Author(s): M. Bulama-Modu*, T. K. Muftaudeen, A. E. Ayodele and A. J. Akinloye

Affiliation: *Department of Biological Sciences, University of Maiduguri, Maiduguri, Nigeria

Abstract: Comparative wood anatomical studies was carried out on ten species in the family Sapindaceae. The species were relatively uniform in the features of their vessels, in which diffuse porous was observed with solitary vessels to pore multiples in transverse section and ray cells were predominantly heterogeneous in radial section. Fibres were long and extensive. The longest fibre was observed in Blighia sapida (1025±28.5 µm), while the shortest fibre was observed in Cardiospermum halicacabum (139±6.5 µm). The longest vessel was observed in Deinbolia pinnata (509±34.9 µm) and the shortest vessel was observed in Cardiospermum halicacabum (85.36±4.9 µm). The implication of these features in the taxonomy of the family was discussed. The Dendrogram based on the quantitative wood characters confirmed Allophylus africanus and Allophylus spicatus belong to the same genus as classified, likewise Blighia unijugata, Blighia sapida but Cardiospermum halicacabum is closely related to Paullinia pinnata while others exhibited distinct generic characters.

DOI: 10.22271/2582-3744.2021.jun.37

Pages: 37-46 | Views: 635 | Downloads: 388

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