in the present study, but given the scarcity of fresh plant material this part of the study was 
abandoned. 
Distribution. 
In America, Cinnamomum ranges from central Mexico to southern Brazil, Paraguay and 
northern Argentina (Mez, 1889; Bernardi, 1962), mainly following mountain ranges at middle 
elevations. Many species are important components of cloud forests, indicating the affinity of the 
genus to humid places, but there are also some species in relatively dry areas (see section on 
Vegetative morphology for examples). While 30 species grow in the range of 1000-2000 m, only 
eight can be found below 500 m, and just three thrive above the 2500 m level (see Table 3). 
From the known record of species distribution it seems that very few have wide ranges (C. 
padiforme, C. triplinerve) and that two main centers of diversity exist, one in southern Mexico - 
northern Central America (with ca. 17 spp.) and another one in southeastern Brazil (with ca. 15 
spp.). In between these extremes, the mountains of Costa Rica and Panama have a secondary area 
of diversity with ca. 8 spp. Cinnamomum is almost absent from the lowlands of the Amazon 
basin (under 250 m), but it is found at these elevations in the Guyana region and northern Brazil, 
represented by some populations of the variable C. triplinerve. 
Reproductive biology. 
Observations on the reproductive biology of Cinnamomum camphora and C. zeylanicum 
(Kubitzki & Kurz, 1984) suggest that the genus has a dichogamous outbreeding mechanism, as 
has been found in other species with hermaphrodite flowers in the Lauraceae (Skutch, 1945; 
29 
