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Distributed for Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

Woody Plants of Western African Forests

A Guide to the Forest Trees, Shrubs and Lianes from Senegal to Ghana

Woody Plants of Western African Forests is an illustrated guide to the identification of 2200 trees, lianes and shrubs found in the forests of West Africa, from Senegal to Ghana. This is all the woody plants and more than 80% of the higher plants in the forests of this region, known to biogeographers as Upper Guinea. This represents 5% of all flowering plant genera in the world—1% of the species — so the book is relevant to anyone interested in tropical plants, especially but not only in the forests of tropical Africa.

Laid out as keys and with short descriptions of each species, it contains over 5,600 photographs, line drawings and maps. And, while many guides only offer hints to naming plants when they are not in flower, here the authors have based identification on leaves, bark, shoots, scent ,taste and other characters easily observed at most times.

Funded by the European Union, through its ECOSYN project (based at Wageningen University), which supports forest biodiversity and management in Upper Guinea, this magnificent, beautiful book is an indispensable reference for everyone committed to the conservation and sustainable development of Africa’s forest.

1,023 pages | 2,600 color plates, 2,600 line drawings | © 2006

Biological Sciences: Biology--Systematics, Botany


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Table of Contents

Foreword
Preface and Acknowledgements

Introduction
Species covered
A note on our habit categories
Accuracy and choice of characters used
Fieldwork, tools of your trade and collection of specimens
Introduction to Forest types
Biogeographic variation
Map 1
Bibliography and other sources of information
Map 2
How to use the guide

The species
Primary keys to groups: where to starts?

A Magnoliales, Ericales

B Malpighiales I (non-glandular)

C Malpighiales 2 (glandular)

D Urticales

E Malvales

F Santalales, Brassicales, Icacinaceae

G Dioscoreales, Piperales

H Cucurbitaceae, Passifloraceae, Vitaceae climbers

I Asterales, Solanales

J Lamiales

K Myrtales (except Combretaceae)

L Gentianales

M Rubiaceae

N Rhamnaceae to Celastraceae

O Apiales to Sapindales

P Leguminosae: The Legumes

Q Ferns to Monocots

R Cross-cutting groups, glossary and indexes

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