The open plant encyclopedia
Snap a photo or search by any name to see how to care for it, where it comes from, whether it's safe, and a 3D model you can turn.
The plants people record most in your country, and ones that grow there wild.
Filter by what you want to do, shape, origin, country, care and safety.
Rhizophora racemosa
Rhizophora racemosa is a species of mangrove tree in the family Rhizophoraceae. It has a patchy distribution on the Pacific coast of Central and South America, occurs in places on the Atlantic coast of that continent, and has a more widespread range on the Atlantic coast of West Africa.
In West Africa, estuaries, bays and lagoons are fringed by tidal mangrove forests, dominated by Rhizophora and Avicennia. When new mudflats are formed, seagrasses are the first plants that grow on the mud, with Rhizophora racemosa, a pioneering species, being the first mangrove to appear. With time, the mud solidifies and more tree and plant species arrive. On the seaward side the trees are short but get steadily taller further inland. The nipa palm (Nypa fruticans) has been introduced to Nigeria and Cameroon and has become invasive, to the detriment of the native mangrove species.
In West Africa, Rhizophora racemosa is used for construction poles and firewood on a limited scale. The smoke has antimicrobial properties and is also used for smoking meat. In the Americas it is less likely to be harvested as it is more scarce and is not considered to be of much value. Extracts from the bark of Rhizophora racemosa has been proven for its potential as an indicator in titration.
Mangrove · Rhizophora harrisonii · Red mangrove · Mangrove · Rhizophora samoensis · Rhizophora selala · Spotted Mangrove · Mangrove
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Rhizophora racemosa by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
