Sapium

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Genus of flowering plants

title: "Sapium" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["hippomaneae", "euphorbiaceae-genera", "taxa-named-by-nikolaus-joseph-von-jacquin"] description: "Genus of flowering plants" topic_path: "general/hippomaneae" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sapium" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Genus of flowering plants ::

|name = Milktrees |image = Sapium glandulosum.jpg |image_caption = Sapium glandulosum |display_parents = 3 |taxon = Sapium |authority = Jacq. |synonyms_ref= |synonyms =

Sapium is a genus of flowering plants in the family Euphorbiaceae. It is widespread across most of Latin America and the West Indies. Many Old World species were formerly included in the genus, but recent authors have redistributed all the Old World species into other genera.

Species are known commonly as milktrees.

Description

These are shrubs and trees. They produce latex. The leaves are alternately arranged and smooth-edged or toothed. They are monoecious, often with spikelike or raceme-shaped inflorescences that have several male flowers, plus a few female flowers near the base. The male flowers have 2 to 4 stamens. The female flowers have 2 to 4 styles which are sometimes coiled. The flowers lack petals. The fruit has 2 to 4 lobes and may split open or not.

;Species

  1. Sapium adenodon - Cuba
  2. Sapium allenii - Costa Rica
  3. Sapium argutum - Fr Guiana, Suriname, Amapá, Fernando de Noronha
  4. Sapium ciliatum - Fr Guiana, Suriname, Pará
  5. Sapium cuneatum - Jamaica
  6. Sapium daphnoides - Cuba, Hispaniola
  7. Sapium glandulosum - Mexico, West Indies, Central + S America to Uruguay
  8. Sapium haematospermum - Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, N Argentina, Uruguay
  9. Sapium haitiense - Massif de la Hotte, Haiti
  10. Sapium jenmannii - Guyana, Venezuela, Colombia, NW Brazil; naturalised in Trinidad
  11. Sapium lateriflorum - C + S Mexico, Central America
  12. Sapium laurifolium - Chiapas, Greater Antilles, Central America, NW South America
  13. Sapium laurocerasus - Puerto Rico
  14. Sapium leucogynum - Cuba
  15. Sapium macrocarpum - Mexico, Central America
  16. Sapium marmieri - Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, NW Brazil
  17. Sapium obovatum - Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay
  18. Sapium pachystachys - Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama
  19. Sapium pallidum - Bahia, Minas Gerais
  20. Sapium parvifolium - Cuba
  21. Sapium paucinervium - NE South America
  22. Sapium sellowianum - Minas Gerais, São Paulo
  23. Sapium stylare - Costa Rica, Panama, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador

Toxicity

The milky sap of Sapium biloculare is poisonous if it comes into contact with the eyes, mucous membranes, stomach or bloodstream. It was used in arrow poison and to stupefy fish.

References

References

  1. [https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/622926#page/12/mode/1up Jacquin, Nicolaus Joseph von. 1790. Enumeratio Systematica Plantarum, quas in insulis Caribaeis 9, 31] in Latin
  2. [http://www.tropicos.org/Name/40029472 Tropicos, ''Sapium'' Jacq.]
  3. [http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/namedetail.do?name_id=184227 Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families]
  4. Govaerts, R., Frodin, D.G. & Radcliffe-Smith, A. (2000). World Checklist and Bibliography of Euphorbiaceae (and Pandaceae) 1-4: 1-1622. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  5. link. (2016-03-04 ''Biblioth. Bot.'' 146, 1-109.)
  6. [https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=28394 ''Sapium''.] Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS).
  7. Peattie, Donald Culross. (1953). "A Natural History of Western Trees". [[Bonanza Books]].

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