THE NIGERIAN TIMBER TREES 849 
exported. The Yorubas and Benis use the smaller trees as poles 
for house-building, but it is not considered a good wood. 
Sterculia cordifolia. Heart-shaped-leaved Sterculia. Okporoporo, 
(Akure); Ogugu, Ogungun or Ogrugru, Oburuburu (Yoruba) ; 
Idogoho, Okoko, Okokwo (Benin); Dikir (Efik); Ibitoto 
(Bembi). 
Distribution.—It is found in the Jebu Ode, Abeokuta, 
Ibadan, Benin, Onitsha, Owerri, and Calabar provinces of 
Nigeria. It is one of the most common trees in the mixed 
deciduous forests. 
Chief Characieristics—The large heart-shaped leaves and 
the curious twist to the lower part of the stem, which makes 
the root protuberances quite angular. It is never quite 
straight and forms a heavy oval crown. 
The very large, oval, soft, almost fleshy, dehiscent pod, 
with its large winged seeds, is most typical of this tree. The 
crown is supported by three or four large limbs with com- 
paratively few side branches. The foliage is very dense, though 
even in a tall tree the individual heart-shaped leaves show 
up quite distinctly. It is almost gregarious in habit, usually 
groups of four or five being found in one place. It is nearly 
always found on the banks of small streams which may dry 
up in the dry season. It is a shade-bearer, though moderately 
quickin growth. The wood is cross-grained, and emits rather an 
unpleasant smell when cut: The sapwood and the heartwood 
are both white, with a reddish tinge through it. It is soft, but 
becomes much harder when dry. It sprouts from the stump 
when cut down. Reproduction by seed is moderate. It has 
not been used locally, nor has it been exported. The 
natives in the Benin and Yoruba countries use the butt of 
medium-sized trees, especially those with a fork, for house- 
building. It is not attacked by white ants. 
Sterculia ur. oblonga. Opepe (?) (Yoruba); Orodo (Benin). 
It is a common tree of the Benin province of Nigeria, found 
in the evergreen forest. 
It is a question whether this species is the one with a very 
hard, leathery, half-dehiscent pod, showing about ten orange- 
coloured oblong seeds inside it. These seeds have sometimes 
been termed Okoko by the Benis, but they are, no doubt, 
not obtained from the fruit of Sterculia cordifolia. These 
seeds also are not winged, and are comparatively fleshy and 
soft compared to the dry, rather hard, large winged seeds of 
Sterculia cordifolia. 
Sterculia cinerea. Tartar Tree. Lakole (Yoruba); Ururata 
(Benin). 
