Hesperocyparis benthamii
Mexican cypress, cedar of Goa, cedro blanco, cedro blanco del desierto, cedro, ciprés (Farjon 2005).
Synonymy: see POWO (accessed 2023.12.16). See Hesperocyparis for a discussion of the relationship between this and other, closely related Hesperocyparis taxa in northwest Mexico and the adjacent Southwest U.S.). Briefly, there is considerable doubt whether the populations of Hesperocyparis scattered from Sonora to Chiapas have been studied well enough to conclude that all can be assigned to the existing described species. Farjon (1993) analysed the problem and concluded that all specimens from south of about 22° latitude can be assigned to one of two taxa, which he called Cupressus lusitanica var. lusitanica and C. lusitanica var. benthamii, and which I here treat as Hesperocyparis lusitanica and H. benthamii. An analysis by Little (2006) also found differences between the two taxa on the basis of several different molecular genetic lines of evidence; however, the differences were very small.
A tree attaining 25-30 m in height. Crown pyramidal. Bark thick, reddish-brown, with longitudinal fissures. Shoots quadrangular, pendulous, not in a single plane. Foliage blue-green, four-ranked, ovate, closely pressed, usually with long, pointed apex. Cones globose, ca. 12 mm across, blue-green in the juvenile stage, turning dark brown when they ripen, they open and later fall, composed of 6-8 scales with a central strong, reflexed umbo, erect on the upper scales. Seeds about 75 to a cone, brown, with resin glands, about 4 mm long together with a narrow wing (Vidakovic 1991).
The easiest way to distinguish Hesperocyparis benthamii from H. lusitanica is that the latter species has irregularly arranged sprays of foliage (vs. flattened sprays in H. benthamii), and the crown, while often pyramidal in both species, is broader (vs. narrower in H. benthamii) (Farjon 2005).
Mexico: Chiapas, Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, México, Michoacán, Oaxaca, Puebla, Querétaro, San Luis Potosí, Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Yucatan? Occurs in humid forests at elevations of 1500-3990 m. It appears to be generally sympatric with Hesperocyparis lusitanica, but to have a more restricted distribution (Farjon 2005).
No data as of 2023.12.16.
No data as of 2023.12.16.
No data as of 2023.12.16.
No data as of 2023.12.16.
Bartel 2009: described in Adams, R. P., J. A. Bartel and R. A. Price. 2009. A new genus, Hesperocyparis, for the cypresses of the western hemisphere. Phytologia 91(1):160-185.
Endlicher. 1847. Synopsis Coniferarum, p. 59 (as Cupressus benthami).
Farjon, Aljos. 1993. Nomenclature of the Mexican cypress or "cedar of Goa", Cupressus lusitanica Mill. (Cupressaceae). Taxon 42: 81-84.
Bisbee, Jeff. 2006. Photos at the Cupressus Conservation Project website.
Farjon (2005) provides a detailed account, with illustrations.
Martínez, M. 1947. Los Cupressos de Mexico. Anal. Inst. Biol. Mexico 18: 71-149.
Last Modified 2023-12-17
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