LEGUME FAMILY (LEGUMINOSAE) 



MIMOSA SUBFAMILY (MIMOSOIDEAE; MIMOSACEAE) 



66. Cojobana 



This small to medium-sized tree is characterized 

 by: (1) feathery, twice pinnate leaves (bipinnate) 

 with minute narrow leaflets Vs inch or less in 

 length; ('2) t^mall flowers numerous and crowded 

 in wliitisli-yellow balls %-V2 'i^ch in diameter, 

 several in stalked lateral clustei-s; (3) brown flat 

 and thin pods 3-8 inches long and about % inch 

 broad, slightly narrowed between the seeds, and 

 finely scaly; and (4) very rough, gray, brown, or 

 blackisli bark on larger trees, thick, deeply fur- 

 rowed, and witli pi'ominent warts or irregular 

 ridges. 



A deciduous tree becoming 20-40 feet high and 

 8 inches or more in trunk diameter, generally much 

 smaller, with thin widely spreading crown of at- 

 tractive fine foliage. Outer bark is gi-ay or dark 

 brown, with lines of growth, and inner bark light 

 and dark brown streaked, soft, and bitter. The 

 brown twigs are minutely hairy. 



The alternate leaves 6-^9 inches long have a light 

 brown, finely hairy axis bearing 1 oval reddish 

 gland near base and usually 2 near apex. There 

 are about 20-35 pairs of lateral branches (pinnae),^ 

 each with about 30-100 pairs of stalkless, nan-ow* 

 (linear), slightly hairy leaflets, which are short- 

 pointed at a]5ex and oblique at base, green above 

 and paler beneath. Thus, each leaf has at least a 

 few thousand leaflets. 



The flower clustei-s (heads) are lateral, several 

 together on slender haii-y stalks %-l inch long 

 and bearing numerous stalkless flowers. Each 

 flower is more than Vi long when the stamens are 

 fully expanded. The bell-shaped 5-toothed calyx 

 is Vie inch long and minutely hairy; the white 

 corolla i/s inch long, with tube and 5 short lobes, 

 finely hairy on outside ; 10 stamens more than V4 



Piptadenia peregrina (L.) Benth. 



inch long; and the pistil has a 1-celled ovary with 

 slender style about 14 inch long. 



The pods have raised edges and split into 2 

 parts. There are several I'ounded, very thin, flat 

 seeds nearly 1/0 '"ch in diameter. Flowering from 

 March to June. Pods present most of tlie year. 



The sapwood is whitish to light brown, and the 

 lieartwood dark brown or reddish brown. The 

 wood is extremely hard, lieavy (specific gravity 

 0.8), strong and durable, but difficult to work. 

 Used chiefly for posts in Puerto Kico. The thick 

 bark is rich in tannin and has been employed in 

 tanneries of Venezuela. 



A narcotic snuff called "cojoba'" was prepared 

 from the finely ground seeds by the Indians of 

 Hispnniola and Venezuela and adjacent parts of 

 Bi-azil. It was used in religious ceremonies. Re- 

 cently this narcotic has been studied chemically 

 and tested for possible medicinal applications. 



In woodlands and hillsides in the coastal and 

 lower mountain regions of Puerto Rico. 



Public forests. — Cambalache, Maricao. 



Range. — Hisjianiola, Puerto Rico, Dominica, 

 St. Vincent, Grenada, and Trinidad (doubtfully 

 native). Reported from Jamaica, apparently in 

 error. Also \'enezuela, British Guiana, and 

 Brazil. 



Other fOMjroN names. — cojobillo, cojoba, co- 

 jobo (Puerto Rico) ; cojoba (Dominican Repub- 

 lic) ; yopo (Colombia) ; cojoba, niopa,niopo,yopo, 

 curuba (Venezuela) ; savannah yoke, cohoba 

 (Trinidad) ; bois galle, bois Tecorce, ceuf de poule 

 (Haiti) ; parica (Brazil). 



Botanical synonym. — Niopa peregrina (L.) 

 Britton & Rose. 



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