Scientific name: Pinus lumholtzii B.L. Robinson et Fernald 1894
Synonyms: -
Common names: Lumholtz's pine, Lumholtz's weeping pine, Ocote, Pino Ahuitado, Pino Amarillo, Pino Barba Caída, Pino Triste (Spanish)
Description
Tree to 20 m tall, with trunk to 0.6(-0.7) m in diameter. Bark dark grayish brown, very rough, with irregular, scaly ridges and deep furrows. Crown dome-shaped open, often irregular, with numerous slender, horizontal or rising branches densely clothed at the tips with entirely hanging foliage. Twigs reddish brown with a distinct waxy layer, hairless, generally fairly smooth but shallowly grooved between the bases of the scale leaves, which begin to flake off after the first season. Buds 8-15 mm long, a little resinous. Needles in bundles of (two or) three (or four), each needle (14-)23-30(-40) cm long, flexible but hanging straight down, lasting 2 years, light green to yellowish green. Individual needles with numerous conspicuous lines of stomates on both the inner and outer faces and 4-8(-10) resin canals surrounding the two-stranded midvein and touching it or more often midway between it and the needle surface. Sheath (20-)25-30 mm long initially, soon peeling back and shedding completely. Pollen cones 2-3 cm long, yellowish brown with a reddish flush. Seed cones (3-)4-6(-7) cm long, symmetrically egg-shaped, hanging like the needles, with (50-)60-80(-100) seed scales, green before maturity, ripening grayish to reddish brown, opening widely to release the seeds and then falling together with the slender, curved, (5-)10-15 mm long stalk. seed scales fairly rectangular, the exposed face spade-shaped, thickened at the tip, with a large umbo bearing a thin, fragile prickle. Seed body 3-5 mm long, the clasping wing another 8-14 mm longer. The species name honors Carl Lumholtz (1851-1922), who led the scientific expedition on which the type was collected in 1893.
Mountains of western Mexico, from central Chihuahua to Jalisco and Guanajuato. Mixed with other species in dry to wet pine and pine-oak forest and woodlands; (1,500-)1,800-2,400(-2,900) m.
Conservation Status
Red List Category & Criteria: Near Threatened
Although widespread, with an extent of occurrence (EOO) far beyond the threshold for a threatened category, this species is probably in decline due to logging, as it is usually scattered among other pines and often less abundant. Perry (1991) observed that “small populations” can still be found in inaccessible places “despite heavy cutting” but the estimate here given of the area of occupancy (AOO) places it just outside a threatened category. If the AOO and number of locations were smaller, it would be assessed as Vulnerable but Near Threatened seems a better option given its wide range.
The altitudinal range of this species is (1,500-)1,800-2,400(-2,900) m a.s.l., which corresponds to the lower and middle slopes of the Sierra Madre. It grows usually mixed with several species of Quercus and other pines in pine-oak forest, or on the wetter western slopes of the Sierra Madre, in mixed pine forest. Associated pines are e.g. Pinus leiophylla, Pinus arizonica, Pinus douglasiana, Pinus teocote, and Pinus oocarpa; on more mesic sites one can expect Pinus ayacahuite and Pseudotsuga menziesii, while in dry habitats Pinus cembroides can occur with it. The annual precipitation, mostly as summer rains, is a moderate 500-600 mm (except on the driest and wettest sites). Additional species it can be associated with are Pinus herrerae, Pinus luzmariae, Pinus praetermissa, Pinus durangensis, Quercus urbanii, Quercus crassifolia, Quercus coccolobifolia, Quercus rugosa, Quercus magnoliifolia, Quercus viminea.
Extensive logging in many parts of its range may have had some negative impact on this widespread but scattered species, but it is impossible to quantify a rate of decline because this pine occurs nearly always mixed with other species. As it is a relatively small tree it is not likely to be specifically targeted as a timber tree where larger growing species are readily available.
Pinus lumholtzii is generally known as 'Pino Triste' for its striking pendulous foliage. It has been overexploited with other pines in some areas for timber, but due to its scattered occurrence, especially in pine-oak forest and in drier sites, it is not a commercially important tree. This species, despite its striking foliage, is not known in cultivation.
This species is present in several protected areas.
References
- Farjon, A. (2010). A Handbook of the World's Conifers. Koninklijke Brill, Leiden.
- Eckenwalder, J.E. (2009) Conifers of the World: The Complete Reference. Timber Press, Portland.
- IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. Cambridge, UK /Gland, Switzerland
Copyright © Aljos Farjon, James E. Eckenwalder, IUCN, Conifers Garden. All rights reserved.