indeed restricted to the Old World. 
2. Many of the neotropical species heretofore considered to belong in Phoebe are closely 
related, morphologically, to the Asian species of Cinnamomum, and it is better to place them in 
this genus. The Asian and American species of Cinnamomum share the following combination of 
characters: first, there is a hypanthium that usually broadens with the developing fruit forming a 
cupule. Second, tepals are persistent at the rim of the cupule, but they are rather spread out and 
do not overlap at their bases. Third, leaves are mostly triplinerved or subtriplinerved, and 
domatia are frequently present. Fourth, the fruit pedicel is commonly swollen and turbinate. 
3. The New World species of Cinnamomum differ from the Asian ones in that they 
present a mixture of the characters found in the sections recognized for the genus in the Old 
World. While section Camphora is distinguished by having perulate buds, alternate leaves, 
usually subtriplinerved to pinninerved, and with domatia, section Cinnamomum is separated by 
the absence of perulate buds, presence of opposite leaves, always triplinerved, and without 
domatia; but the neotropical species are always with alternate leaves, and when domatia are 
present they occur in triplinerved leaves not in pinninerved ones (except one species). A 
summary of diagnostic characters in Phoebe, the two sections of Cinnamomum in the Old World, 
and the two groups of neotropical species is presented in Table 2. 
4. Several species from the Neotropics formerly included in Phoebe belong to other 
genera, mostly to the genus Ocofea (see section on excluded species below). 
The concept of the genus Cinnamomum | applied in this study, and which forms the basis 
for the inclusion of a given species in this genus, encompass the following set of characters: 
- Flowers perfect with three whorls of fertile stamens. 
2 
