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Avocado Family (Lauraceae)

Although no single tree species dominates a tropical forest, the Avocado Family (Lauraceae) contains many prominant forest trees in the Monteverde area.  With 66 species in the area, Lauraceae is also the most diverse family of trees at the elevation of the town.

I didn't notice lauraceous fruits until near the end of my stay in Monteverde because every species in the family fruits simultaneously at the beginning of the rainy season.  Once they started falling, though, I loved picking up lauraceous fruits as I walked along the road and trails.  Each one was like a tiny avocado --- one large seed in the center surrounded by firm, green flesh.

The fruits are too large to be gulped down by small, generalist birds and have instead evolved to be eaten by bigger specialists, like quetzals, bellbirds, guans, and toucans.  The elongated shape of lauraceous fruits helps them slide down the larger gullets of their favored dispersal agents, who are the lucky recipients of flesh rich in proteins and lipids.

As a budding botany geek, I was intrigued to learn that Lauraceae and Piperaceae are both members of the plant subclass Magnoliidae, an ancient line of plants that is considered to be neither monocots nor true dicots.  Scientists think that Magnoliids may have been among the earliest flowering plants to evolve, which would explain their pantropical distribution.

Geekery aside, you're probably more familiar with the Avocado Family than you think.  In addition to providing us with the oily fruits that give the family its name, Lauraceae includes Cinnamon, Spicebush, and Sassafras.  Pluck a Sassafras fruit this fall and tear it apart to see the exact same kind of fruits I drew with such glee in Costa Rica.


6/27/01
While Maggie glowed in the embrace of the expatriate American Quakers, I withdrew from the machismo of the Ticos (native Costa Ricans.)  Central American culture separates women quite neatly into the Virgin or the Whore, and by wandering around without a man (and leaving my bra at home), I was placed in the latter category.  As I drew plants up in the Monteverde Cloud Forest Preserve, Tico workers would walk by whistling and leering.  In retrospect, the problem was largely my own fault --- I was young and figured the world would bend around me, but a traveler is obligated to bend around the world.

Later, I discovered that Monteverde culture had become much more supportive of strong women in the last 35 years.  In the 1970s, 80% of the women in Monteverde were illiterate, and nearly none worked outside the home.  Then, in 1982, eight women artists came together to produce CASEM --- Cooperativa de Artesanas de Santa Elena y Monteverde.  The gallery coop gives women a space to show their arts and crafts, in the process channeling tourism dollars into the womens' families and also building the womens' self esteem.  If you ever make the trek to Monteverde, be sure to stop in and see the handicrafts of local Ticas.