Rapanea melanophloeos old bole

This old Rapanea melanophloeos trunk shows uneven patches of roughness growing in its bark. Cracks develop gradually without uniformity in pattern, transforming particular areas, while other parts remain smooth, some with horizontal ridges. There is a central split, now superficially appearing fused. The part on the right was probably long ago the ambitious branch emerging low down from a much younger stem. The viewer's great-grandfather may have admired the top leaves on this branch at eye level.  

Dark colouring in the pale grey surface with slight hints of pink is limited to the cracks and small parts where upper bark has dropped off. The specific epithet, melanophloeos, is derived from the Greek words, melas or melano- meaning black and phloios or phloos meaning bark or inner bark, leading to the tree's black bark name, which isn't quite the case by looks. The black bark appellation may be colloquial from referring to a tree with darker bark than the others known to a particular community. Wrong names will sometimes stick! Has anyone ever looked into his son's eyes and felt the name should have been Paul and not John? 

The stem surface has become uneven from undulations without regularity, or rather, with notable irregularity. Limited buttressing at the base continues into minor fluting, not continued far in the photographed section. Having a versatile skin will rarely be considered a compliment (Coates Palgrave, 2002; Schmidt, et al, 2002; Pooley, 1993; Andrew, 2017; iNaturalist).