Bear in mind that much of the mahogany in this country in fact is not. There are many reasons why that is so, but because the country is famous for its wood (logging was what kept this colony afloat when it turned into a backwater), everyone is always trying to sell you mahogany. Mahogany and Guayacan (lignum Vitae) are two of the most durable and dense woods in existence. That is why Mahogany can be tooled so finely and still support the full weight of an obese person. There are scams here; much of the mahogany is actually cheaper wood stained dark. In fact the real wood is not so dark, but it does have a small tight black grain.
I learned something extremely interesting the other day from a conservationist doing a study here. Because of the arcane rules set up by the govt to protect the forests, and Mahogany in particular, most country people consider the tree a real nuisance because if it grows on their property they lose control over it, as it comes under the purview of the govt. So they burn the trees, claim that some "conuquero" set off a brush fire when clearing his land, and then, because the trees are burnt, they are allowed by law to cut them down (The wood inside is still good, so they can also turn a profit and sell it!)
Also the tree propagates like a weed, it is a real survivor.