calabacillo vs Cacao de Monte

Theobroma cacao compared with Theobroma gileri

Key Differences

• calabacillo is Not Evaluated while Cacao de Monte is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	calabacillo	Cacao de Monte
Kingdom same	Plantae (planta)	Plantae (planta)
Phylum same	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class same	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)
Order same	Malvales (Malvales)	Malvales (Malvales)
Family same	Malvaceae	Malvaceae
Genus same	Theobroma	Theobroma
Species	Theobroma cacao	Theobroma gileri

Evolutionary Relationship

calabacillo and Cacao de Monte share a common ancestor at the Genus level: Theobroma.

Conservation Status

calabacillo

NE — Not Evaluated

Cacao de Monte

VU — Vulnerable

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	calabacillo	Cacao de Monte
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

calabacillo

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (7 countries), Asia (Laos, Philippines, Taiwan), North America (Costa Rica), and South America (Brazil, Colombia).

Cacao de Monte

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Found in Colombia. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

calabacillo

Cocoa (Theobroma cacao) is a small tropical tree in the family Malvaceae, native to the humid lowland forests of the Amazon basin and Mesoamerica, where it originated in domestication by pre-Columbian civilisations — notably the Maya and Aztec — who consumed fermented cacao beverages in ritual and elite contexts for millennia before European contact. Cultivated commercially across the humid tropics today, primarily in West Africa (Ivory Coast, Ghana, Nigeria), Southeast Asia, and Latin America, it is one of the world's most economically significant crop plants. Growing to 4–10 metres under cultivation, the tree bears distinctive cauliflorous flowers — produced directly on the main trunk and large branches — that are pollinated by tiny midges of the genus Forcipomyia. The large, ribbed pods develop on the trunk and branches, enclosing 20–50 seeds embedded in a sweet white pulp. After harvest, seeds undergo controlled fermentation and drying to develop the complex chemical precursors of chocolate flavour. The seeds contain methylxanthines including theobromine and caffeine, as well as flavonoid antioxidants. Theobroma cacao has not been assessed on the IUCN Red List, though wild populations in its native Amazonian and Mesoamerican range face pressure from deforestation. Commercial production relies on a narrow genetic base and faces growing threats from fungal diseases including witches' broom and frosty pod rot.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 1 countries:

🇨🇴 Colombia