Subfamily: Faboideae.
Phylogenetic Number: 3.4.06.
Tribe: Dalbergieae.
Group: Dalbergia.
Species Studied - Species in Genus: 73 studied; ca. 120 in genus.
Fruit: A legume; unilocular; 2–9.5 cm long; 0.6–4 cm wide; 0.17–0.5 cm thick; 2–9 times longer than wide; with deciduous androecial sheath; with deciduous corolla; with deciduous calyx, or persistent calyx; with calyx shorter than fruit; without orifice formed by curving of fruit or fruit segments, or with orifice formed by curving of fruit or fruit segments; straight, or curved, or 0.5-coiled, or 1-coiled; not plicate; not twisted; asymmetrical; falcate, or C-shaped, or coiled, or circular, or samaroid; with both sutures parallelly curved, or both sutures unequally curved; not inflated; flattened, or compressed; without beak; rounded at apex, or short tapered at apex; aligned with longitudinal axis of fruit, or right-angled with longitudinal axis of fruit; rounded at base; aligned with longitudinal axis of fruit, or right angled with longitudinal axis of fruit; with the apex and base uniform in texture; coriaceous, or ligneous; seed chambers externally invisible; margin not constricted; margin without sulcus; margin embellished, or plain; margin with wing(s); wing(s) absent, or present; wing(s) 0–30; wing(s) samaroid; wing(s) apical (and usually straight with seed chamber straight to curved or sharply bent (to 90 degrees in M. robiniifolium (A.P. de Candolle) J.R.T. Vogel )); wing(s) on 1 suture; stipitate, or substipitate; with the stipe 2.5–10 mm long; indehiscent. Replum invisible. Epicarp dull; monochrome, or multicolored; bichrome (wing reddish-brown and seed chamber greenish-brown); brown (to dark or light reddish); with surface texture uniform; glabrous, or glabrate, or pubescent and indurate; with hairs appressed, or erect; with 1 type of pubescence; puberulent; with pubescence gray, or brown (reddish); with pubescence uniformly distributed; with simple hairs; pliable; with hair bases plain; eglandular; without spines; not smooth; with elevated features; veined; reticulately veined (especially wings); not tuberculate; warty (well developed on seed chamber of M. quinta (J.C.B.F. Aublet) N.Y. Sandwith); not exfoliating; with cracks (somewhat checking over seed chamber), or without cracks; cracking irregular; without embedded tissue, much thicker than epicarp, running from base to apex. Mesocarp present; thin, or thick (and corky over seed chamber); surface not veined; 1-layered; without balsamic vesicles; without fibers; without reniform canals; solid; coriaceous, or ligneous (sub). Endocarp present; visible; dull; opaque; monochrome, or streaked; brown; with streaking above and below seed chambers; with brown overlay (reddish); smooth; without adhering pieces of testa; nonseptate; chartaceous; not exfoliating; remaining fused to mesocarp and epicarp; without wings, or with wing(s) extending into epicarp; entire. Seed(s) 1; length parallel with fruit length. Funiculus thick; straight. Aril absent.
Seed: ;30 mm long; 3–15 mm wide; 1–7 mm thick; not overgrown, or overgrown, 1 seed filling entire fruit cavity (especially in M. lunatum); angular, or not angular; asymmetrical; reniform, or C-shaped, or circular, or ovate, or linear; flattened; with surface wrinkled, or smooth, or ridged (radiating from hilum area); without visible radicle and cotyledon lobes; with deep hilar sinus, or without hilar sinus; without umbo on seed faces; without medial ridge on each face. Cuticle not exfoliating; not inflated; not wrinkled. Testa present; without pieces of adhering epicarp; not adhering to endocarp; free from endocarp; dull; not modified by a bloom; colored; monochrome, or mottled; brown (dark reddish); with black overlay (areas where vitriolic tissue is located); glabrous; not smooth, or smooth; with elevated features; wrinkled; coriaceous. Pleurogram absent. Pseudopleurogram absent. Fracture lines absent. Rim absent. Wing(s) absent. Raphe visible, or not visible; from hilum to near base of seed and terminating (or midway to base); not bifurcating; darker than testa; black; raised. Hilum present; fully concealed (remaining with fruit in M. lunatum), or partially concealed; concealed by funicular remnant, or wing; without faboid split; punctiform, or larger than punctiform; 0.1–25 mm long; with curved outline, or angular outline; circular; irregular; between cotyledon and radicle lobe; recessed; not within corona, halo, or rim, or within halo; halo darker than testa (black). Lens not discernible. Endosperm absent. Cotyledons not smooth, or smooth; both outer faces convex; both the same thickness; both more or less of equal length; not folded; margin entire 180 degrees from base of radicle; similar at apex; partially concealing radicle, or not concealing radicle; split over radicle; with lobes; with lobes touching (auriculate), or overlapping, or not touching; without basal groin formed by lobes, or with basal groin formed by lobes; with the interface division terminating at base of radicle; without margins recessed; brown (to dark brown), or tan, or green (bright); inner face flat; glabrous on inner face. Embryonic axis deflexed; oblique to length of seed; without a joint evident between the radicle and the cotyledons. Radicle differentiated from cotyledon; linear; lobe tip straight, or curved, or hooked; deflexed and parallel to cotyledon width; centered between cotyledons; less than 1/2 length of cotyledons. Plumule well developed, or moderately developed; glabrous.
Rudd (1977) monographed the 14 species of Machaerium in Mexico, and Tamayo monographed the five species in Argentina. Seeds of M. robiniifolium have a unique testa morphology. The testa, like other testae in Machaerium, is chartaceous, but there are areas along the "raphe" axis that are thickened and contain vitriolic black patches which are quite thick. These patches are visible on the surface of the testa.
Tribe Dalbergieae
Lima (1989) analyzed the morphological characters of fruits, seeds and seedlings of the tribe and his characters and illustrations were used as a much appreciated source of accurate data. He also discussed the phylogeny of the tribe. Sousa and Sousa (1981) provided data to support their conclusion that the New World Lonchocarpinae be considered for tribal status: A segregate of the Dalbergieae. Hauman (1954) provided data on the Dalbergieae of Central Africa, and Lock (1989) listed the Dalbergieae for all of Africa. Thothathri (1986) reviewed the taxonomic status and systematic position of Asiatic Dalbergieae, and monographed tribe Dalbergieae for the Indian subcontinent (Thothathri, 1987). Morphological (Lima 1989) and molecular (Doyle et al. 1997) evidence has indicated that tribe Dalbergieae is polyphyletic.
Authors: J.H. Kirkbride, Jr., C.R. Gunn, A.L. Weitzman, M.J. Dallwitz, K.R. Thiele
Content last updated April 2003
Released April 2024 on idtools.org
