Vatairea spp.

Bitter Angelim

Faveira

Family: Leguminosae

Other Common Names: Amargoso (Honduras), Amargo amargo (Panama), Arisauru, Yaksaru (Guyana), Mora (Nicaragua), Gele Kabbes (Surinam), Angelim, Faveira (Brazil).

Distribution: Southern Mexico, southward along the Atlantic region of Central America, and through Venezuela to the Rio de Janeiro region of Brazil.

The Tree: Sometimes to a height of 125 ft with trunk diameters to 6 ft, commonly to 3 ft, boles have narrow high buttresses and may be clear for 70 ft.

The Wood:

General Characteristics: Heartwood yellow, becoming orange brown on exposure, striped with parenchyma, sometimes with oily appearance; distinct from the whitish, grayish or brownish-yellow sapwood. Luster variable; texture coarse to very coarse; grain straight to strongly interlocked; without distinctive odor but with bitter taste. Silica content of 0.2% is reported.

Weight: Basic specific gravity (ovendry weight/green volume) varies with species from 0.55 to 0.64; air-dry density 42 to 49 pcf.

Mechanical Properties: (2-in. standard)

Moisture content Bending strength Modulus of elasticity Maximum crushing strength

(%) (Psi) (1,000 psi) (Psi)

Green (25) 10,300 1,700 5,020

12% 14,600 1,790 6,950

12% (44) 17,200 2,340 NA

15% (34) 11,520 1,460 5,900

Janka side hardness for dry material 1,080 to 1,420 lb.

Drying and Shrinkage: The wood is reported to have a moderate air-drying rate with little or no drying defects. No data available on kiln schedules. Shrinkage green to ovendry: radial 3.4%; tangential 7.4%; volumetric 8.6%.

Working Properties: Generally reported to be moderately good in machining characteristics but torn and raised grain in planing is common. Fine dust raised during working affects some operators.

Durability: Heartwood is rated as moderately durable to durable based on graveyard tests.

Preservation: Heartwood is reported to be very difficult to preserve, treatment of sapwood is good.

Uses: Construction work, flooring, general carpentry, railroad crossties.

Additional Reading: (25), (34), (44)

M 150 282-3Logs are delivered to a sawmill in southern Nigeria. African mahogany

(mostly Khaya ivorensis) is in high demand on overseas markets. Export of logs fro

this region, as well as from most other tropical areas, is being restricted.

M 150 282-2Band mills in Ghana are designed to handle logs 5 feet and more in

diameter. Obeche or Wawa (Triplochiton scleroxylon) logs yield lumber favored for

joinery and millwork.

M 150 273-14In many areas of the tropics, fast-growing species are being introduced

future supplies of fuel wood and industrial wood. Batai (Albizia falcataria) is

a favored plantation species in the Philipines.

M 150 273-13 Shores spp. is still the major timber group harvested in Southeast

Asia. With modern chain saws, fellers no longer need scaffolding to get above larg

buttresses.

M 150 281 Felling of white lauan or almon (Shorea a;mon) with axes in the early

1900s in the Philippines. Most hardwood plywood now imported into the USA is

produced from species of Shorea.

[M 150 273-9Plywood mill in San Jose, Costa Rica, produces rotary-cut veneers mostly from banak (Virola spp.) and crabwood or cedro macho (Carapa guianensis). Logs trucked in from the Caribbean coast.]

M 150 273-21Mahot or Tauary (Couratari spp.) grows from Panama south to the Brazilian Amazon. Trunk diameters may exceed 4 feet above the stout buttresses. In tropical American moist forests, single species usually make up less than 5 percent of the stand volume.

M 150 273-18Trees in the tropics yield not only wood but a wide array of gums, oil

resins, tannins, edible fruits, medicinals, latex, fodder, and much more. The para

rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis) at the end of its tapping life is used to produce

attractive wood suitable for furniture components.

M 150 272-14Some European markets still prefer hand hewn greenheart (Ocotea rodiaei

for heavy marine construction. Work is being done on a river landing in Guyana.

M 150 272-15 In the highlands of El Salvador, ocote pine (Pinus ococarpa) is cut in

boards by pit sawing. Finished lumber is sent down the mountainside on the backs o

unattended burros.

M 150 272-15In the highlands of El Salvador, ocote pine (Pinus oocarpa) is cut into

boards by pit sawing. Finished lumber is sent down the mountainside on the backs o

unattended burros.