Abebaia dissecta

Abebaia dissecta is a tropical tree in the family Sapotaceae, order Ericales, belonging to the genus Abebaia, a small group of trees distributed in the humid tropical forests of the Neotropics, particularly in South America. The family Sapotaceae is a pantropical family of approximately 1100 species of woody trees and shrubs, well known for producing latex (milky sap) from their tissues and for bearing fleshy, often edible fruits. Many economically important species belong to Sapotaceae, including sapodilla (Manilkara zapota), the source of chicle latex, and shea (Vitellaria paradoxa), the source of shea butter. The specific epithet dissecta, derived from the Latin dissectus meaning cut apart or deeply divided, likely refers to a morphological feature of the leaves or flowers that displays a deeply divided or incised structure. In Sapotaceae trees, the leaves are typically alternate, simple, and leathery with entire margins, so the epithet dissecta may pertain to a unique leaf modification or to the structure of floral parts. Abebaia dissecta grows as a canopy or sub-canopy tree in humid tropical rainforest, where the family Sapotaceae is a significant component of forest composition. Like other Sapotaceae, it likely produces thick, leathery leaves adapted to the high light and moisture conditions of tropical canopy environments, with white latex present in all tissues. Flowers are small, with a lobed corolla typical of the family, and the fruit is a fleshy berry or drupe with one to several large, shiny seeds bearing a characteristic seed scar (hilum). These fruits are consumed by large frugivores that disperse the seeds through the forest.