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Cockspur coral tree (Erythrina crista-galli)

Dlium cockspur coral tree (Erythrina crista-galli)

Velvet coral tree or cockspur coral tree (Erythrina crista-galli) is a species of plant in the Fabaceae family. It is a small tree, 5-8 meters tall, with a trunk circumference of about 50 cm, irregular branches, light wood, and fissured, soft, and light brown bark. The taproot is white.

The leaves are ovate, with three strands, dark green and glossy on the upper surface, and pale green on the underside. The central lobe is up to 17 cm long and up to 11 cm wide. The left and right lobes are up to 15 cm long and up to 10 cm wide.



The flowers are red, arranged in racemes, at the apex, pentameric, complete, and bilaterally symmetrical. The flowers are up to 6 cm long and 4 cm wide. The pods are long, containing about 8 seeds, green when young and turning brown as they mature. The seeds are ovate, flat, and brown.

It grows well in lowlands up to an elevation of 1,500 meters, with an annual rainfall of 800-1,500 mm/year, and a temperature of 20-32°C. It thrives in well-drained soils, but tolerates a wide range of soil conditions, from sand to karst with a pH of 4.5-8.0.

The tree contains erysodine, erysotrine, erythraline, erysopine, alkaloids, mellein, nectriapyrone, scyoalone, tyrosol, clavatol, mevinic acid, and mevalonolactone. It is used to reduce puerperal fever, stimulate breast milk production, and aid in internal bleeding, abdominal pain, prevent miscarriage, thin mucus, as an antibacterial, antioxidant, and for joint pain relief.

TAXON :

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Subfamily: Faboideae
Tribe: Phaseoleae
Genus: Erythrina L. in Sp. Pl.: 706 (1753)
Species: Erythrina crista-galli L. in Mant. Pl. 1: 99 (1767)

HOMOTYPIC SYNONYMS :

Corallodendron crista-galli (L.) Kuntze in Revis. Gen. Pl. 1: 172 (1891) Micropteryx crista-galli (L.) Walp. in Linnaea 23: 740 (1851)

HETEROTYPIC SYNONYMS :

Erythrina compacta W.Bull in Nursery Cat. (William Bull) 60: 4 (1871)
Erythrina crista-galli var. corallina N.F.Mattos in Loefgrenia 71: 3 (1977)
Erythrina crista-galli var. hasskarlii Backer in Voorl. Schoolfl. Java: 87 (1908)
Erythrina crista-galli var. laurifolia (Jacq.) Tod. in Index Seminum (PAL, Panormitani) 1861: 32 (1862)
Erythrina crista-galli var. leucochlora Lombardo in Arb. Arbust. Paseos Public.: 15 (1961)
Erythrina crista-galli var. longiflora M.A.Zapater & E.C.Lozano in Darwiniana 48: 185 (2010)
Erythrina crista-galli var. speciosa Tod. (1862)
Erythrina fasciculata Benth. in Linnaea 22: 517 (1849)
Erythrina graefferi Tineo in Cat. Pl. Hort. Panorm.: 278 (1827)
Erythrina laurifolia Jacq. in Observ. Bot. 3: 1 (1768)
Erythrina pulcherrima Tod. in Nuov. Gen. Sp.: 70 (1861)
Micropteryx fasciculata (Benth.) Walp. in Ann. Bot. Syst. 2: 425 (1852)
Micropteryx laurifolia (Jacq.) Walp. (1852)

PUBLICATIONS :

Balslev, H. & Chantaranothai, P. (2023). Flora of Thailand 4(3.3.): 489-715. The Forest Herbarium, Royal Forest Department.

Bean, A.R. (2008). A taxonomic revision of Erythina L. (Fabaceae: Faboideae) in Australia. Austrobaileya 7: 641-658.

Evenhuis, N.L. & Eldredge, L.G. (eds.) (2012). Records of the Hawaii biological survey for 2011. Part II: plants. Bishop Museum Occasional Papers 113: 1-102.

Germishuizen, G. & Meyer, N.L. (eds.) (2003). Plants of Southern Africa an annotated checklist. Strelitzia 14: 1-1231. National Botanical Institute, Pretoria.

Govaerts, R. (2001). World Checklist of Seed Plants Database in ACCESS Genera starting with letter E-F: 1-50919.

Kumar, S. & Sane, P.V. (2003). Legumes of South Asia. A Checklist: 1-536. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Lepschi, B. & Monro, A. (Project Coordinators) (2014). Australian Plant Census (APC) Council of Heads of Australian Herbaria.

Lock, J.M. & Ford, C.S. (2004). Legumes of Malesia a Check-List: 1-295. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Lock, J.M. (1989). Legumes of Africa a check-List: 1-619. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

VERNACULAR NAME :

Burmese: အနီရောင် ဒါဒပ်
Chinese (simplified): 鸡冠刺桐
Chinese (traditional): 雞冠刺桐
Czech: Zarděnice kohoutí
English: Velvet coral tree, Cockspur coral tree
Finnish: Kukonkorallipuu
French: Immortelle
German: Korallenbaum, Gewöhnlicher Korallenbaum
Indonesia: Dadap merah
Japanese: アメリカデイゴ - カイコウズ - アメリカデイコ
Java: Dadap serep
Khmer: ដាដាបក្រហម
Lao: ດາດັບສີແດງ
Madura: Dhadhak cangkring
Melayu: Dadap minyak
Polish: Koralodrzew koguci grzebień
Portuguese: Mulungu
Russian: Эритрина петушиный гребень
Slovak: Koralník hrebeňovitý
Spanish: Ceibo
Sunda: Dadap cangkring
Swedish: Korallbuske
Thai: เรด ดาดัป
Vietnam: Bố đỏ
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