Wood Anatomy
Definition
The microscopic cellular structure of wood, including vessel arrangement, ray type, fibre dimensions, and parenchyma distribution. These features are species-specific and form the basis of forensic wood identification, which is used in illegal logging investigations and physical evidence analysis.
- Scale
- Microscopic cellular structure
- Key features
- Vessel arrangement, ray type, fibre dimensions, parenchyma
- Property
- Species-specific
- Applications
- Illegal logging investigations, physical evidence analysis
Common questions
How does wood anatomy identification work when a sample is just a small chip or splinter?+
An examiner sections the sample thin enough to view under a microscope and compares the cellular arrangement, such as vessel and ray patterns, against reference atlases or known-species samples, a technique that works even on fragments too small for visual species identification by eye.
Why is wood anatomy particularly useful in illegal logging cases compared with other timber evidence?+
It can identify the species of a seized or processed timber sample even after the wood has been cut, milled, or partially manufactured, when bark, leaves, and other whole-tree identifying features are no longer present.
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