BOTANICAL MUSEUM LEAFLETS 
HARVARD UNIVERSITY 
CampripGcr, Massacnuserrs, NoveEMBER 21, 1969 VoL, 22, No. 
A NEW AMAZONIAN ARROW POISON: 
OCOTEA VENENOSA 
BY 
A.J. KosTeERMANS,’ Homer V. PINKLEY,* 
AND WiLu1AM L. STERN ’® 
A RECENTLY discovered ingredient of arrow poisons used 
by the Kofin Indians of the westernmost Amazon in 
Colombia and Ecuador is produced by an undescribed 
species of Ocotea of the Lauraceae. 
Ocotea venenosa Kosterm. et Pinkley sp. nov. 
Arbor ramulis cum innovationibus dense minutissime 
ferrugineo-pilosis; foliis spiraliter alternantibus vel sub- 
oppositis, chartaceis, ellipticis, obscure acuminatis, basi in 
petiolum brevem contractis supra laevibus, nervo medi- 
ano prominulo, costis filiformibus vix prominulis, subtus 
dense prominule reticulatis, nervo mediano prominent, 
dense pulverulente piloso, costis utrinque ca. 9 subpaten- 
tibus prominulis; inflorescentiis paniculatis, axillaribus, 
parvis, dense minutissimeque ferrugineo-pilosis; floribus 
tantum in alabastrum cognitis; tepalis ovatis ; staminibus 
fertilibus 9, crassis, exterioribus loculis 4 magnis, in- 
trorsis, filamentis crassis, interioribus loculis 4 extrorsis ; 
glandulis non vidi; ovario subpiloso, ellipsoideo, in sty- 
' Herbarium Bogoriense, Bogor, Indonesia. 
? Botanical Museum of Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass. 
* Department of Botany, University of Maryland, College Park, Md. 
(241 J 
