Psittacanthus acinarius
| Psittacanthus acinarius | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Embryophytes |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Santalales |
| Family: | Loranthaceae |
| Genus: | Psittacanthus |
| Species: | P. acinarius |
| Binomial name | |
| Psittacanthus acinarius | |
| Synonyms[3] | |
Loranthus warmingii (Eichler) Danser | |
Psittacanthus acinarius is a species of mistletoe in the family Loranthaceae, which is native to Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela,[3] and French Guiana.[4]
Description
Psittacanthus acinarius has pendulous branches, which are circular in cross-section, except at the apex where the cross-section is slightly quadrangular.[4] There are no epicortical roots.[4] The petiolate, leathery leaves are opposite and of length 10–22 cm and width 6–15 cm, with the leaf base being acute or obtuse, the apex obtuse, rounded, with inconspicuous ribbing.[4] The position of the inflorescence is terminal and has persistent non-fused bracts, with an umbel of pedunculate triads.[4] The external colour of the petals is greenish; the internal colour is red and they have a straight style.[4] The buds are long and straight with a dilated base and an acute apex.[4] The stamens are dimorphic. The anthers are red and 7–8 mm in length.[4] The stigma is globose and red.[4] The fruit is ellipsoidal or ovoid, of length 20 mm, width 10 mm long, and when immature is reddish, and when ripe black.[4] The seed has 4–6 cotyledons.[4]
The terminal position of the inflorescences, the robust and fleshy aspect of the peduncles and flowers, the presence of the dilated sub-floral dome, and the greenish color of the flowers are distinctive characteristics of the species.[4] It presents great variability in leaf format.[4] In Brazil, it is one of the most common mistletoe species.[4]
Distribution
It is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela,[3] and French Guiana.[4]
In Brazil, it is found in the Amazon rainforest, Caatinga, Central Brazilian Savanna, and the Pantanal, inhabiting the vegetation types of Caatinga, Amazonian Campinarana, Cerrado, riverine forest and/or gallery forest, Igapó flooded forest, Terra Firme Forest, Várzea inundated forest), seasonally semideciduous forest, and the Amazonian Savanna.[4]
Taxonomy
Psittacanthus acinarius was first described by von Martius in 1829 as Loranthus acinarius,[5][6] and in 1830, he reassigned it to his newly described genus Psittacanthus.[1][2]
Etymology
Psittacanthos comes from the Greek psittakos (parrot), and the Greek anthos (flower), possibly chosen, according to Don,[7] because of the bright colours. The specific epithet, acinarius, is the Latin for designed for holding grapes.[8]
References
- 1 2 "IPNI: Psittacanthus acinarius". International Plant Names Index. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- 1 2 von Martius, C.F.P. 1830. Flora 13(1): 108.
- 1 2 3 Govaerts, R. et al. 2018. "Plants of the World online: Psittacanthus acinarius". Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 "Psittacanthus acinarius (Mart.) Mart". Flora do Brasil 2020: Algae, Fungi, Plants, Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro. Retrieved 19 May 2018.
- ↑ "IPNI: Loranthus acinarius". International Plant Names Index. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- ↑ von Martius, C.F.P. 1829. "Syst. Veg., ed. 15 bis [Roemer & Schultes] 7(1): 130".
- ↑ Don, G. 1834. "A general history of the dichlamydeous plants :comprising complete descriptions of the different orders...the whole arranged according to the natural system 3: 415".
- ↑ Online latin dictionary: acinarius Retrieved 19 August 2018.
- GBIF.org (19 August 2018) GBIF Occurrence Download Psittacanthus acinarius Mart.
External links
- von Martius, C.F.P. 1867. Flora Brasiliensis 5(2) p.41, Tab 9.