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CARACOLí, ESPAVE (Anacardium excelsum)

Trade Name

Caracolí, Espave

Scientific Name

Anacardium excelsum (Bertero & Balb. ex Kunth) Skeels

Family

ANACARDIACEAE

Common Names

Quina; Pomme caju; Mijagao; Maranon; Hoobodia; Espave; E. Rosado; Cajueiro do campos; Caju do campo; Caju da Malta; Cajou; Cajarana; Bouchi-caju; Espavé (Costa Rica); Nariz (Cuba); Mija (Venezuela); Caracoli (Venezuela); Caracoli (Ecuador); Caracolí (Venezuela); Caracolí (Ecuador); Aspave (Colombia); Caracolí (Colombia); Cajuhy (Brazil); Espavel Rosado; Mijao (Venezuela); Marañón De Montaña; Espavé (Panama); Cashu (Brazil); Caschou (Guyana); Caracoli (Colombia); Caju Da Mata (Brazil); Caju Assu (Brazil); Marañón (Ecuador); Espavel Amarillo; Cahu; Cajuvana; Cajueiro Do Campo (Brazil); Gran Cashew; Wild Cashew; Espavel

Scientific Name Synonyms

Rhinocarpus excelsa Bertero & Balb. ex Kunth; Anacardium rhinocarpus DC.

Description Of The Tree

Botanical Description

The trees are reported to reach heights of 23 to 30 m, with trunk diameters ranging from 75 to 90 cm. Trees up to 45 m and 150 cm of diameter have also been reported. They develop well-formed and cylindrical boles that are up to two thirds of the height o

Natural Habitat

Anacardium excelsum is one of the largest trees of tropical America, found in gallery forests, generally below elevations of 1,000 m. It is a gregarious species, reportedly grouped in "miguajales" (Venezuela), preferring well drained soils. It is dominan

Natural Distribution

From southern Honduras south to Ecuador and east to Venezuela. In Venezuela it is sometimes reported to occur in groups up to 45 individuals per hectare.

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Wood Identification

Anatomic Description Of Wood

Wood diffuse porous. Vessels solitary and in short radial multiples. Tangential diameter of vessel lumina 200 micras or more (large). Tyloses common. Vessels per mm2 less than 6 (rare). Simple perforation plates. Vessel-ray pits coarse throughout the ray cell. V Paratracheal axial parenchyma scanty and/or vasicentric. Axial parenchyma lozenge-aliform. Non-crystals in axial parenchyma cells. 3 to 4 cells per parenchyma strand. 4 to 10 rays per mm (medium). Rays exclusively uniseriate. Prismatic crystals in the ray cells. Heterogeneous rays and/or multiseriate heterogeneous rays. Body ray cells procumbent with one row of upright and/or square marginal cells (Kribs-III). Non-septate fibers. Fibers with simple to minutely bordered pits.

  • Wood Macro Photo Tangential Plane
  • Wood Micro Photo Of Transversal Section

Availability

Cites Status

Unrestricted

General Wood Description

Odor

It has no characteristic odor or taste.

Color

The sapwood is pale brown color. The heartwood gradually changes into yellowish red color.

COLOR INDEX (1=Black, 7=Light yellow,white)

4

Grain

The wood has straight to interlocked grain. The wood presents attractive vessel lines.

Texture

The texture is medium to coarse.

Luster

The wood has medium to high luster.

Natural Durability

Its resistance to decay varies with type of fungus. Seasoned wood resists termite attack, probably because of gums and oils in the wood which are toxic to insects (but not to humans).

Natural durability index (1= Very high durability, 7=Vey low durability)

1

Silica Content

Silica Content: This species is reported to have high silica contents which has a moderate blunting effect on the cutting tools. Silica Value: 1

Resistance To Impregnation

Heartwood penetration is irregular, but the sapwood is easily treatable.

Wood Physical Properties

Basic Density or Specific Gravity (O.D. weight/vol. green) (g/cm³)

0.41

Air-dry Density (Weight and volume at 12%MC) (g/cm³)

0.44

Total shrinkage Tangential (Saturated to 0%MC) (%)

5.4

Total shrinkage Radial (Saturated to 0%MC) (%)

2.8

Recommended Dry Kiln Schedule

US-T6-D2; UK-E; JUNAC-A

Dimensional stability ratio (Total Tangential Shrinkage %/Total Radial Shrinkage %)

1.9

Wood Chemical Properties

Wood Mechanical Properties

Bending Strength (MOR),12%MC (kgf/cm²)

576

Stiffness (MOE) 12%MC (kgf/cm²)

85500

Compression parallel to fiber 12%MC (kgf/cm²)

331

Shear strength radial 12%MC (kgf/cm²)

63

Janka hardness (side) 12%MC (kgf)

210

Janka hardness (end grain) 12%MC (kgf)

269

Workability

Sawing

It has low resistance to sawing, but woolly surfaces are reported.

Rotary Veneer Cutting

It interesting for rotary peeling, it does not need thermal treatments.

Sliced Veneer

It interesting for rotary peeling, it does not need thermal treatments.

Blunting Effect

The wood of A. excelsum exerts a severe blunting effect due to the silica content.

Planing

The wood is reported to be difficult to plane.

Moulding

The wood is reported to have good molding characteristics.

Turning

30

Boring

Boring properties are reported as fair.

Mortising

The wood has good mortising properties.

Nailing

The nail holding properties are fair.

Gluing

This species is easy to glue.

Sanding

The wood is reported to have poor sanding properties.

Polishing

This species is reported to be easy to polish.

Response To Hand Tools

It behaves well with hand tools.

REFERENCED USES

End Uses Summary

HOUSING GENERAL, beams, joists, boards, frames, steps, fittings, shutter boards, FURNITURE AND CABINETS, common furniture, cabinets, PLYWOOD AND VENEER, Decorative veneer, TURNING, turned furniture, cutlery, TOOLS, tool handles, agricultural tools, PACKING, light packing, pallets, OTHER AND MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS, door core, cementboard, scale model

General Housing
  • 10 - Silica in Timbers
Beams
  • 11 - Prospect: The wood database
Joists
  • 12 - Tropical timbers of the world. Part I-Tropical American Species
Boards
  • 13 - Dry kiln schedules for commercial woods. Temperate and tropical. Section III. Latin American (Mexico, Central, and South America) Woods–Conventional Temperatures
Frames
  • 16 - Woods of the World
Steps
  • 17 - Tree Conservation Database
Fittings
  • 19 - Silica in Timbers
Shutter Boards
  • 20 - Prospect: The wood database
Furniture Cabinets
  • 21 - Tropical timbers of the world. Part III-Southeast Asian and Oceanian Species.
Furniture, Common
  • 23 - Handbook of Hardwoods
Cabinet
  • 24 - Empire Timbers
Panels, Veneers
  • 25 - Directory of Timber Trade Malaysia
Decorative veneer
  • 28 - Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forest of Fiji
Turning
  • 30 - Embassy of Honduras in Japan
Turned Articles
  • 32 - Embassy of Cote d`Ivoire in Japan
Knife Handles
  • 33 - Embassy of Gabon in Japan
Tools
  • 42 - Utilización Industrial de Nuevas Especies Forestales en el Perú.
Tool Handles
  • 43 - Maderas de Bolivia (Características y Usos de 55 Maderas Tropicales)
Agricultural Tools
  • 44 - Atlas of Peruvian Woods
Packing
  • 45 - Recopilación y Análisis de Estudios Tecnológicos de Maderas Peruanas
Light Packing
  • 46 - ECUADOR, Inventario y Aprovechamiento de los Bosques del Sur Ecuatoriano
Pallets
  • 48 - The strength properties of timbers
Door Cores
  • 76 - Descripción General y Anatómica de 105 Maderas del Grupo Andino.
Cementboard
  • 81 - Madeiras da Amazônia: descrição do lenho de 40 espécies ocorrentes na Floresta Nacional do Tapajós
Scale Models
  • 83 - Algunas caracteristicas fisicomecanicas de la madera de tres especies de la cordillera NeoVolcanica

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