About Bursera laxiflora S.Watson
Bursera laxiflora is a North American tree species belonging to the frankincense family within the soapwood order, and it is native to northwestern Mexico. It is quite common across Sonora, including Tiburón Island, with additional separate populations found in Sinaloa, Baja California Sur, and Socorro Island. There has been one report of this species growing in the United States, from land belonging to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum west of Tucson; this specimen is most likely either cultivated or an escaped individual from cultivation. Bursera laxiflora is a small tree that has red bark, which differs from the gray bark of its close relative B. filicifolia. The trunk of this species can grow to reach a maximum diameter of 30 cm, or 12 inches. Its leaves are pinnately compound, bearing between 5 and 9 leaflets, and have short hairs covering both sides of the leaf structure. The species produces egg-shaped, slightly flattened drupes as fruit.
