| Aegialitis | |
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| Aegialitis annulata | |
| Scientific classification | |
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| (unranked): | |
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| Tribe: | Aegialitideae |
| Genus: | Aegialitis |
| Species | |
Aegialitis annulata R.Br. Contents | |
Aegialitis is a genus of two shrubby mangrove species, with one native to Southeast Asia and the other native to Australia and Papua New Guinea.
The two species of the genus are woody mangrove shrubs or small trees that grow up to 2 to 3 m tall. The deciduous species have leafy stems with leathery leaves arranged alternately or spirally. The leaf margins are entire and have parallel veins. [1]
The hermaphroditic flowers are pollinated by Hymenoptera, Lepidoptera, and Diptera. Flowers are arranged in terminal cymose racemous inflorescences. Individual flowers have five sepals arranged in a fused tube around the white gamopetalous corolla that has five petals fused into a short tube. The androecium consists of five stamens that are attached near the base of the corolla tube. The superior gynoecium has five carpels, each with a 1-celled pistil and unilocular ovaries. Fruit are dehiscent and have a spongy mesocarp. [1]
Unlike other mangrove species, the members of Aegialitis generally do not have aerial roots. [2]
The two species of the genus are native to Southeast Asia and Australia, but their distribution ranges do not overlap. A. annulata is found along the northern coasts of Australia from Western Australia through the Northern Territory and into Queensland and along the coastline of Papua New Guinea. A. rotundifolia is found on the shorelines of the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal from Orissa to Mergui and on the Andaman Islands. [3] [4]
The distribution of these two species with respect to the other members of the Plumbaginaceae is suggestive of the evolutionary history and phylogenetic placement of Aegialitis. Several authors have discovered evidence for three distinct southern migrations of this mostly Northern Hemisphere family, the first of which remained isolated and evolved into the existing members of this genus. This hypothesized migration and evolutionary history explains the more primitive breeding system characteristics and morphology in this genus in relation to the rest of the family. [5]
As with other mangrove species, the habitat preferred by the members of this genus are sandy or rocky soils in the more saline environment of the mangroves toward the sea. [2] The species are thus halophytic. [1]
The genus Aegialitis was described by Robert Brown in his 1810 work Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae et Insulae Van Diemen when he described the single species A. annulata. [6] [7] The second species was described by William Roxburgh in the 1830s. [8] A genus of grasses was given the same genus name in 1820 by Carl Bernhard von Trinius and later renamed Rostraria . [9]
There have been several opinions on the proper placement of the genus in relation to the rest of the Plumbaginaceae, though most authors have noted its distinct characteristics make it difficult to place properly. In 1968 Igorj Alexandrovich Linczevski suggested that the genus be included in its own monotypic family, the Aegialitidaceae. The Plumbaginaceae has historically been divided into either two subfamilies or two tribes and each approach has offered a different perspective of the proper taxonomic relationship in the family. Through cladistic analysis using both genetic and morphological characteristics, studies have concluded that Aegialitis is the sister taxon to the rest of its subfamily (Staticoideae) and thus has been assigned to the monotypic tribe Aegialitideae, which is sister to the tribe Staticeae (including the genera Acantholimon , Armeria , Goniolimon , Limoniastrum , and Limonium ). [4] [5]
The genus name, Aegialitis, derives from the Greek, aegialos, ("seashore"), referring to where species of this genus are found. [10]
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Pseudotrillium is a monotypic genus of flowering plant in the family Melanthiaceae. Its sole species, Pseudotrillium rivale, is commonly known as the brook wakerobin. It is endemic to the Siskiyou Mountains of southern Oregon and northern California. The Latin specific epithet rivale means “growing by streams”, with reference to a preferred habitat.
Rupicola is a small genus of flowering plants in the family Ericaceae. The species are endemic to New South Wales in Australia.
Pultenaea is a genus of about 100 species of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae, and is endemic to Australia. Plants in this genus are shrubs with simple leaves and orange or yellow flowers similar to others in the family but with the standard petal equal to or slightly longer than the other petals.
Heritiera littoralis, commonly known as the looking-glass mangrove or tulip mangrove, is a mangrove tree in the family Malvaceae native to coastal areas of eastern Africa, Asia, Melanesia and northern Australia. The common name refers to the silvery appearance of the underside of the leaves, resembling a mirror to some degree. The strong timber has uses in marine applications and elsewhere.
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The Solanaceae, or the nightshades, are a family of flowering plants that ranges from annual and perennial herbs to vines, lianas, epiphytes, shrubs, and trees, and includes a number of agricultural crops, medicinal plants, spices, weeds, and ornamentals. Many members of the family contain potent alkaloids, and some are highly toxic, but many—including tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant, bell and chili peppers—are used as food. The family belongs to the order Solanales, in the asterid group and class Magnoliopsida (dicotyledons). The Solanaceae consists of about 98 genera and some 2,700 species, with a great diversity of habitats, morphology and ecology.
Chuniophoeniceae is a tribe of palms in subfamily Coryphoideae of plant family Arecaceae. The four genera within the tribe are morphologically dissimilar and do not have overlapping distributions. Three of the genera are monotypic, while the fourth genus (Chuniophoenix) has three species.
Trachycarpeae is a tribe of palms in subfamily Coryphoideae of the plant family Arecaceae. It has the widest distribution of any tribe in Coryphoideae and is found on all continents, though the greatest concentration of species is in Southeast Asia. Trachycarpeae includes palms from both tropical and subtropical zones; the northernmost naturally-occurring palm is a member of this tribe. Several genera can be found in cultivation in temperate areas, for example species of Trachycarpus, Chamaerops, Rhapidophyllum and Washingtonia.
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