Cecropia is a Neotropical genus consisting of 61 recognized species with a highly distinctive lineage of dioecious trees.

The genus consists of pioneer trees in the more or less humid parts of the Neotropics, with the majority of the species being myrmecophytic. Berg and Rosselli state that the genus is characterized by some unusual traits: spathes fully enclosing the flower-bearing parts of the inflorescences until anthesis, patches of dense indumenta (trichilia) producing Müllerian bodies (food) at the base of the petiole, and anthers becoming detached at anthesis. The modern Angiosperm Phylogeny Group system places the "cecropiacean" group in the Urticaceae.

The genus is native to the American tropics, where it is one of the most recognizable components of the rainforest. The genus is named after Cecrops I, the mythical first king of Athens. Common local names in Venezuela include yarumo or yagrumo, or more specifically yagrumo hembra ("female yagrumo") to distinguish them from the similar-looking but unrelated Didymopanax (which are called yagrumo macho, "male yagrumo"). In English, these trees are occasionally called pumpwoods (though this may also refer to C. schreberiana specifically) or simply Cecropias. Spanish-speaking countries in Central America, Mexico, the Caribbean, Colombia, Ecuador commonly use the vernacular name, guarumo. Later based on the floral characters, most notably the basal ovule and gynoecium, which appears to be formed from a single carpel, Thorne (1976) moved it to the Malvanae- Urticales, family Urticaceae. Berg (1978), however, placed it in its own family Cecropiaceae. When phylogenetic data became available, Cecropia was then moved back into the Urticaceae.

Description

The genus is easily identified by its large, circular, palmately lobed leaves, about 30–40 cm in diameter and deeply divided into 7–11 lobes. The trees consist of very few branches, usually with candelabrum-like branching system. Many species have a narrow altitudinal and ecological niche, with certain species specializing in specific habitats, such as seasonally inundated habitats, rocky slopes, swamps, natural or man-made clearings, etc.

Species in the genus Cecropia are some of the most abundant pioneer tree species in natural tree-fall gaps inside primary forests. Its geographic distribution extends along the Pacific and Atlantic Mexican coasts and in Central and South American forests, and are found over an elevation range of 0 to 2,600 m. Cecropia species are among the most abundant pioneers of other neotropical forests. It is native to the Neotropics and occurs as an introduced exotic plant elsewhere. In most low-elevation, wet regions of the Neotropics, Cecropia trees are ubiquitous and important invaders of man-made clearings.

The species C. pachystachya and C. peltata are invasive species in Old World localities including Singapore, Cameroon, Java, Malaysia, Ivory Coast, French Polynesia, and Hawaii. C. peltata has been nominated as one of the “100 of the World’s Worst Invasive Alien Species” by the Global Invasive Species Database. and particularly nine-primaried oscines. The seeds are not normally digested, so these animals are important in distributing the trees.

Some birds – e.g. the common potoo (Nyctibius griseus) – nest in Cecropia trees. The elfin-woods warbler (Setophaga angelae) is notable for using Cecropia leaves as nesting material, which no other New World warbler (family Parulidae) seems to do.

Pioneer species

Cecropia is a major pioneer tree genus in regions of the Neotropics with wet lowland and montane forest. C. hololeuca, known in Brazil as "silver cecropia", has broad, silver-hued leaves that make it desirable as an ornamental plant for landscaping projects, as is the case with the similar species C. pachystachya. Greenhouse experiments have been performed with some species of Cecropia indicating them as “gap” and “pioneer” species under different light regimens and nutrient treatments. The genus Azteca is endemic to the New World and its greatest abundance is in the lowland tropics. In the article written by Davidson, 2005 Native peoples use Cecropia for food, firewood, and in herbalism; some species also have cultural significance. In Trinidad and Tobago, C. peltata root is chewed and given to dogs that have been bitten by venomous snakes as an emergency remedy (although there is no strong scientific evidence that this is useful). Cecropia leaves can be used as a substitute for sandpaper. and polymeric nanoparticles has been reported.

Selected species

thumb|[[Cecropia insignis foliage]]

thumb|[[Ambay pumpwood, Cecropia pachystachya]]

  • Cecropia angustifolia <small>Trécul</small>
  • Cecropia concolor <small>Willd.</small>
  • Cecropia glaziovii <small>Snethl.</small> &ndash; red cecropia
  • Cecropia hololeuca <small>Miq.</small><!-- "hololeucan" is lapsus -->
  • Cecropia insignis <small>Liebm.</small>
  • Cecropia longipes
  • Cecropia lyratiloba <small>Miq.</small>
  • Cecropia maxima
  • Cecropia maxonii
  • Cecropia multiflora
  • Cecropia myrtluca
  • Cecropia obtusa <small>Trécul</small>
  • Cecropia obtusifolia
  • Cecropia pachystachya <small>Trécul</small><!-- "pachystachia" is lapsus --> &ndash; Ambay pumpwood, ambay (= C. adenopus<!-- Mart. ex Miq. -->)
  • Cecropia palmata <small>Willd.</small>
  • Cecropia pastasana
  • Cecropia peltata <small>L.</small> &ndash; Shield-leaved pumpwood, bois canôt, "trumpet tree"
  • Cecropia pittieri
  • Cecropia polyphlebia
  • Cecropia polystachya <small>Trécul</small>
  • Cecropia schreberiana <small>Miq.</small>
  • Cecropia schreberiana ssp. antillarum <small>(Snethl.) C.C.Berg & P.Franco</small> (= C. antillarum<!-- Snethl. -->)
  • Cecropia schreberiana ssp. schreberiana
  • Cecropia sciadophylla <small>Mart.</small>
  • Cecropia utcubambana
  • Cecropia velutinella

References

  • Alvarez-Buylia, Elena and Andriana A. Garay. “Population Genetic Structure of Cecropia obtusifolia, A Tropical Pioneer Tree Species” Evolution, Vol. 48, No. 2 (Apr., 1994), pp.&nbsp;437–453. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2410103
  • Backes, Paulo & Irgang, Bruno - Mata Atlântica: as árvores e a paisagem. Porto Alegre, Paisagem do Sul, 2004.
  • Berg, C.C. and Pilar Franco Rosselli and Diane W. Davidson. 2005. “Cecropia” Flora Neotropica, Vol 94 pp.&nbsp;1–230. New York Botanical Garden Press. https://www.jstor.org/stable/4393938
  • Burger, W. 1977. Flora Costaricensis, Family #52, Moraceae. Fieldiana, Botany 40:94-215.
  • Engler, A 1964. Syllabus der Pflanzerfamilian, H.Melchior (ed.), 12th ed., vol. 2 Borntraeger, Berlin
  • Frisch, J.D. & Frisch, C.D. - Aves Brasileiras, 3rd. edition, S.Paulo, 2005,
  • Lok, A. F., Chong, K.Y, Nghiem, T. P, and H. T. Tan. “The Distribution and Ecology of Cecropia Species (Urticaceae) in Singapore” Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore. Nature in Singapore 2010 pages 199-200. Print.
  • Longino, John T. "The Cecropia-Azteca association in Costa Rica." Olympia, WA: The Evergreen State College, 2005. Print.
  • Longino, John T. "Cecropia of Costa Rica." Academic Program Pages at Evergreen. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Nov. 2011. <http://academic.evergreen.edu/projects/ants/antplants/CECROPIA/Cecropia.html >.
  • Judd, et al. Plant systematics. 2. ed. Sunderland: Sinauer Associates, 2002. Print.
  • (2007): Antidepressant-like effect of Cecropia glazioui Sneth<sup></sup> and its constituents &ndash; In vivo and in vitro characterization of the underlying mechanism. Phytomedicine 14(6): 396-402. <small></small> (HTML abstract)
  • Thorne, R. F. 1976. A phylogenetic classification of the Angiospermae. pp.&nbsp;35–106. In: Hecht, Steere, & Wallace, eds. Evolutionary Biology, Vol. 9. New York: Plenum Press.