameter, and covered in 2-5 millimeter long projections. Its reddish brown, oval seeds are 14-22 by 7-8 millimeters.

Reproductive biology

The pollen of ''F. peruviana'' is shed as permanent tetrads.

Habitat and distribution

It has been observed growing in forest habitat with sandy or

laterite Laterite is both a soil and a rock type rich in iron and aluminium and is commonly considered to have formed in hot and wet tropical areas. Nearly all laterites are of rusty-red coloration, because of high iron oxide content. They develop by ...

soil, at elevations of 100-300 meters.

Uses

Its wood is used in the construction of houses in Peru.

References

Annonaceae Flora of Brazil Flora of Colombia Flora of Ecuador Flora of Peru Plants described in 1937 Taxa named by Robert Elias Fries {{Annonaceae-stub