Baboonwood
ENEndangered

Baboonwood

Virola surinamensis

Virola surinamensis, known commonly as baboonwood, ucuuba, ucuhuba and chalviande, is a species of flowering plant in the family Myristicaceae. It is found in Brazil, Costa Rica, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Panama, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons (CC) via https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virola_surinamensis

01Classification

Taxonomy & Classification

Kingdom

Plantae

Phylum

Tracheophyta

Class

Magnoliopsida

Order

Magnoliales

Family

Myristicaceae

Genus

Virola

Baboonwood belongs to the family Myristicaceae, order Magnoliales, within the Magnoliopsida class.

02Description

Species Profile

Virola surinamensis, known commonly as baboonwood, ucuuba, ucuhuba and chalviande, is a species of flowering plant in the family Myristicaceae. It is found in Brazil, Costa Rica, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Panama, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela. It has also been naturalized in the Caribbean. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, subtropical or tropical swamps, and heavily degraded former forest. Although the species is listed as threatened due to habitat loss by the IUCN, it is a common tree species found throughout Central and South America.

Baboonwood (Virola surinamensis) faces severe population decline primarily due to extensive deforestation and habitat fragmentation across its Amazonian and Guianan range. Commercial logging operations specifically target this valuable timber species for its high-quality wood used in construction and furniture making. Agricultural expansion, particularly cattle ranching and soy cultivation, continues to convert remaining forest habitats into farmland.

Key Facts

IUCN StatusEndangered (EN)
GroupPlants
04Threats

Threats

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IUCN Red List: Endangered

Baboonwood (Virola surinamensis) faces severe population decline primarily due to extensive deforestation and habitat fragmentation across its Amazonian and Guianan range. Commercial logging operations specifically target this valuable timber species for its high-quality wood used in construction and furniture making. Agricultural expansion, particularly cattle ranching and soy cultivation, continues to convert remaining forest habitats into farmland.

Agricultural expansion and land conversion

HighOngoing

Commercial logging and timber extraction

HighOngoing

Deforestation for cattle ranching

HighOngoing

Habitat fragmentation

MediumOngoing

Infrastructure development and road construction

MediumOngoing
Community

Community Sightings

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07Sources

Sources & Attribution

How to Cite

IUCN: IUCN (2025). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2025-1. Available at: https://www.iucnredlist.org. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2025-1.RLTS

GBIF: GBIF.org (2025). GBIF Home Page. Available at: https://www.gbif.org

This page: SpeciesRadar (2025). Baboonwood (Virola surinamensis). SpeciesRadar: Intelligence for Earth's Biodiversity. Available at: https://speciesradar.org/species/baboonwood

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