Boswellia rivae
Engl.
Ethiopian Frankincense
BurseraceaeBark/Sap
wikimedia · cc-by-sa
Wikimedia Commons - Mauro Raffaelli
Wikimedia Commons - Mauro Raffaelli
wikimedia · cc-by-sa
Wikimedia Commons - Mauro Raffaelli
Wikimedia Commons - Mauro Raffaelli
What to Eat
Edible parts: Gum
The resin is chewed, and gum from the plant is edible.
Where to Find It
It is a tropical plant. It grows between 200-920 m above sea level.
Africa, East Africa, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia,
Countries: Angola, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Benin, Botswana, Congo (DRC), Central African Republic, Congo (Republic), Cote d'Ivoire, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Djibouti, Algeria, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Gambia, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Comoros, Liberia, Lesotho, Libya, Morocco, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Seychelles, Sudan, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Somalia, South Sudan, Sao Tome & Principe, Eswatini, Chad, Togo, Tunisia, Tanzania, Uganda, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe
How to Identify
A spreading shrub or small tree. It grows 7 m tall. The bark is yellow to grey. The leaves are narrowly oval and 18 cm long. There are 11-19 leaflets. These are 7-23 mm long by 3-12 mm wide. There can be teeth along the edge. There flowers are in small groups. The fruit is a capsule with 3 or 4 cells. They are angular or pear shaped and 2-3 cm long by about 1 cm wide. The stones are rough and have horns.
Medicinal Uses
The resin has traditional medicinal use.
Names & Synonyms
Beyo, Mirafur, Muqlay, Murchen, Qra
References (2)
- Asfaw, Z. and Tadesse, M., 2001, Prospects for Sustainable Use and Development of Wild Food Plants in Ethiopia. Economic Botany, Vol. 55, No. 1, pp. 47-62 (As rivae)
- Molla, A., Ethiopian Plant Names. http://www.ethiopic.com/aplants.htm
