Chromosome number and karyotype of the endangered Amazonian woody Centrolobium paraense Tul. species

Centrolobium paraense Tul. popularly known in Brazil as para-rainha, is a species with a high timber potential, presently endangered due to deforestration of the Amazonian region and indiscriminate wood extraction Chromosome number and karyotype morphology of this species are presented for the first time All the individuals of the three populations analyzed are diploid, with 2n=2x=20 chromosomes The chromosomes ranging from ca 17 to 4 mu m in size The karyotype is composed of three metacentric, three submetacentric (one with a satellite on the short arm), three actocentric and one subacrocentric chromosome parts Other Centrolobium species and populations should be analyzed in order to assess the extent of intraspecfic variation in chromosome number and morphology, if any