318 WEST AFRICAN FORESTS AND FORESTRY 



shade. Self-sown seedlings are not often seen. Perhaps this 

 is due to so many of the seeds being eaten by animals. The 

 stump scarcely sprouts after it has been freshly cut. Con- 

 sidering the size of the tree, a verj' fair number of nuts ripen 

 each year. 



No use has been made of the seeds, though they yield a 

 similar oil to that of the Crab Oil Tree of South America. 



In 1906 a sample of the timber was sold in the Liverpool 

 market as Mahogany Cedar, scented, at 2|d. and 3id, per 

 superficial foot. 



Native, Use. — The bark is used by pregnant Yoruba women 

 and for sores and as a cough mixture. It is used underneath 

 palm leaves as a roofing material in the Benin country. 

 Khaya grandifolia, later grandis (Stapf.). Big-leaf Mahogany, 

 Benin Mahogany. Akor, Oganwo (Yoruba) ; Gadeau, Og- 

 wangu (Benin) ; Odala (Ibo Asaba) ; Digiten (Brass) ; Dirinshi, 

 Diki (Ibo Owerri) ; Asamogo (Ibibio) ; Upono (Efik) ; Obon (?) 

 (Oban, Ekoi). 



It is found in the Ondo, Benin and Ogoja provinces of 

 Nigeria, at the edge of the mixed deciduous forest zone, 

 where it is very prevalent in some places, such as at the edge 

 of the Ifon Owo-Akure Road. 



Chief Characteristics. — It is a large tree of the mixed forests. 

 It attains a girth of 14 feet and a corresponding height. It 

 is, however, taller in proportion than K. Punchii. It has long, 

 upward-tending root flanges, though not so large as those of 

 K. Ivoriensis or the Coast Mahogany. The crown is open 

 compared to the other Khayas, except K. Senegalensis . It has 

 conspicuously large pinnate leaves, with three or four pairs of 

 leaflets quite 10 inches in length, each leaflet being 4 inches 

 long. The stem is smoother than K. Punchii, and in that 

 respect more like K. anthoteka. The leaves of this species are 

 the most shiny of all ; in fact, the others appear dull beside 

 them. The bole, on the whole, is cleaner than K. Punchii and 

 longer, though it forks or divides into a head in the charac- 

 teristic Mahogany way. The shininess of the leaves is one of 

 the greatest characteristics of this tree. The capsule is some- 

 what larger than K. Punchii. It is also a little thicker, and 

 the tip is not so long or sharp. It opens out into five segments, 

 as a rule, but sometimes there may be only four. The seeds 

 themselves are a little oblong in shape and not quite so square 

 as in K. Punchii, although they are just as thin and flat. 



The timber is the typical Benin Mahogany, with somewhat 

 long pores, first of all rather pink, then a rich mahogany-brown 

 colour. Occasionally the sapwood is very wide in proportion 



