abstract the leaf oils from five myrtaceae species growing in the restinga forest of carapebus, on the southeastern brazilian coast, were obtained by hydrodistillation and analyzed by gc/ms. eugenia punicifolia oil contained only sesquiterpenes, with predominance of -elemene (22.1%) followed by -caryophyllene (8.5%) and components of the selinane (24.8%) and cadinane (14.0%) skeletal-types. eugenia sulcata oil had the highest content of monoterpenes, among which -pinene (12.2%), -pinene (10.8%) and 1,8-cineole (19.6%) predominated. this profile was completed with 23.5% of caryophyllane and humulane derivatives. -pinene also appeared significantly (18.8%) in eugenia rotundifolia, followed by small amounts of -terpineol (4.4), while limonene (4.7%) and 1,8-cineole (6.8%) were the main monoterpenes in myrciaria floribunda. the chemical profile of neomitranthes obscura was also dominated by selinane-type sesquiterpenes: -cadinene (23.4%), selina-3,7(11)-diene (13.9%), -selinene (8.5%) and -selinene (5.5%), followed by traces of pinenes, limonene and 1,8-cineole (2.4%). total cyclic sesquiterpene alcohols, esters and epoxides decreased from 55.5% in e. rotundifolia to 8.6% in m. floribunda. however, the latter species contained 26.9% of (e)-nerolidol in the oil composition. traces of ketones (up to 3.1%) are present in e. punicifolia, n. obscura and m. floribunda.