Trees of Puerto Rico: Part 4 (HIRRUG, MYRLEP, and RHEPOR)

These are three generally small trees commonly found in the area we’ve been in this past week at the far end of row 3. We finished data collection in rows 3 and 4 this week, so we’re about 16% of the way through.

HIRRUG, (Hirtella rugosa), Teta de Burra Cimarrona

This is a fairly common tree in the grid so far, with it entirely taking over some plots in the higher quadrats. It is distinctive with it’s hairy branches and leaves. We’ve been told that some people refer to it as “Hairy Mary”, though this seems to be limited to people at the field station.

MYRLEP, (Myrcia leptoclada), Guayabacon

This small tree or shrub is a common occurrence throughout the part of the grid we’ve seen so far. It usually has distinctive pinkish new leaves at the end of its branches, though when it doesn’t it can be a real issue to identify it.

Larger stems have a strange peeling bark. The outer layer is like thin, reddish paper, while the inside is green.

RHEPOR, (Rheedia portoricensis), Palo de Cruz

Note: What I could find online suggests that this plant is now known officially as Garcinia portoricensis.

This is a small tree that is limited to the highest parts of the big grid at the end of the first few rows. It has fairly thick leaves with a distinct feature that you want to know about before you get too close.

There are small, sharp spines at the tip of the leaves (a trait that only this tree has in the big grid, thankfully). Walking through a small grove of these is bound to get you pricked by a spine or two, though they aren’t terrible if you approach them slowly.