Gyrocarpus americanus, also known as the helicopter tree, is a flowering plant found in the Hernandiaceae family. It has a wide distribution in tropical regions and is commonly known by names such as propeller tree, whirly whirly tree, stinkwood, and shitwood. This deciduous tree can grow up to 12 meters in height and has ovate leaves with a velvety surface. Its flowers have an unpleasant smell and its fruit, a woody nut with two wings, helps in wind dispersal. There are several subspecies of G. americanus, with the typical subspecies originating in the Palaeotropics and reaching the Neotropics through trans-Pacific dispersal. The monophyly of this species is still unclear.

Synonyms Top

Scientific name	Authority	First published in
Gyrocarpus acuminatus	Meisn.	Prodr. 15(1): 248 (1864)
Gyrocarpus asiaticus	Willd.	Sp. Pl., ed. 4 , 4: 982 (1806)
Gyrocarpus asiaticus var. javanicus	Meisn.	Prodr. 15(1): 248 1864
Gyrocarpus asiaticus var. philippinensis	Meisn.	Prodr. 15(1): 248 1864
Gyrocarpus jacquinii	Gaertn.	Fruct. Sem. Pl. ii. 92.
Gyrocarpus jacquinii	Roxb.	Hort. Corom. i. t. 1 (1795); Fl. Ind., ed. Carey & Wall., i. 465 (1820); Fl.Ind., ed. Carey, i. 445 (1832).
Gyrocarpus jacquinii var. javanicus	(Meisn.) Domin	Biblioth. Bot. 89: 680 1925
Gyrocarpus lobatus	Blanco	Fl. Filip., ed. 2 : 54 (1845)
Gyrocarpus rugosus	R.Br.	Prodr. Fl. Nov. Holland. : 405 (1810)
Gyrocarpus americanus var. gaertneri	Schltdl.	Linnaea 16: 398 1842
Gyrocarpus americanus var. humboldtii	Schltdl.	Linnaea 16: 398 1842
Gyrocarpus americanus var. jacquinii	Schltdl.	Linnaea 16: 397 1842
Gyrocarpus americanus var. schiedei	Schltdl.	Linnaea 16: 399 1842
Gyrocarpus jacquinii var. schiedei	(Schltdl.) Schltdl.	Linnaea 19: 399 1846
Gyrocarpus americanus subsp. americanus	Jacq.	Botanische Jahb?cher 89 1969

Common names Top

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Language	Common/alternative name
English	stinkwood
English	helicopter tree
English	shitwood
English	whirly whirly tree burl
Afrikaans	helikopterboom
Malayalam	തണുക്ക്
Chinese	旋翼果

Subspecies (abbr. subsp./ssp.) Top

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Name	Authority	First published in
Gyrocarpus americanus subsp. pachyphyllus	Kubitzki	Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 89: 185 (1969)
Gyrocarpus americanus subsp. sphenopterus	(R.Br.) Kubitzki	Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 89: 185 (1969)

Varieties (abbr. var.) Top

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No variety added yet.

Subvarieties (abbr. subvar.) Top

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Forms (abbr. f.) Top

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No forms added yet.

Germination/Propagation Top

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No germination or propagation data was added yet.

Distribution (via POWO/KEW) Top

Legend for the distribution data:

- Doubtful data

- Extinct

- Introduced

- Native

Africa click to expand
- East Tropical Africa
  - Kenya
  - Tanzania
- Northeast Tropical Africa
  - Eritrea
  - Sudan
- South Tropical Africa
  - Angola
  - Malawi
  - Mozambique
  - Zambia
  - Zimbabwe
- Southern Africa
  - Caprivi Strip
  - Namibia
  - Northern Provinces
- West Tropical Africa
  - Guinea
  - Mali
  - Mauritania
  - Senegal
- Western Indian Ocean
  - Chagos Archipelago
  - Madagascar

Asia-tropical click to expand
- Indian Subcontinent
  - Bangladesh
  - India
  - Maldives
  - Sri Lanka
- Indo-China
  - Andaman Islands
  - Myanmar
  - Thailand
  - Vietnam
- Malesia
  - Christmas Island
  - Cocos (keeling) Islands
  - Jawa
  - Lesser Sunda Islands
  - Malaya
  - Philippines
- Papuasia
  - New Guinea
  - Solomon Islands

Australasia click to expand
- Australia
  - Northern Territory
  - Queensland
  - Western Australia

Northern America click to expand
- Mexico
  - Mexico Central
  - Mexico Southeast
  - Mexico Southwest

Pacific click to expand
- South-central Pacific
  - Society Islands
  - Tubuai Islands
- Southwestern Pacific
  - Fiji
  - New Caledonia
  - Samoa
  - Tonga
  - Vanuatu

Southern America click to expand
- Brazil
  - Brazil Northeast
- Central America
  - Belize
  - Costa Rica
  - El Salvador
  - Guatemala
  - Honduras
  - Nicaragua
  - Panamá
- Northern South America
  - Venezuela
- Western South America
  - Colombia

Links to other databases Top

Suggest others/fix!

Database	ID/link to page
World Flora Online	wfo-0000713868
Tropicos	15300016
INPN	447259
KEW	urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:170637-1
The Plant List	kew-2836998
Open Tree Of Life	338411
NCBI Taxonomy	63807
IUCN Red List	145824684
IPNI	170637-1
iNaturalist	285082
GBIF	7326414
Freebase	/m/0fpjsck
USDA GRIN	18134
Wikipedia	Gyrocarpus_americanus

Genomes (via NCBI) Top

No reference genome is available on NCBI yet. We are constantly monitoring for new data.

Scientific Literature Top

Below are displayed the latest 15 articles published in PMC (PubMed Central®) and other sources (DOI number only)!
If you wish to see all the related articles click here.

Title

Authors

Publication

Released

IDs

Functional bio-inspired hybrid fliers with separated ring and leading edge vortices

Kim JT, Yoon HJ, Cheng S, Liu F, Kang S, Paudel S, Cho D, Luan H, Lee M, Jeong G, Park J, Huang YT, Lee SE, Cho M, Lee G, Han M, Kim BH, Yan J, Park Y, Jung S, Chamorro LP, Rogers JA

PNAS Nexus

11-Mar-2024

PMCID:	PMC10957237
doi:	10.1093/pnasnexus/pgae110
PMID:	38516273

Important Medicinal and Food Taxa (Orders and Families) in Kenya, Based on Three Quantitative Approaches

Mutie FM, Mbuni YM, Rono PC, Mkala EM, Nzei JM, Phumthum M, Hu GW, Wang QF

Plants (Basel)

02-Mar-2023

PMCID:	PMC10005506
doi:	10.3390/plants12051145
PMID:	36904005

Recent Advances in Using Natural Antibacterial Additives in Bioactive Wound Dressings

Firoozbahr M, Kingshott P, Palombo EA, Zaferanloo B

Pharmaceutics

14-Feb-2023

PMCID:	PMC10004169
doi:	10.3390/pharmaceutics15020644
PMID:	36839966

Screening an In-House Isoquinoline Alkaloids Library for New Blockers of Voltage-Gated Na+ Channels Using Voltage Sensor Fluorescent Probes: Hits and Biases

Coquerel Q, Legendre C, Frangieh J, Waard SD, Montnach J, Cmarko L, Khoury J, Hassane CS, Bréard D, Siegler B, Fajloun Z, De Pomyers H, Mabrouk K, Weiss N, Henrion D, Richomme P, Mattei C, Waard MD, Le Ray AM, Legros C

Molecules

28-Jun-2022

PMCID:	PMC9268414
doi:	10.3390/molecules27134133
PMID:	35807390

Fire alters diversity, composition, and structure of dry tropical forests in the Eastern Ghats

Neeraja UV, Rajendrakumar S, Saneesh CS, Dyda V, Knight TM

Ecol Evol

01-May-2021

PMCID:	PMC8207398
doi:	10.1002/ece3.7514
PMID:	34141243

Phytocytotoxicity of volatile constituents of essential oils from Sparattanthelium Mart. species (Hernandiaceae)

Dutra QP, Christ JA, Carrijo TT, de Assis Alves T, de Assis Alves T, Mendes LA, Praça-Fontes MM

Sci Rep

22-Jul-2020

PMCID:	PMC7376048
doi:	10.1038/s41598-020-69205-6
PMID:	32699377

The Emergence of Earliest Angiosperms may be Earlier than Fossil Evidence Indicates

Salomo K, Smith JF, Feild TS, Samain MS, Bond L, Davidson C, Zimmers J, Neinhuis C, Wanke S

Syst Bot

18-Dec-2017

PMCID:	PMC5792071
doi:	10.1600/036364417X696438
PMID:	29398773

Critical Analysis of Forest Degradation in the Southern Eastern Ghats of India: Comparison of Satellite Imagery and Soil Quality Index

Ramachandran A, Radhapriya P, Jayakumar S, Dhanya P, Geetha R

PLoS One

26-Jan-2016

PMCID:	PMC4727793
doi:	10.1371/journal.pone.0147541
PMID:	26812397

Plant-derived compounds in treatment of leishmaniasis

Oryan A

Iran J Vet Res

01-Jan-2015

PMCID:	PMC4789233
PMID:	27175144

Effects of socio-economic household characteristics on traditional knowledge and usage of wild yams and medicinal plants in the Mahafaly region of south-western Madagascar

Andriamparany JN, Brinkmann K, Jeannoda V, Buerkert A

J Ethnobiol Ethnomed

30-Dec-2014

PMCID:	PMC4414374
doi:	10.1186/1746-4269-10-82
PMID:	25551198

Competition for food in a solitarily foraging folivorous primate (Lepilemur leucopus)?

Dröscher I, Kappeler PM

Am J Primatol

26-Mar-2014

PMCID:	PMC4229058
doi:	10.1002/ajp.22272
PMID:	24677259

β-Diversity of Functional Groups of Woody Plants in a Tropical Dry Forest in Yucatan

López-Martínez JO, Sanaphre-Villanueva L, Dupuy JM, Hernández-Stefanoni JL, Meave JA, Gallardo-Cruz JA

PLoS One

10-Sep-2013

PMCID:	PMC3769343
doi:	10.1371/journal.pone.0073660
PMID:	24040014

Forest Plant and Bird Communities in the Lau Group, Fiji

Franklin J, Steadman DW

PLoS One

29-Dec-2010

PMCID:	PMC3012085
doi:	10.1371/journal.pone.0015685
PMID:	21206753

The alkaloids of Gyrocarpus americanus Jacq

AW McKenzie, JR Price

CSIRO Publishing

01-Sep-2010

doi:	10.1071/CH9530180

Alcaloïdes de Gyrocarpus americanus

Marie-Christine Chalandre, Jean Bruneton, Pierre Cabalion, Hélène Guinaudeau

American Chemical Society (ACS)

17-Mar-2005

doi:	10.1021/NP50043A011

Phytochemical Profile Top

Add a new one!

Below are displayed the proven (via scientific papers) natural compounds!
You can also contribute to this by clicking here.

Name	PubChem ID	Canonical SMILES	MW	Found in	Proof
> Alkaloids and derivatives / Aporphines
Domesticine	164611	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C(C3=C2C1CC4=CC5=C(C=C43)OCO5)O)OC	325.40	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1021/NP50043A011
> Alkaloids and derivatives / Proaporphines
Pronuciferine	200480	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C(C3=C2C1CC34C=CC(=O)C=C4)OC)OC	311.40	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9422(88)83172-8
> Lignans, neolignans and related compounds
(-)-Gyrocarpine	3478760	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C(C3=C2C1CC4=CC=C(C=C4)OC5=C(C=CC(=C5)CC6C7=CC(=C(C=C7CCN6C)OC)O3)OC)OC)O	608.70	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9422(88)83172-8
1-Isotetrandrine	5351212	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C3C=C2C1CC4=CC=C(C=C4)OC5=C(C=CC(=C5)CC6C7=C(O3)C(=C(C=C7CCN6C)OC)OC)OC)OC	622.70	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1021/NP50043A011
Gyroamericine	102148101	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C3C=C2C1CC4=CC=C(C=C4)OC5=C(C=CC(=C5)CC6C7=C(O3)C(=C(C=C7CCN6C)O)OC)OC)OC	608.70	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1021/NP50043A011
Gyrocarpine	175902	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C(C3=C2C1CC4=CC=C(C=C4)OC5=C(C=CC(=C5)CC6C7=CC(=C(C=C7CCN6C)OC)O3)OC)OC)O	608.70	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1021/NP50043A011 https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9422(88)83172-8
Gyrocarpusine	190388	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C(C3=C2C1CC4=CC=C(C=C4)OC5=C(C=CC(=C5)CC6C7=CC(=C(C=C7CCN6C)OC)O3)OC)OC)O	608.70	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1021/NP50043A011
Gyrolidine	181609	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C(C3=C2C1CC4=CC=C(C=C4)OC5=C(C=CC(=C5)CC6C7=CC(=C(C=C7CCN6C)OC)O3)OC)OC)OC	622.70	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1021/NP50043A011
Isosinomenine A	5422	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C3C=C2C1CC4=CC=C(C=C4)OC5=C(C=CC(=C5)CC6C7=C(O3)C(=C(C=C7CCN6C)OC)OC)OC)OC	622.70	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1071/CH9530180
Limacine	7656034	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C3C=C2C1CC4=CC=C(C=C4)OC5=C(C=CC(=C5)CC6C7=C(O3)C(=C(C=C7CCN6C)OC)O)OC)OC	608.70	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9422(88)83172-8 https://doi.org/10.1021/NP50043A011
Pheanthine	73664	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C3C=C2C1CC4=CC=C(C=C4)OC5=C(C=CC(=C5)CC6C7=C(O3)C(=C(C=C7CCN6C)OC)OC)OC)OC	622.70	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9422(88)83172-8 https://doi.org/10.1071/CH9530180
Thalrugosine	100257	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C3C=C2C1CC4=CC=C(C=C4)OC5=C(C=CC(=C5)CC6C7=C(O3)C(=C(C=C7CCN6C)OC)O)OC)OC	608.70	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1021/NP50043A011
> Organoheterocyclic compounds / Isoquinolines and derivatives / Benzylisoquinolines
(1R)-5-[4-[[(1R)-6-hydroxy-7-methoxy-8-[(6-methoxy-2-methyl-1-oxo-3,4-dihydroisoquinolin-7-yl)oxy]-2-methyl-3,4-dihydro-1H-isoquinolin-1-yl]methyl]phenoxy]-4-methoxycyclohexa-2,4-diene-1-carbaldehyde	163012560	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C(C(=C2C1CC3=CC=C(C=C3)OC4=C(C=CC(C4)C=O)OC)OC5=C(C=C6CCN(C(=O)C6=C5)C)OC)OC)O	640.70	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9422(88)83172-8
3-[4-[[(1R)-6,7-dimethoxy-8-[(6-methoxy-2-methyl-1-oxo-3,4-dihydroisoquinolin-7-yl)oxy]-2-methyl-3,4-dihydro-1H-isoquinolin-1-yl]methyl]phenoxy]-4-methoxybenzaldehyde	13994701	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C(C(=C2C1CC3=CC=C(C=C3)OC4=C(C=CC(=C4)C=O)OC)OC5=C(C=C6CCN(C(=O)C6=C5)C)OC)OC)OC	652.70	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9422(88)83172-8
3-[4-[[6,7-dimethoxy-8-[(6-methoxy-2-methyl-1-oxo-3,4-dihydroisoquinolin-7-yl)oxy]-2-methyl-3,4-dihydro-1H-isoquinolin-1-yl]methyl]phenoxy]-4-methoxybenzaldehyde	13994700	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C(C(=C2C1CC3=CC=C(C=C3)OC4=C(C=CC(=C4)C=O)OC)OC5=C(C=C6CCN(C(=O)C6=C5)C)OC)OC)OC	652.70	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9422(88)83172-8
5-[4-[[6-hydroxy-7-methoxy-8-[(6-methoxy-2-methyl-1-oxo-3,4-dihydroisoquinolin-7-yl)oxy]-2-methyl-3,4-dihydro-1H-isoquinolin-1-yl]methyl]phenoxy]-4-methoxycyclohexa-2,4-diene-1-carbaldehyde	163012559	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C(C(=C2C1CC3=CC=C(C=C3)OC4=C(C=CC(C4)C=O)OC)OC5=C(C=C6CCN(C(=O)C6=C5)C)OC)OC)O	640.70	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9422(88)83172-8
Grisabine	12305304	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C(C=C2C1CC3=CC=C(C=C3)OC4=C(C=CC(=C4)CC5C6=CC(=C(C=C6CCN5C)OC)O)OC)O)OC	610.70	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1021/NP50043A011
Maroumin	13994703	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C(C(=C2C1CC3=CC=C(C=C3)OC4=C(C=CC(=C4)C=O)OC)OC5=C(C=C6CCN(C(=O)C6=C5)C)OC)OC)O	638.70	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9422(88)83172-8
N-Methylcoclaurine	2752274	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C(C=C2C1CC3=CC=C(C=C3)O)O)OC	299.40	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1021/NP50043A011
Reticulin	10233	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C(C=C2C1CC3=CC(=C(C=C3)OC)O)O)OC	329.40	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1021/NP50043A011
Reticuline	439653	Click to see CN1CCC2=CC(=C(C=C2C1CC3=CC(=C(C=C3)OC)O)O)OC	329.40	unknown	https://doi.org/10.1021/NP50043A011

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Gyrocarpus americanus

Table of Contents

Details Top

Description Top

Synonyms Top

Common names Top

Subspecies (abbr. subsp./ssp.) Top

Varieties (abbr. var.) Top

Subvarieties (abbr. subvar.) Top

Forms (abbr. f.) Top

Germination/Propagation Top

Distribution (via POWO/KEW) Top

Links to other databases Top

Genomes (via NCBI) Top

Scientific Literature Top

Phytochemical Profile Top

Biological Material Top

Contributors Top

Collections Top