bagasse

Names and Synonyms

Common Names

• bagasse

Scientific Names

Accepted name

Synonyms

• Ambelania sagotii
• Ambelania tenuiflora
• Ambelania tenuiflora var. tenuiramea
• Willughbeia acida
• Ambelania cucumerina

Regional and Traditional Names

Sources: Wikidata, Catalogue of Life

Taxonomical Classification

This plant belongs to the kingdom Plantae and the phylum Streptophyta. Within the class Equisetopsida and subclass Magnoliidae, it is classified under the order Gentianaales and the family Apocynaceae. Finally, it is identified by its specific genus, Ambelania.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Distribution

This plant is primarily found within the tropical landscapes of northern South America. Its distribution encompasses several distinct nations, including French Guiana, Guyana, and Suriname. Furthermore, it can be located throughout various regions of Venezuela. In addition to these areas, the species is documented within the northeastern portion of Brazil. Collectively, these locations define the specific geographical range where the species thrives.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Botanical Identification

Ecology

The ecology of Ambelania acida is intrinsically linked to high-humidity tropical ecosystems, specifically thriving within the complex structures of Floresta de Terra Firme and Floresta Ombrófila (Pluvial Forest). In these environments, the species is adapted to the stable, nutrient-cycling processes characteristic of non-flooded, upland forest soils. Its presence in these habitats suggests a reliance on the consistent moisture levels and buffered microclimates provided by the dense canopy of tropical rainforests. Within these forest types, the plant occupies ecological niches defined by high annual precipitation and shaded or semi-shaded conditions, playing a role in the diverse biological interactions typical of stable, primary or mature secondary rainforest communities.

Habitat :

Floresta de Terra Firme, Floresta Ombrófila (= Floresta Pluvial)

Life history

The life history of Ambelania acida is characterized by its status as a perennial species, ensuring its long-term presence within its native ecosystem. As a phanerophyte, the plant maintains its photosynthetic organs on elevated structures, specifically classified under the phanerophyte life forms which indicate that its buds are protected above the ground level. Furthermore, this species exhibits an evergreen deciduousness, meaning it retains its foliage throughout the year rather than shedding it seasonally, providing a continuous canopy and consistent metabolic activity.

Deciduousness :

evergreen

Life form :

phanerophyte

Lifecycle :

perennial

Morphology

The morphology of Ambelaenia acida is characterized by its robust growth form as a woody tree. This species typically achieves a plant height with a mean of 6 m, though it has the potential to reach a maximum height of up to 30 m. As a terrestrial plant, it is neither aquatic nor semi-aquatic, and it functions as an independent organism rather than a parasite. In terms of its structural habit, the plant is self-supporting, meaning it does not act as an obligatory or facultative climber, liana, or vine, nor does it exhibit epiphytic behavior such as being a holoepiphyte or hemiepiphyte, as it maintains a strictly terrestrial existence.

Aquatic :

terrestrial

Climber :

self-supporting

Epiphyte :

terrestrial

Growth form :

tree

Parasite :

independent

Plant height max:

30 m

Plant height mean:

6 m

Woodiness :

woody

Physiology

The physiology of Ambelaena acida is characterized by a specific metabolic framework tailored to its environmental interactions. The plant utilizes a C3 photosynthetic pathway, meaning carbon fixation occurs through the Calvin cycle where the first stable product is a three-carbon molecule, a trait typical of many tropical woody species. Furthermore, regarding its nutrient acquisition processes, the plant is not a nitrogen fixer, meaning it lacks the symbiotic relationship with nitrogen-fixing bacteria required to convert atmospheric nitrogen into usable forms, relying instead on the uptake of nitrogenous compounds directly from the soil.

Nitrogen fixer :

no

Photosynthetic pathway :

C3

Sources: Global Inventory of Floras and Traits (GIFT)

Chemicals

Ambelania acida has 7 reported phytochemicals identified across 0 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported chemicals include CALCIUM, Fatty acids, MAGNESIUM, POTASSIUM, Tannins.

CALCIUM

1. Journal of food science

Fatty acids

1. Journal of food science

MAGNESIUM

1. Journal of food science

POTASSIUM

1. Journal of food science

Tannins

1. Journal of food science

Terpenes

1. Journal of food science

linoleic acid

1. Journal of food science