Honduras mahogany

Scientific name: Swietenia humilis

POWO Status: Tree

IUCN Red List threat level: Endangered

GPS Location: 17° 42′ 58.84″ N, 64° 49′ 44.52″ W

Observations:

Phenological Markers – Swietenia humilis (Pacific Mahogany)

Family: Meliaceae
Common Names: Pacific Mahogany, Honduras Mahogany (small-leaf), Caoba del Pacífico
Habitat: Native to the Pacific coastal regions of Central America, especially in seasonally dry tropical forests. Found at lower elevations from Mexico to Costa Rica.

Phenological Markers:

Flowering Period:
Typically flowers from March to May, toward the end of the dry season. The small, greenish-white flowers are fragrant and borne in loose panicles.
Fruiting Period:
Fruits mature and split open to release winged seeds from October to December, coinciding with the latter part of the rainy season.
Leaf Fall:
Deciduous, shedding leaves at the beginning of the dry season (January to March) as an adaptation to drought conditions.
Budding Period:
New foliage begins to emerge in late dry season to early rainy season (April to June), often in coordination with flowering.

Key Features:

Leaves: Pinnate with 4–8 leaflets, smaller and fewer than those of Swietenia macrophylla or Swietenia mahagoni.
Flowers: Small, pale green to whitish, and sweet-scented.
Fruit: Woody, ovoid capsule (15–25 cm), splitting into 5 valves to release numerous flat, winged seeds.
Bark & Wood: Grayish bark with reddish undertones; the wood is dense, dark reddish-brown, and highly valued for fine furniture, although S. humilis is less commercially harvested than its relatives due to smaller size.

Additional Notes:

Swietenia humilis is the most drought-tolerant of the mahogany species and typically grows smaller—often only 6–15 meters tall, unlike its towering cousins.
It is classified as Vulnerable due to overharvesting and habitat loss.
It plays a role in dry forest ecosystems and is increasingly important for conservation plantings and reforestation in arid zones.