Colubrina elliptica
(Sw.) Brizicky & W.L.Stern · speciesAt a glance
Sources12 archives
Databases and archives Colubrina elliptica's data was compiled from.
WikipediaWikimedia Foundation3 languages↗
BioWikiNetmultilingual Wikipediamultilingual↗
GBIFGlobal Biodiversity Information Facility1 119 records↗
ENAEuropean Nucleotide Archive · EMBL-EBI11 eDNA detections↗
BOLD SystemsCentre for Biodiversity Genomics7 specimens↗
NCBIUS National Library of Medicinesequences↗
LOTUSNatural Products (Wikidata)compounds↗
NPASSNat. Product Activity & Species Sourcecompounds↗
GRIN TaxonomyUSDA-ARSdistribution & uses↗
Open Tree of LifeOpenTreephylogeny backbone↗
WikidataWikimedia Foundationstructured facts↗
GLoBIGlobal Biotic Interactionsbiotic interactions↗Every layer below draws on the sources above — open one to explore it, or use ← → to move between tabs.
Colubrina elliptica, also known as mabi or soldierwood, is a species of flowering tree in the family Rhamnaceae, that is native to the Florida Keys, the Caribbean, Central America, Mexico, and Venezuela. It produces fruit the size of peppercorns, when ripe, the fruits explode, shooting their seeds for several feet away and making explosions sound like rounds of musket fire, hence the name soldierwood. It is also called nakedwood, due to its smooth bark with peels. This tree can grow very large with trunk circumference as large as 33 inches, 47 feet tall, and with tree crown spread 26 feed according to the American Forests Register of Champion Trees.Champion Tree National Register, 2020 www.americanforests.org/big-trees/soldierwood-colubria-elliptica/ This tree is recognized not only for its size but also the critical ecosystem services that it provides such a food and shelter for wildlife, its water purification abilities, and its role in absorbing from our atmosphere and storing carbon in its wood. The plant is a saponin containing plant widely distributed in the Caribbean region where its bark is used for the preparation of bitter beverages and in folk medicine for treatment of skin diseases.Morton, J.F., “Atlas of Medicinal Plants of Middle America”, C.C. Thomas, Illinois, 1981. In recent years, three new bitter saponins, designated mabioside A, B and C, were isolated from the bark of Colubrina Elliptica and were determined to be 3-O-[alpha-JL-rhamnopyranosyl-(1 --> 6)-beta-D-glucopyranosyl]-15-O-[beta-D- glucopyranosyl] mabiogenin, 3-O-{alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1 --> 6)-[beta-D-glucopyranosyl-(1 --> 2)]-beta-D-glucopyranosyl}mabiogenin and 3-O-[alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1 --> 6)-beta-D-glucopyranosyl]mabiogenin, respectively.MAXWELL, A (MAXWELL, A) 1993 , NEW BITTER SAPONINS FROM THE BARK OF COLUBRINA-ELLIPTICA - H-1 AND C-13 ASSIGNMENTS BY 2D NMR-SPECTROSCOPY, MAGNETIC RESONANCE IN CHEMISTRY, Volume: 31, Issue: 9, Pages: 859-864
No narrative description available for this taxon yet.
Size & morphology3
Life cycle & reproduction18
Diet & foraging1
Habitat & environment23
Physiology & chemistry11
Uses & economy11
Other traits6
Compounds documented for Colubrina elliptica across natural-product and food-composition databases — not just the ~150 nutrients on a classic label ("nutritional dark matter").
Compound class profile4 classes
Documented compounds25 total
| Compound | Class | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| (1R,2R,3R,4R,6S,7R,8S,9R,12R,13R,16S,18S)-1,2,7,13,17,17-hexamethyl-6-(3-methylbut-2-enyl)-16-[(2R,3R,4S,5S,6R)-3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-[[(2R,3R,4R,5R,6S)-3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-methyloxan-2-yl]oxymethyl]oxan-2-yl]oxy-5-oxapentacyclo[10.8.0.02,9.04,8.013,18]icosane-3,4,7-triol | present | LOTUS | |
| (1R,2R,3R,5R,6R,9S,10R,13R,14R,17S,19S)-1,2,5,14,18,18-hexamethyl-6-(3-methylbut-2-enyl)-3-[(2S,3R,4S,5S,6R)-3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-(hydroxymethyl)oxan-2-yl]oxy-17-[(2R,3R,4S,5S,6R)-3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-[[(2R,3R,4R,5R,6S)-3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-methyloxan-2-yl]oxymethyl]oxan-2-yl]oxy-4,7-dioxapentacyclo[11.8.0.02,10.05,9.014,19]henicosan-8-one | present | LOTUS | |
| (1R,2R,3S,5R,6R,9S,10R,13R,14R,17S,19S)-17-[(2R,3R,4S,5S,6R)-4,5-dihydroxy-3-[(2S,3R,4S,5S,6R)-3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-(hydroxymethyl)oxan-2-yl]oxy-6-[[(2R,3R,4R,5R,6S)-3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-methyloxan-2-yl]oxymethyl]oxan-2-yl]oxy-3-hydroxy-1,2,5,14,18,18-hexamethyl-6-(3-methylbut-2-enyl)-4,7-dioxapentacyclo[11.8.0.02,10.05,9.014,19]henicosan-8-one | present | LOTUS | |
| (1R,2R,3S,5R,6R,9S,10R,13R,14R,17S,19S)-3-hydroxy-1,2,5,14,18,18-hexamethyl-6-(3-methylbut-2-enyl)-17-[(2R,3R,4S,5S,6R)-3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-[[(2R,3R,4R,5R,6S)-3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-methyloxan-2-yl]oxymethyl]oxan-2-yl]oxy-4,7-dioxapentacyclo[11.8.0.02,10.05,9.014,19]henicosan-8-one | present | LOTUS | |
| (1R,2R,5R,6R,9S,10R,13R,14R,17S,19R)-5-(hydroxymethyl)-1,2,14,18,18-pentamethyl-6-(3-methylbut-2-enyl)-17-[(2R,3R,4S,5S,6R)-3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-[[(2R,3R,4R,5R,6S)-3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-methyloxan-2-yl]oxymethyl]oxan-2-yl]oxy-4,7-dioxapentacyclo[11.8.0.02,10.05,9.014,19]henicosane-3,8-dione | present | LOTUS | |
| (1R,2R,5R,6R,9S,10R,13R,14R,17S,19S)-5-(hydroxymethyl)-1,2,14,18,18-pentamethyl-6-(3-methylbut-2-enyl)-17-[(2R,3R,4S,5S,6R)-3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-[[(2R,3R,4R,5R,6S)-3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-methyloxan-2-yl]oxymethyl]oxan-2-yl]oxy-4,7-dioxapentacyclo[11.8.0.02,10.05,9.014,19]henicosane-3,8-dione | present | LOTUS | |
| (1R,2R,5S,7S,10R,11R,14R,18R)-1,2,6,6,10-pentamethyl-18-(3-methylbut-2-enyl)-7-[(2R,3R,4S,5S,6R)-3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-[[(2R,3R,4R,5R,6S)-3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-methyloxan-2-yl]oxymethyl]oxan-2-yl]oxy-17,21-dioxapentacyclo[12.8.0.02,11.05,10.015,19]docos-15(19)-ene-16,22-dione | present | LOTUS | |
| (2S,3R,4R,5R,6S)-2-[(2S,3R,4S,5S)-5-hydroxy-2-[[(1S,2R,5S,7S,10R,11R,14R,15S,16S,18R,20S)-16-hydroxy-18-[(1R)-1-hydroxy-2-methylprop-2-enyl]-2,6,6,10,16-pentamethyl-19,21-dioxahexacyclo[18.2.1.01,14.02,11.05,10.015,20]tricosan-7-yl]oxy]-4-[(2S,3R,4S,5S,6R)-3,4,5-trihydroxy-6-(hydroxymethyl)oxan-2-yl]oxyoxan-3-yl]oxy-6-methyloxane-3,4,5-triol | present | LOTUS | |
| 2-[[(1R,8R,9S,27R,29S,30R,39R)-21-[6-[[(10R,11S,12R,13R,15R)-3,4,5,13,21,22,23-heptahydroxy-8,18-dioxo-11-(3,4,5-trihydroxybenzoyl)oxy-9,14,17-trioxatetracyclo[17.4.0.02,7.010,15]tricosa-1(23),2,4,6,19,21-hexaen-12-yl]oxycarbonyl]-2,3,4-trihydroxyphenoxy]-1,2,2,14,15,16,19,35,36-nonahydroxy-3,6,11,24,32-pentaoxo-29-(3,4,5-trihydroxybenzoyl)oxy-7,10,25,28,31,40-hexaoxaoctacyclo[35.2.1.05,39.08,27.09,30.012,17.018,23.033,38]tetraconta-4,12,14,16,18,20,22,33,35,37-decaen-20-yl]oxy]-3,4,5-trihydroxybenzoic acid | present | NPASS | |
| 3-Galloylshikimic acid | present | NPASS |
A DNA barcode is a short, standardised stretch of genes that works like a fingerprint — enough to tell one species from another. Below is the molecular trace Colubrina elliptica has left across the world's sequence archives.
At a glance
★ the standard DNA barcode for this group — the short region actually read to tell this species apart. The rest are extra genes sequenced along the way.
How far back this lineage goes — and how we know. Everything here is measured in Ma, short for “mega-annum”: millions of years ago. The chart reads left to right like a calendar of the Earth, from the deep past on the left to today at the right edgetop to bottom like a core drilled through the Earth, from the deep past at the top down to today at the bottom.
At a glance
When this lineage existed
How to read this: the coloured strip along the bottomdown the left is the geological calendar — the standard epochs (Pliocene, Pleistocene…) every museum uses, shown so you can see which chapter of Earth's history this lineage lived in. This lineage is a young one, so the strip is zoomed in to epochs — the finer subdivisions inside a period. The orange marker is the DNA clock: DNA accumulates mutations at a roughly steady rate, so comparing this species' DNA with its relatives estimates when the lineage split off — independently of any fossil.
Record type1 119 records
Range
Wildobservation + sensor
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
Museum / Voucheredphysical evidence
Backed by a physical specimen — a herbarium sheet, sample or voucher held in a collection. “Vouchered” means supported by material evidence, not just an observation.
Wildobservation + sensor
Human sightings and records, or camera-trap / sensor detections — someone (or a device) saw or captured the species in the wild.
Holding institutions50 of 70 geolocated
Institutions and collections holding physical, vouchered specimens of this species — click a row to fly to it on the map.
| Institution | Specimens |
|---|---|
| Durango, MX | 140 |
| Saint Louis, US | 127 |
| Mexico City, MX | 100 |
| Bronx, US | 87 |
| Austin, US | 78 |
| Mérida, MX | 53 |
| MEXUlocation not on record | 48 |
| Miami, US | 38 |
| University of Stellenboschlocation not on record | 27 |
| Austin, US | 21 |
| Chicago, US | 18 |
| San Francisco, US | 15 |
| National Biodiversity Institute, Costa Ricalocation not on record | 14 |
| San Francisco de Campeche, MX | 14 |
| Tapachula, MX | 12 |
| Juriquilla, MX | 11 |
| Ann Arbor, US | 11 |
| Berlin, DE | 9 |
| Kew, GB | 9 |
| Chongqing Museumlocation not on record | 7 |
| South Kensington, GB | 7 |
| CASlocation not on record | 6 |
| California Academy of Scienceslocation not on record | 6 |
| Chapingo, MX | 6 |
| Montréal, CA | 5 |
| Sociedad para el Estudio de los Recursos Bióticos de Oaxaca, A. C.location not on record | 4 |
| Cambridge, US | 4 |
| León, NI | 4 |
| Florida Museum of Natural History- Zoology, Paleontology & Paleobotanylocation not on record | 4 |
| Tampa, US | 4 |
| Santiago de Cali, CO | 3 |
| Antiguo Cuscatlán, SV | 3 |
| HEMlocation not on record | 3 |
| Mexico City, MX | 2 |
| Instituto de Ecología Aplicada, Universidad Autónoma de Tamaulipaslocation not on record | 2 |
| Wuzhou, CN | 2 |
| San Luis Potosí, MX | 2 |
| San José, CR | 2 |
| MAlocation not on record | 2 |
| Institut de Biologia Evolutiva, (CSIC-UPF)location not on record | 2 |
| Cambridge, US | 2 |
| Madison, US | 2 |
| Tempe, US | 2 |
| Fredericksburg, US | 2 |
| Jardín Botánico de Cartagena "Guillermo Piñeres" (JBC)location not on record | 2 |
| Toluca, MX | 1 |
| Fort Worth, US | 1 |
| St. Augustine, TT | 1 |
| IANIGLAlocation not on record | 1 |
| Riverside, US | 1 |
| EL PASO, US | 1 |
| Stockholm, SE | 1 |
| Clemson, US | 1 |
| Mexico City, MX | 1 |
| Paris, FR | 1 |
| Jena Microbial Resource Collectionlocation not on record | 1 |
| Phoenix, US | 1 |
| Florida Museum of Natural Historylocation not on record | 1 |
| Real Jardín Botánico (CSIC)location not on record | 1 |
| Davis, US | 1 |
| BMlocation not on record | 1 |
| Ciudad de México, MX | 1 |
| Chicago, US | 1 |
| Mexico City, MX | 1 |
| Dekalb, US | 1 |
| Tuxtla Gutiérrez, MX | 1 |
| Beijing, CN | 1 |
| Kunming, CN | 1 |
| Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, Instituto de Biologialocation not on record | 1 |
| Moscow State Universitylocation not on record | 1 |
Where the DNA of Colubrina elliptica was picked up in samples of water, soil or air — nobody saw the organism, only its DNA left behind. A trace is a clue that the species was near, not a confirmed sighting.
Signal
Where its DNA was found
How strong is each trace?
Modelled climatemodelled
How to read this: each dot is one detection of this species' DNA in an environmental sample. The confidence meter weighs how many independent studies and places back up the signal — one detection in one study is a hint; many across several studies is solid. Records dated before 2008 (when eDNA methods began) are treated as likely mislabeled and left off the map.