''Hymenaea verrucosa'' (Zanzibar copal, East African copal, or Amber tree) is a
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
of
flowering plant
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...
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 belongs to the
paraphyletic
In taxonomy (general), taxonomy, a group is paraphyletic if it consists of the group's most recent common ancestor, last common ancestor and most of its descendants, excluding a few Monophyly, monophyletic subgroups. The group is said to be pa ...
subfamily
Caesalpinioideae
Caesalpinioideae is a botanical name at the rank of subfamily, placed in the large family Fabaceae or Leguminosae. Its name is formed from the generic name ''Caesalpinia''. It is known also as the peacock flower subfamily. The Caesalpinioideae ...
. It is a large tree native to the
tropical
The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in
the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...
regions of
East Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa:
Due to the historical ...
and is
cultivated in many tropical parts of the world.
[George W. Staples and Derral R. Herbst. 2005. ''A Tropical Garden Flora''. Bishop Museum Press: Honolulu, HI, USA.] The species is currently treated as a species of ''Hymenaea'', though a few authors isolate it into a separate monospecific genus ''Trachylobium'' as ''Trachylobium verrucosum''.
[Gwilym Lewis, Brian Schrire, Barbara MacKinder, and Mike Lock. 2005. ''Legumes of the World''. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew: Richmond, England.]
Copal resin from Hymenaea verrucosa (Fabaceae) is found in East Africa and is used in incense. By the 18th century, Europeans found it to be a valuable ingredient in making a good wood varnish. It became widely used in the manufacture of furniture and carriages. It was also sometimes used as a picture varnish.
By the late 19th and early 20th century varnish manufacturers in England and America were using it on train carriages, greatly swelling its demand. In 1859 Americans consumed 68 percent of the East African trade, which was controlled through the Sultan of Zanzibar, with Germany receiving 24 percent. The American Civil War and the creation of the Suez Canal led to Germany, India and Hong Kong taking the majority by the end of that century.
References
verrucosa
''Verrucosa'' is a genus of Araneidae, orb-weaver spiders first described by Henry Christopher McCook, Henry McCook in 1888. It contains almost fifty described species, most of which live in South America. The only species in the United States is ...
{{Detarioideae-stub