| Lebronnecia | |
|---|---|
| | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Malvales |
| Family: | Malvaceae |
| Subfamily: | Malvoideae |
| Tribe: | Gossypieae |
| Genus: | Lebronnecia Fosberg & Sachet (1966) [2] |
| Species: | L. kokioides |
| Binomial name | |
| Lebronnecia kokioides | |
Lebronnecia is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the family Malvaceae. [4] The sole species is Lebronnecia kokioides, a very rare flowering shrub.
Only a few hundred specimens are known to exist. The plant was first described in 1966, after a single tree with a few seedlings was discovered on Tahuata, an island in the Marquesas group of French Polynesia that had been severely deforested by livestock: cattle, goats, horses, and pigs.
Further specimens were later found on the nearby island of Mohotani, uninhabited by humans, but similarly deforested by sheep, who seem to avoid eating the plant. [5]