Trees of Panama and Costa Rica

by Richard Condit, Rolando A. Pérez, Nefertaris Daguerre

Overview

This is the first field guide dedicated to the diverse tree species of Panama and Costa Rica. Featuring close to 500 tropical tree species, Trees of Panama and Costa Rica includes superb color photos, abundant color distribution maps, and concise descriptions of key characteristics, making this guide readily accessible to botanists, biologists, and casual nature lovers alike.


The invaluable introductory chapters discuss tree diversity in Central America and the basics of tree identification. Family and species accounts are treated alphabetically and describe family size, number of genera and species, floral characteristics, and relative abundance. Color distribution maps supplement the useful species descriptions, and facing-page photographic plates detail bark, leaf, flower, or fruit of the species featured. Helpful appendices contain a full glossary, a comprehensive guide to leaf forms, and a list of families not covered.

• The only tree guide to cover both Panama and Costa Rica together


• Covers almost 500 species


• 438 high-resolution color photos


• 480 color distribution maps and two general maps


• Concise and jargon-free descriptions of key characteristics for every species


• Full glossary and guide to leaf forms included

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781400836178
Publisher:	Princeton University Press
Publication date:	11/08/2010
Series:	Princeton Field Guides , #74
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	496
Sales rank:	225,842
File size:	51 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Richard Condit is a staff scientist at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama. Rolando Pérez is chief botanist and Nefertaris Daguerre is a forest specialist with the Center for Tropical Forest Science at the STRI.

Table of Contents

Foreword 7


Part I. Introduction
Chapter 1. Forests of Panama and Costa Rica 11
Chapter 2. Tree Identification 17
Chapter 3. Species and Areas Covered 23


Part II. Species Treatments by Family
Acanthaceae 26
Achariaceae 28
Adoxaceae 30
Anacardiaceae 30
Annonaceae 38
Apocynaceae 62
Araliaceae 76
Arecaceae 78
Asteraceae 86
Betulaceae 86
Bignoniaceae 88
Bixaceae 94
Boraginaceae 96
Burseraceae 106
Cannabaceae 112
Capparaceae 114
Caricaceae 118
Celastraceae 120
Chloranthaceae 120
Chrysobalanaceae 124
Clethraceae 132
Clusiaceae 132
Cochlospermaceae 144
Combretaceae 144
Cornaceae 150
Cyrillaceae 152


Dilleniaceae 152
Ebenaceae 154
Elaeocarpaceae 154
Erythropalaceae 156
Erythroxylaceae 158
Euphorbiaceae 160
Fabaceae 176
Fabaceae--Caesalpinioideae 176
Fabaceae--Mimosoideae 186
Fabaceae--Papilionoideae 214
Fagaceae 238
Hernandiaceae 238
Humiriaceae 240
Hypericaceae 242
Icacinaceae 246
Lacistemataceae 246
Lamiaceae 248
Lauraceae 252
Lecythidaceae 262
Lepidobotryaceae 266
Lythraceae 268


Magnoliaceae 268
Malpighiaceae 270
Malvaceae 272
Malvaceae--Bombacoideae 274
Malvaceae--Byttnerioideae 282
Malvaceae--Grewioideae 286
Malvaceae--Malvoideae 292
Malvaceae--Sterculioideae 294
Malvaceae--Tilioideae 296
Melastomataceae 296
Meliaceae 310
Moraceae 322
Muntingiaceae 334
Myricaceae 336
Myristicaceae 336
Myrsinaceae 344
Myrtaceae 350
Nyctaginaceae 358
Ochnaceae 360
Papaveraceae 362
Pellicieraceae 362
Phyllanthaceae 362
Piperaceae 366
Podocarpaceae 368
Polygonaceae 368
Proteaceae 372
Putranjivaceae 374


Rhamnaceae 374
Rhizophoraceae 378
Rubiaceae 380
Rutaceae 410
Salicaceae 414
Sapindaceae 426
Sapotaceae 434
Scrophulariaceae 446
Simaroubaceae 448
Siparunaceae 450
Staphyleaceae 450
Ternstroemiaceae 452
Thymelaeaceae 452
Ulmaceae 454
Urticaceae 454
Verbenaceae 460
Violaceae 460
Vochysiaceae 462


Part III. Supporting Material
Appendix 1. Terminology 467
Appendix 2. Major Leaf Traits of Tree Families
Known in Panama and Costa Rica 469
Appendix 3. Families Not Included 475
Literature Cited 479
Index 481

What People are Saying About This

Brad Boyle

This is an impressive tour-de-force of tropical plant identification. The lively writing is accessible to nonspecialists, while the broad taxonomic coverage and authoritative species descriptions make this guide useful to professional botanists.
— Brad Boyle, University of Arizona

John Kricher

This book is exceptionally well organized and extremely user friendly, and the text is really good and succinct. The authors convey the excitement of learning tropical botany to successfully identify tree species, and the section on tree identification is exceptional—quite simply the best that I have ever read. This book fills a huge need and does so very well.
— John Kricher, Wheaton College

From the Publisher

"This is an impressive tour-de-force of tropical plant identification. The lively writing is accessible to nonspecialists, while the broad taxonomic coverage and authoritative species descriptions make this guide useful to professional botanists."—Brad Boyle, University of Arizona

"This book is exceptionally well organized and extremely user friendly, and the text is really good and succinct. The authors convey the excitement of learning tropical botany to successfully identify tree species, and the section on tree identification is exceptional—quite simply the best that I have ever read. This book fills a huge need and does so very well."—John Kricher, Wheaton College

Editorial Reviews

"Trees of Panama and Costa Rica includes superb color photos, abundant color distribution maps, and concise descriptions of key characteristics, making this guide readily accessible to botanists, biologists, and casual nature lovers alike."—-Ian Paulsen, Birdbooker Report

From the Publisher

"There are many floras that professional botanists can use to identify tropical trees, but few quality field guides for laypersons. The current work is a concise, user-friendly field guide in the tradition of the popular Peterson and Audubon guides. . . . This is a valuable addition to the limited popular literature on tropical botany."

Choice

"Replete with plentiful photographs as well as helpful textual descriptions and distribution maps, not to mention a superb introductory section explaining the essentials of the biology of tropical trees, Trees of Panama and Costa Rica is a book that should be in the backpack or field bag of anyone undertaking any manner of nature-oriented trip into the countryside of either of these two nations."

Well-read Naturalist

Quite rightly, the publisher claims there is no other book like this one. It well merits a long life in the hands of nature lovers of all stripes.

Plant Science Bulletin - Neil A. Harriman

This is a wonderful book for visitors to the region who want to try to know the trees that grow there. It is also a major, important work for biologists ecologists, and students working in these two beautiful countries.

Wildlife Activist - Dan Kunkle

Trees of Panama and Costa Rica includes superb color photos, abundant color distribution maps, and concise descriptions of key characteristics, making this guide readily accessible to botanists, biologists, and casual nature lovers alike.

Birdbooker Report - Ian Paulsen

Quite rightly, the publisher claims there is no other book like this one. It well merits a long life in the hands of nature lovers of all stripes.
— Neil A. Harriman

Plant Science Bulletin

This is a wonderful book for visitors to the region who want to try to know the trees that grow there. It is also a major, important work for biologists ecologists, and students working in these two beautiful countries.
— Dan Kunkle

Wildlife Activist

Trees of Panama and Costa Rica includes superb color photos, abundant color distribution maps, and concise descriptions of key characteristics, making this guide readily accessible to botanists, biologists, and casual nature lovers alike.
— Ian Paulsen

Birdbooker Report