Pouteria campechiana

Pouteria campechiana (Kunth) Baehni

Common Names: Egg Fruit, Canistel

Family: Sapotaceae

Habit: Pouteria campechiana grows as a tree up to 20 m in height.  Young stems are brown pubescent.  The leaves are arranged alternately, to 30 cm in length (usually smaller), elliptic to obovate, with an acute/acuminate/obtuse leaf apex.  The leaf margin is entire and slightly undulate.

The complete, perfect, actinomorphic, and subsessile flowers are arranged in groups of 1-4 arising in the axils of leaves. The calyx has 5fused brown pubescent sepals.  The corolla has 5 white fused petals.  There are 5 stamens fused to the corolla and 5 staminodes. The ovary is superior with 5 locules and ovules. The fruit is an orange/brown/yellow drupe or berry at maturity.

Habitat: Pouteria campechiana grows in Human Altered environments (yards, gardens, farms).

Distribution: Pouteria campechiana is NOT native to the Lucayan Archipelago. It is native to Mexico and Central America but is grown throughout the Caribbean region.

Medicinal/Cultural/Economic usage: Pouteria campechiana is not known to be used medicinally in the Lucayan Archipelago.

The fruits are edible.