About Anacardium excelsum (Bertero & Balb.) Skeels
Anacardium excelsum (Bertero & Balb.) Skeels is a large evergreen tree that grows along riverbanks. It can reach a maximum height of 48 m (157 ft), and has a straight, rose-colored trunk that can grow up to 3 m (9.8 ft) in diameter. Its leaves are simple, alternate, and oval-shaped, measuring 15–30 cm (5.9–11.8 in) long and 5–12 cm (2.0–4.7 in) wide. Flowers grow in panicles up to 35 cm (14 in) long; individual flowers are small, and range in color from pale green to white. Older flowers turn pink and develop a strong fragrance similar to cloves. The fruit is a kidney-shaped drupe that is 2–3 cm (0.79–1.18 in) long, and matures between March and May. In its ecology, fruit-eating bats collect this wild cashew fruit, carry it to their feeding locations, and only consume the fleshy portion of the fruit. The nuts are then dropped into the leaf litter on the forest floor, where they germinate later. For human use, both the nut and the surrounding fleshy part of the uncooked fruit are highly toxic to humans, but the fruit can be safely eaten after roasting.
