Taxon: Spondias mombin L.

Summary

Genus:

Spondias

Family:

Anacardiaceae

Subfamily:

Spondiadoideae

Nomen number:

35334

Place of publication:

Sp. pl. 1:371. 1753

Typification:

View in Linnean Typification Project

Verified:

01/10/2000 ARS Systematic Botanists.

Accessions:

13 (1 active, 0 available) in National Plant Germplasm System. (Map it)

Other conspecific taxa

Autonyms (not in current use), synonyms and invalid designations

Heterotypic Synonym(s)
Spondias lutea L.

No images

Conservation Status

Reference(s)

APHIS. Agricultural Risk Management System United States Department of Agriculture.
Backer, C. A. & R. C. Bakhuizen van den Brink, Jr. 1963-1968. Flora of Java.
Berhaut, J. 1971-. Flore illustrée du Senegal.
Croat, T. B. 1974. A reconsideration of Spondias mombin L. (Anacardiaceae). Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 61:483-490.
Dassanayake, M. D. & F. R. Fosberg, eds. 1980-. A revised handbook to the flora of Ceylon.
Edições Melhoramentes. 1979. The new Michaelis illustrated dictionary (Novo Michaelis dicionário ilustrado), ed. 22/24 Note: Edições Melhoramentes, São Paulo, Brazil
Encke, F. et al. 1984. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 13. Auflage
Encke, F. et al. 1993. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 14. Auflage
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). 2010. Ecocrop (on-line resource).
Fosberg, F. R. et al. 1979-1982. Geographical checklist of the Micronesian Dicotyledonae/ Pteridophyta and Gymnospermae.
Greuter, W. et al., eds. 2000. International code of botanical nomenclature (Saint Louis Code) Art. 23.2, Ex. 1.
Groth, D. 2005. pers. comm. Note: re. Brazilian common names
Harling, G. & B. Sparre, eds. 1987. Flora of Ecuador. 30:36-38.
Howard, R. 1974-1989. Flora of the lesser Antilles.
IPGRI. New World Fruits Database (on-line resource).
León, B. 2011. pers. comm.
Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada
Lira, R. et al., eds. 2016. Ethnobotany of Mexico Springer, New York, US. 97.
McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland.
Miller, A. & B. Schaal. 2005. Domestication of a Mesoamerican cultivated fruit tree, Spondias purpurea. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 102:12801-12806. Note: cites as var. mombin
Mitchell, J. D. & D. C. Daly. 2015. A revision of Spondias L. (Anacardiaceae). PhytoKeys 55:1-92. DOI: 10.3897/phytokeys.55.8489. Note: widely distributed hermaphroditic species probably hybridizing with other species within its range; cultivated and of economic importance
Mitchell, J. D. 1996. pers. comm. Note: re. common names
Personal Care Products Council. International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient
Porcher, M. H. et al. Searchable World Wide Web Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database (MMPND) (on-line resource).
Rehm, S. & G. Espig. 1991. The cultivated plants of the tropics and subtropics
Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Reynel, C. et al. 2016. Árboles del Perú 430-431. Note: fruits locally used in Peru, wood used for veneer, plywood and for light flying aicrafts
Robyns, W. et al., eds. 1948-1963. Flore du Congo belge et du Ruanda-Urundi
Santos, V. & C. Almeida. 2019. The complete chloroplast genome sequences of three Spondias species reveal close relationship among the species. Genet. Molec. Biol. 42:132-138. DOI: 10.1590/1678-4685-GMB-2017-0265.
Segura, S. et al. 2018. The edible fruit species in Mexico. Genet. Resources Crop Evol. 65:1767-1793. DOI: 10.1007/s10722-018-0652-3. Note: native and cultivated
Soukup, J. 1970. Vocabulario de los nombres vulgares de la flora peruana.
Souza, F. X. et al. 2018. Spondias mombin. Cajá. In: Coradin, L. et al., Espécies nativas da flora brasileira de valor econômico atual ou potencial: plantas para o futuro: região Nordeste 287-303. Note: highly variable species, with dioecious, polygamous and monoecious populations (see Mitchell & Daly 2015, 55:8, for confusion on interpreting flower development); in Brazil cultivated using graft stocks or by seeds; in NE Brazil fruits mostly harvested from the wild
Standley, P. C. & J. A. Steyermark. 1946-1976. Flora of Guatemala.
Steenis, C. G. G. J. van, ed. 1948-. Flora malesiana.
Vasquez, R. & A. H. Gentry. 1989. Use and misuse of forest-harvested fruits in the Iquitos area. Conservation Biol. 3:350-361. Note: commercially important in Iquitos, Peru
Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama.
1961. Webster's third new international dictionary.

Common names

Language	Name	seq	Citation
English	hog-plum	1	Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada
English	Jamaica-plum	1	1961. Webster's third new international dictionary.
English	yellow mombin	1	Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada
French	mombin	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
French	prunier mombin	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
German	gelbe Mombinpflaume	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
German	Gelbpflaume	2	Encke, F. et al. 1993. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 14. Auflage
Portuguese	imbu	2	Edições Melhoramentes. 1979. The new Michaelis illustrated dictionary (Novo Michaelis dicionário ilustrado), ed. 22/24 Note: Edições Melhoramentes, São Paulo, Brazil
Portuguese	tepereba	2	Mitchell, J. D. 1996. pers. comm. Note: re. common names
Portuguese (Brazil)	cajá-mirim	2	Groth, D. 2005. pers. comm. Note: re. Brazilian common names
Portuguese (Brazil)	taperebá	2	Groth, D. 2005. pers. comm. Note: re. Brazilian common names
Spanish (Caribbean)	jobo	2	Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium. 1976. Hortus third. A concise dictionary of plants cultivated in the United States and Canada
Spanish (Mexico)	jobo	2	Lira, R. et al., eds. 2016. Ethnobotany of Mexico Springer, New York, US. 97.
Spanish (Peru)	mango ciruelo	2	León, B. 2011. pers. comm.
Spanish (Peru)	ubos	2	Soukup, J. 1970. Vocabulario de los nombres vulgares de la flora peruana.

Distribution

order_code	Status	Continent	Subcontinent	Country	State	Note	Reference
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Baja California Sur		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Durango		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	San Luis Potosí		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Sinaloa		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Northern Mexico	Mexico	Tamaulipas		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Campeche		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Chiapas		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Colima		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Guanajuato		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Guerrero		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Hidalgo		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Jalisco		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	México		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Michoacán de Ocampo		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Morelos		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Nayarit		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Oaxaca		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Puebla		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Querétaro		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Quintana Roo		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Tabasco		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Northern America	Southern Mexico	Mexico	Yucatán		Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
1	Native	Southern America	Brazil	Brazil
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Belize
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Costa Rica
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	El Salvador
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Guatemala
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Nicaragua
1	Native	Southern America	Central America	Panama			Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama.
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Guyana
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Suriname
1	Native	Southern America	Northern South America	Venezuela
1	Native	Southern America	Southern South America	Paraguay
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Bolivia
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Colombia
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Ecuador
1	Native	Southern America	Western South America	Peru
2	Cultivated					widely cult. in paleotropics
6	Other					exact native range in West Indies obscure

Native
Northern America

NORTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [Baja California Sur, Durango, San Luis Potosí, Sinaloa, Tamaulipas]
SOUTHERN MEXICO: Mexico [Campeche, Chiapas, Colima, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, México, Michoacán de Ocampo, Morelos, Nayarit, Oaxaca, Puebla, Querétaro, Quintana Roo, Tabasco, Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, Yucatán]

Southern America

CENTRAL AMERICA: Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama, El Salvador
NORTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: Guyana, Suriname, Venezuela
BRAZIL: Brazil
WESTERN SOUTH AMERICA: Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
SOUTHERN SOUTH AMERICA: Paraguay

Cultivated (widely cult. in paleotropics)
Other (exact native range in West Indies obscure)

Reference(s)

Villaseñor, J. L. 2016. Checklist of the native vascular plants of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodivers. 87:603. DOI: 10.1016/j.mb.2016.06.017.
Woodson, R. E. & R. W. Schery, eds. 1943-1980. Flora of Panama.

Economic Uses

Usage	Type	Note	Reference
Human food	fruit		Rehm, S. & G. Espig. 1991. The cultivated plants of the tropics and subtropics
Human food	fruit		Souza, F. X. et al. 2018. Spondias mombin. Cajá. In: Coradin, L. et al., Espécies nativas da flora brasileira de valor econômico atual ou potencial: plantas para o futuro: região Nordeste 287-303. Note: highly variable species, with dioecious, polygamous and monoecious populations (see Mitchell & Daly 2015, 55:8, for confusion on interpreting flower development); in Brazil cultivated using graft stocks or by seeds; in NE Brazil fruits mostly harvested from the wild
Materials	wood	potential as timber	Reynel, C. et al. 2016. Árboles del Perú 430-431. Note: fruits locally used in Peru, wood used for veneer, plywood and for light flying aicrafts
Medicines	folklore		McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland.

Cite as: USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Plant Germplasm System. 2026. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN Taxonomy). National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
URL: https://npgstest.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomydetail?id=35334. Accessed 15 April 2026.