Risk Tool
Bigleaf mahogany Swietenia macrophylla
Also know as: acajou, acajou Amerique, acajou d’Amerique, acajou du Honduras, Adoa, aguano, American mahogany, Americkaans mahonie, Amerikanns mahonie, ara putange, araputanga, bastard lime, bay-mahogany, baywood, belize mahogany, caòba, Honduras mahogany, mara, mogno
S. macrophylla, often called caoba, is a very large timber-producing tree native to large areas of the Americas. It is the national tree of both Belize and the Dominican Republic. It is the most commercially important mahogany tree and one of only three species that produces true mahogany. Mahogany timber is well-known and valuable for its straight grain, reddish-brown tone, resistance to rot, and tonal quality. It is used in fine furniture, boat construction, and musical instruments, in particular the backs, sides and necks of acoustic guitars and the shells of drums. Large-scale commercial use of the timber over many centuries has made S. macrophylla rare in its northern natural range. Its IUCN Red List status is “vulnerable.” It is grown on plantations in Southeast Asia.
Species Details
S. macrophylla is listed on Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), a listing that applies to logs, lumber, plywood and veneer originating in Latin America and the Caribbean with the exception of Brazil and Nicaragua. National export bans on S. macrophylla exist in Brazil and Nicaragua