Caesalpinia bonduc (Gray nicker)

Caesalpinia bonduc (L.) Roxb.

Gray nicker, nickerbean

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Rosidae	Roses, legumes, proteas, dogwoods, hydrangeas, mistletoes, euphorbias, grapes, many more
Order	Fabales	Legumes (pea and bean families)
Family	Fabaceae	Legume family (peas and beans)
Genus	Caesalpinia	Named after Andrea Cesalpino (1519-1603) of Italy
Species	bonduc	From French; then Arabic bunduq, “hazelnut;” then Greek Pontikòn (káryon), hazelnut, literally, Pontic nut

About plant names...

Nickerbean is widespread on tropical sea-shores.

Plants: Plants are a liana—a woody climber, like a vine—that clambers over other plants, reaching lengths of up to 98' (30 m). Branches are covered with straight or recurved spines.

Leaves: Bipinnate, with 3-9 pairs of pinnae, and 6-9 pairs of leaflets per pinna. Leaflets are ovate-oblong to elliptic-oblong. ½-1¾" (1.5-5 cm) × ¼-⅞" (8-25 mm).

Flowers: Flowers are in racemes, yellow or greenish yellow, ⅜-½" (1-1.4 cm) long.

Fruits: Seed pods are initially green, becoming very dark brown to black. Each pod is covered with prickles, resembling a porcupine fish, and contains one or two pale gray or olive gray “nickernuts” about ¾" (2 cm) in size. The nuts are dispersed by floating in the ocean.

Online References:

Caesalpinia bonduc on www.seabean.com (Great photos)

Caesalpinia bonduc on www.nativeplants.hawaii.edu

Caesalpinia bonduc on Wikipedia

Caesalpinia bonduc on JSTOR Plant Science

4/10/2015 · Gulf Coast Visitor Center, Everglades National Park, Everglades City, Florida
≈ 8 × 5" (19 × 13 cm)

4/13/2015 · Flamingo Campground, Everglades National Park, Florida
≈ 7 × 4½" (17 × 11 cm)

4/13/2015 · Flamingo Campground, Everglades National Park, Florida
≈ 19 × 12" (47 × 31 cm)

4/10/2015 · Gulf Coast Visitor Center, Everglades National Park, Everglades City, Florida
≈ 20 × 18" (51 × 45 cm)

4/10/2015 · Gulf Coast Visitor Center, Everglades National Park, Everglades City, Florida
≈ 6 × 4" (15 × 10 cm)

Caesalpinia crista auct. non L.

Guilandina bonduc L.

Guilandina crista auct. non (L.) Small

Caesalpinia bonduc description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.

4/13/2015 · Flamingo Campground, Everglades National Park, Florida
≈ 8 × 5" (20 × 13 cm)

4/10/2015 · Gulf Coast Visitor Center, Everglades National Park, Everglades City, Florida
≈ 9 × 6" (23 × 15 cm)

4/13/2015 · Flamingo Campground, Everglades National Park, Florida
≈ 8 × 5" (20 × 13 cm)

4/13/2015 · Flamingo Campground, Everglades National Park, Florida
≈ 9 × 6" (22 × 15 cm)

4/13/2015 · Flamingo Campground, Everglades National Park, Florida
≈ 15 × 10" (37 × 25 cm)

4/13/2015 · Flamingo Campground, Everglades National Park, Florida
≈ 4½ × 4" (12 × 10 cm)

4/13/2015 · Flamingo Campground, Everglades National Park, Florida
≈ 8 × 5" (19 × 12 cm)

4/13/2015 · Flamingo Campground, Everglades National Park, Florida
≈ 19 × 12" (47 × 31 cm)

Range: Zones 9-11:

About this map...