Coccoloba

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Coccoloba
Coccoloba uvifera (Seagrape) bush
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Polygonaceae
Subfamily: Eriogonoideae
Genus: Coccoloba
P.Browne
Species

See text

Coccoloba is a genus of about 120–150 species of flowering plants in the family Polygonaceae,[1] which is native to the Neotropics. There is no overall English name for the genus, although many of the individual species have widely used common names.

Range[edit]

The genus is native to tropical and subtropical regions of the Americas, in South America, the Caribbean and Central America, with two species extending into Florida.[2][3]

Description[edit]

Coccoloba arborescens

The species are shrubs and trees, and lianas, mostly evergreen. The leaves are alternate, often large (to very large in some species; up to 2.5m (8 feet) long in C. gigantifolia),[4] with the leaves on juvenile plants often larger and of different shape to those of mature plants. The flowers are produced in spikes. The fruit is a three-angled achene, surrounded by an often brightly coloured fleshy perianth, edible in some species, though often astringent.[2][3] Species in the genus have been characterized as dioecious,[5] but this is unclear.[6] Trioecy has been documented in C. cereifera.[7]

Selected species[edit]

Sources:[10][11][12][13]

Ecology[edit]

The species Coccoloba cereifera is notable for being restricted to an area of only some 26 square km on a single low peak near Serra do Cipó National Park, in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais.[14]

Cultivation and uses[edit]

One species, Coccoloba uvifera (Seagrape) is commonly cultivated for its edible fruit, and the genus name is sometimes used to denote this species.

References[edit]

  1. ^ Acevedo-Rodriguez, Pedro; Strong, Mark (2012). "Catalog of Seed Plants of the West Indies" (PDF). Smithsonian Contributions to Botany. 98: 1–1221. doi:10.5479/si.0081024X.98.1.
  2. ^ a b Flora of North America: Coccoloba
  3. ^ a b Huxley, A., ed. (1992). New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. Macmillan ISBN 0-333-47494-5.
  4. ^ J.G. Rohwer, Tropical Plants of the World (New York: Sterling, 2002)
  5. ^ Howard, Richard A. (1949). "The Genus Coccoloba in Cuba". Journal of the Arnold Arboretum. 30 (4): 388–424. doi:10.5962/bhl.part.18052. JSTOR 43782355.
  6. ^ Madriz, Rosario; Ramirez, Nelson (1996–1997). "Biologia reproductiva de Coccoloba uvifera (Polygonaceae) una especie poligamo-dioica". Revista de Biología Tropical. 44(3)/45(1): 105–115.
  7. ^ Silva, Clice Alexandre; Oliva, Marco Antonio; Vieria, Milene Faria; Fernandes, Geraldo Wison (2008). "Trioecy in Coccoloba cereifera Schwacke (Polygonaceae), a Narrow Endemic and Threatened Tropical Species". Brazilian Archives of Biology and Technology. 51 (5): 1003–1010. doi:10.1590/S1516-89132008000500017.
  8. ^ "Amazonian Tree With Human-Sized Leaves Finally Gets New Species Recognition". EcoWatch. 2019-11-28. Retrieved 2019-12-11.
  9. ^ Timyan, J. (2022). "Coccoloba pauciflora". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2022: e.T188895851A188913988. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2022-2.RLTS.T188895851A188913988.en. Retrieved 15 December 2022.
  10. ^ USDA Plants Profile: Coccoloba
  11. ^ Global Compendium of Weeds: Coccoloba acuminata
  12. ^ Plants of Hawaii: Polygonaceae Archived 2008-05-04 at the Wayback Machine
  13. ^ Melo, E.; Cid Ferreira, C.A.; Gribel, R. (11 November 2019). "[Botany • 2019] Coccoloba gigantifolia (Polygonaceae) • A New Species of Coccoloba P. Browne from the Brazilian Amazon with Exceptionally Large Leaves". Species New to Science. novataxa.blogspot.com. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  14. ^ Katia Torres Ribeiro; G. Wilson Fernandes (1999). "Geographic distribution of Coccoloba cereifera Schw. (Polygonaceae), a narrow endemic plant from Serra do Cipó, Brazil" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-06. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)

External links[edit]