858 WEST AFRICAN FORESTS AND FORESTRY 
found again on the upper edge of the mangrove forest where 
the first solid land begins. 
The seeds have not been tested as to the proportion of 
oil contained in them, but no doubt they contain a similar 
quantity, in proportion to the size, as those of L. alata. 
In 1906 samples of this timber in the round were sent to 
the Liverpool market, where it was valued as red oak at 2s. 
to 3s. per cubic foot. It was also stated to be worth shipping 
in good lengths. Owing to its weight and the hardness of the 
wood, and thus the extra cost of squaring logs, little or none 
has been shipped to Liverpool since this report was made. 
Locally it has been used for piles for wharves and bridges, 
decking for bridges, wall-plates for bungalows, and occa- 
sionally as verandah-posts. It can be floated with Musanga 
logs or those of Hannoa undulata. Canoes made of this wood 
are of the most durable kind, so that perhaps it might be tried 
for boat-building. 
The people of Benin use the wood for making pestles for 
their Fufu mortars, and occasionally it is used as wall-plates. 
Amongst the Brass people it is sometimes used for making 
canoes, and amongst many tribes for making food-mortars. 
Near Lagos it is used for house-building. 
Lophira alata. Niam Fat, Small Red Ironwood, Meni Oil, African 
Oak. Ipawhaw, Ponhon, Ipahan (Yoruba); Awigbi, Ugbeberi, 
Ishan (Benin). 
Small or dry-zone Red Ironwood. 
It is found in the Ogoja, Owerri, Onitsha, Benin, Ibadan 
and Abeokuta provinces of Nigeria. 
It is a very common tree in the open deciduous forest 
of the dry-zone form of vegetation. Often found in groups, 
but it anyhow is the most prevalent tree wherever found. It 
does not usually grow straight, but the stem is gnarled and 
crooked, reaching a girth of about 5 feet. The tree itself only 
grows to a height of about 30 feet. In appearance it looks like 
a small oak, but the Shea Butter Tree, Butyrospermum Parkii, 
is still more like it. However, with its reddish-green tongue- 
like leaves with wavy edges, it is in reality quite different. 
The branches spring out of the stem in a more upward direction 
than B. Parkit, and are more irregular in growth. The bark 
is orange-coloured and almost scaly on the younger trees, 
though it goes a grey or black colour when exposed to the 
light or the annual grass-fires. The flowers are white, sweet- 
smelling and much more conspicuous than on L. procera. The 
seed is placed between two wings, one nearly three times 
the width of the other. The smaller wing is more pointed 
