Gumbo Limbo
Bursera simaruba
It is widely known as the 'Tourist Tree' because its red, peeling bark perfectly mimics the sunburnt skin of tourists visiting its tropical habitats.
- Scientific name
- Bursera simaruba
- Taxonomy
- Plantae › Tracheophyta › Magnoliopsida › Sapindales › Burseraceae › Bursera
- IUCN Red List status
- Least Concern
- Population trend
- stable
- Biome
- forest
- Habitat
- Coastal hammocks, tropical dry forests, and pinelands
- Diet
- Autotrophic (Photosynthesis)
- Range
- Florida (USA), Caribbean Islands, Mexico, Central America, Northern South America
- Size
- Height of 15 to 30 meters (50 to 100 feet), trunk diameter up to 1 meter
- Lifespan
- Over 100 years
- Active
- diurnal
- Threats
- Coastal development, habitat fragmentation, and competition from invasive plant species.
- Safe to approach?
- Harmless and safe to approach. Enjoy the shade of this magnificent tree, but do not peel or carve into its delicate, paper-thin copper bark. Its sap is historically used to soothe sunburns and insect bites, though highly sensitive individuals should wash with soap and water if sap contact causes mild irritation.
Bursera simaruba , commonly known as gumbo-limbo , copperwood , chaca , and turpentine tree , is a tree species in the family Burseraceae, native to tropical regions of the Americas from the southeasternmost United States (southern Florida) south through Mexico and the Caribbean to Brazil, Jinotega and Venezuela. Bursera simaruba are prevalent in the Petenes mangroves ecoregion of the Yucatán, where it is a subdominant plant species to mangroves.
Photo: Ricard Busquets Reverte, CC-BY, via iNaturalist
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