Jacaratia is a genus of seven species of shrubs and trees in the family Caricaceae, the papaya family, placed in the order Brassicales. The genus is native to tropical Central and South America, with species occurring from Mexico south through Nicaragua and El Salvador and across the Neotropical lowlands to Brazil and Argentina.
Members of the genus are typically pachycaul trees — having soft, water-storing wood with very low lignin content — and many are armed with conical spines on the trunk and branches. Jacaratia spinosa, the best-known species (known as yacaratiá in Argentina and wild mango or mamoeiro-bravo in Brazil), is a deciduous tree reaching up to 15 m in height with an open, narrow crown. Its wood is composed of roughly 10% cellulose with the remainder being water held in large intercellular spaces, making it highly unusual among woody plants and uniquely edible.
The genus is closely related to papaya (Carica papaya) within Caricaceae, a family that molecular analyses suggest originated in Africa around 66 million years ago and dispersed to Central America approximately 35 million years ago, later spreading into South America. Several Jacaratia species produce edible fruit and the wood of J. spinosa is served as a culinary delicacy in Argentina, soaked in honey or syrup and incorporated into chocolate bonbons and flavored jams. Jacaratia mexicana (bonete, K'uun che) and J. dolichaula are also documented members of the genus with ranges in Mesoamerica.
Distribution
Jacaratia is native to tropical Central and South America. Species occur in the tropical dry forests of central and southern Mexico, Nicaragua, and El Salvador, and extend through the Neotropics to Brazil and Argentina.
Ecology
The fruit of Jacaratia trees is consumed by a wide range of fauna. For J. spinosa, documented frugivores include lowland tapirs, brown howler monkeys, white-lipped and collared peccaries, white-eared opossums, Argentine black-and-white tegus, southern muriquis, and numerous bird species. The genus thus plays a role as a food resource in Neotropical dry forest ecosystems. J. spinosa also functions as a fast-growing pioneer species suited to agroforestry contexts.
Cultural Uses
Several Jacaratia species have documented food uses. The fruit of J. spinosa is eaten raw (after scoring the skin to release latex) or cooked. The soft, water-rich wood of J. spinosa is a traditional delicacy in Argentina, where it is soaked in honey or syrup and sold in chocolate bonbons and flavored jams; its edibility stems from very low lignin content and large water-storing intercellular spaces. Jacaratia mexicana is known locally as bonete and K'uun che in Mexico.
