THE NIGERIAN TIMBER TREES 825 
sionally attacked by the leading-shoot borer, but this is not 
very serious, particularly if a suitable mixture with other 
trees has been formed. 
This timber has been one of the main export products 
of the Sapeli and South Benin forests. The chief market 
for this wood was, previous to the war, in Hamburg. How- 
ever, from Hamburg, the markets of Copenhagen, Sweden, 
Finland, Russia and Austria were also supplied. Being 
almost half as heavy again as Khaya Mahogany, it costs 
more in proportion to bring over to Europe. Owing to the 
better and larger size of the logs which can be obtained from 
these huge trees, there was in these markets a greater demand 
for this timber for counter-tops than for Khaya timber. This 
to some extent counterbalanced the disadvantage of the extra 
weight. This timber was also considered of a duller colour 
and more liable to split than the Khaya wood. However, 
as many of the trees from which the largest logs have been 
obtained are mature, and over-mature, it is natural that the 
wood cannot be in a prime condition. 
The timber is very popular amongst the local people for 
the making of canoes and for house-building. 
Entandrophragma cylindrica. Heavy Mahogany or Cedar Mahog- 
any. Jebu, Oro, Issisi, Alepo, Alopa (Yoruba); Ikwabobo, 
Agiekpogo (Benin); Atore (Efik). 
It is found in the Abeokuta, Oyo, Ondo, Benin, Calabar 
and Ogoja provinces of Nigeria. It is one of the common 
mahogany-trees of the evergreen and mixed deciduous forest 
zone. It is the tallest of all African trees, the bole alone 
often attaining a height exceeding 100 feet. It is also one 
of the straightest and most cylindrical trees in Africa. The 
root spurns are very slight compared to the size of the tree, 
and do not extend usually more than 10 feet up the stem. The 
bark is smooth and not unlike the beech ; in old age, however, 
it becomes slightly pitted and the bark scales off in places. 
The crown is deeper and more spherical than in the case of 
Entandrophragma utilis. The ends of the branches are most 
conspicuous, with their most pronounced tufts of leaves. The 
leaf is often about 4 inches long, but in young shoots may 
attain a length of nearly 3 feet, with over thirty pairs of pinne. 
The slash is white, with small, yellow, stone-like granules in it. 
The bark is thick. 
The capsule is nearly 6 inches long and an inch in diameter. 
It is similar in shape to that of Hntandrophragma utilis, and 
opens in a similar way. The seeds are rather larger and the 
wings considerably longer. It is deciduous for about a week 
