genus descriptions: SSTAs

Leptaulus

Benth.
Description:
Evergreen shrubs or small trees; bark pale grey-brown. Leaves alternate, elliptic to narrowly elliptic, entire, rather coriaceous, petiolate. Flowers bisexual, in subumbellate cymes or solitary, white, drying chrome-yellow. Calyx deeply 5-lobed; lobes slightly imbricate. Petals 5, united nearly to apex, valvate with inflexed tips. Stamens 5, alternating with petals and adnate to them for most of their length. Ovary with a somewhat excentric style as long as corolla tube; stigma funnel-shaped. Fruit an oblong-ellipsoid drupe. Seed oblong-ellipsoid.
Distribution:
Species 6, trop. Africa and Madagascar; sthn trop. Afr. 2, Angola (Cabinda), Zambia.
Source:
SSTA

Mon, 2009-03-23 13:08 -- Emily Smith
Polycephalium

Engl.
Description:
Dioecious lianes; branches ferruginous-tomentose. Leaves alternate, 3- to 5-lobed or entire, palmati- or penninerved, nerves prolonged beyond lamina by projecting hydathodes; densely tomentose underneath. Male flowers very small, in dense, many-flowered glomerules arranged in panicles; calyx absent; corolla campanulate, petals 3, united; stamens 3, with filiform filaments, anthers oblong; ovary absent or rudimentary. Female flowers in dense, solitary, axillary globose heads; calyx campanulate, truncate or shortly 3-lobed; corolla campanulate, shorter than calyx, fused at base with ovary; ovary ellipsoid, style pubescent, ending in a peltate, multifid stigma. Fruit a drupe, globose to ellipsoid, tomentose, completely surrounded by accrescent corolla terminating in a cone; endocarp woody, verrucose on inner surface. Seed with small embryo situated at apex of oily endosperm.
Distribution:
Species 2, trop. Africa; sthn trop. Afr. 1: Polycephalium lobatum (Pierre) Pierre ex Engl. (= P. poggei Engl.), Angola.
Source:
SSTA

Mon, 2009-03-23 13:08 -- Emily Smith
Rhaphiostylis

Planch. ex Benth.
Description:
Glabrous, evergreen, straggling shrubs or woody lianes; bark smooth, dark grey; young branches dark purple. Leaves alternate, narrowly lanceolate to elliptic, entire, glossy dark green, petiolate. Flowers bisexual, in 4- to many-flowered supra-axillary fascicles; pedicels glabrous, +/- equalling flowers. Calyx small, 5-fid. Petals 5, valvate, free, white. Stamens 5; filaments compressed below, filiform above, alternipetalous. Ovary 1-locular with a filiform, persistent excentric style. Fruit an obliquely dorso-ventrally compressed, reticulately wrinkled drupe with a persistent style.
Distribution:
Species 6, trop. Africa; sthn trop.Afr. 2, Angola, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique.
Source:
SSTA

Mon, 2009-03-23 13:08 -- Emily Smith
Stachyanthus

Engler
Description:
Dioecious climbing shrubs; branches hirsute. Leaves alternate, entire, shortly petiolate, penninerved. Inflorescences: male and female in loose spikes or racemes arranged in fascicles on cushions at nodes of older branches; bracts small. Male flowers: 5- or 6-merous; calyx cup-shaped, shortly toothed; petals valvate, coiled outwards before anthesis; stamens with filiform filaments +/- as long as linear anthers; disc present or absent. Female flowers similar to male ones but disc always absent; ovary 1-locular, oblong-ovate, stigma sessile, discoid. Fruit an ellipsoid, +/- flattened drupe; endocarp crustaceous, verrucose to smooth inside. Seed often pitted; endosperm markedly mottled.
Distribution:
Species 5, trop. Africa; sthn trop. Afr. 2, Angola.
Source:
SSTA
Synonym(s):
Neostachyanthus Exell & Mendonca: 111 (1951a); Exell & Mendonca: 344 (1951b).

Mon, 2009-03-23 13:08 -- Emily Smith
Irvingia

Hook.f.
Description:
Trees, sometimes very tall. Leaves papyraceous to coriaceous; stipules mostly shorter than 40 mm. Flowers bisexual or sometimes unisexual by abortion. Sepals small, free or slightly united at base. Petals spreading, much longer than sepals. Stamens with free filaments. Ovary 2-locular, slightly sunk into disc, +/- globular. Fruit a +/- ellipsoid drupe, containing 1(2) woody pyrene(s) by abortion; pyrene ellipsoidal, 1-seeded; endosperm almost absent to copious.
Distribution:
Species 7, 6 in humid W and C Africa, 1 in SE Asia; sthn trop. Afr. 5, Angola.
Source:
SSTA

Mon, 2009-03-23 13:08 -- Emily Smith
Klainedoxa

Pierre ex Engl.
Description:
Trees, often very tall; young trees armed with spines up to 100 mm long. Leaves coriaceous; stipules usually longer than 50 mm, falcate. Flowers bisexual. Sepals free, ovate. Petals elliptic, 2 or 3 times as long as calyx. Stamens (9)10, antepetalous ones shorter than antesepalous ones; pollen with polar triangle. Ovary (4)5-locular, slightly sunk into fleshy disc. Fruit a depressed, hard, +/- distinctly (4)5-lobed drupe containing (4)5 hard, 1-seeded pyrenes, irregularly shaped with processes, free or centripetally fused. Seeds: endosperm copious.
Distribution:
Species 2, forested region of W and C Africa; sthn trop. Afr. 1: Klainedoxa gabonensis Pierre ex Engl., Angola, Zambia.
Source:
SSTA

Mon, 2009-03-23 13:08 -- Emily Smith
Phyllocosmus

Klotzsch
Description:
Description as for family.
Distribution:
Species 5, trop. Africa; sthn trop. Afr. 3, Angola, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique.
Source:
SSTA
Synonym(s):
Ochthocosmus Benth. in part, as to African species; Winkler: 123 (1931); Exell & Mendonca: 105 (1951a); Exell & Mendonca: 246 (1951b); Keay: 355 (1958); White: 167 (1962); Robson: 100 (1963); Phiri (Unpublished) under Irvingiaceae.

Mon, 2009-03-23 13:08 -- Emily Smith
Achyrospermum

Blume
Description:
Perennial herbs or subshrubs; stems quadrangular to subterete. Leaves petiolate, thin, crenate. Inflorescences of small flowers in dense, terminal or lateral spike-like panicles; bracts ovate, sessile, membranous, ciliate, much smaller than leaves, persistent. Calyx: tube subcylindric to funnel-shaped, 10-nerved; teeth 5, subequal, herbaceous, not rigid. Corolla: tube funnel-shaped to cylindric; limb bilabiate, upper lip short, curved, lower lip longer, deflexed, 3-lobed. Stamens 4, didynamous, curved, lowest pair the longest; anther thecae distinct or confluent. Style bifid at apex. Nutlets obovoid, reticulate, scaly at apex.
Distribution:
Species +/- 25, tropical and subtropical Old World; sthn trop. Afr. 7, Angola, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique; fide Chikuni (1995) also in sthn Afr.
Source:
SSTA

Mon, 2009-03-23 13:08 -- Emily Smith
Benguellia

G.Taylor
Description:
Perennial marsh herbs with erect, simple to sparsely branched glabrous stems. Leaves opposite, narrowly lanceolate to linear, narrowing very gradually into a short petiole, +/- entire but shallowly dentate towards tip, acute, glabrous on both sides but with glandular dots. Inflorescences terminal, with numerous 4-6-flowered verticils densely to loosely arranged on a simple straight rachis; bracts sessile, broadly ovate. Calyx tubular at flowering time, 10-nerved with 5 +/- equal, short, triangular teeth; accrescent and narrowly campanulate in fruit. Corolla 2-lipped; tube much longer than calyx, widening slightly towards the mouth; posterior lobe 3-fid, anterior lobe entire, slightly concave. Stamens 4, declinate, shortly exserted; anterior stamens arising at corolla throat; posterior ones at midpoint of corolla; filaments free. Style slightly exserted, ending in 2 short, flattened, rounded lobes.
Distribution:
Monotypic genus: Benguellia lanceolata (Gurke) G.Taylor, known only from Angola.
Source:
SSTA
Synonym(s):
Orthosiphon lanceolatus Gurke: 360 (1903).

Mon, 2009-03-23 13:08 -- Emily Smith
Fuerstia

T.C.E.Fr.
Description:
Perennial herbs with a woody rootstock or subshrubs, glandular pubescent; stem erect to ascending, quadrangular at least in younger parts. Leaves opposite or 3- or 4-nate, sessile or shortly petiolate. Inflorescences simple, terminal or axillary racemes with flowers arranged in 2-4-flowered verticils; flowers pedicellate. Calyx 2-lipped, shortly tubular, small and semi-erect during flowering, accrescent and declinate in fruit; upper lip broad, ovate, shortly decurrent, lower lip 2- or 4-lobed, lobes deltoid to subulate. Corolla 2-lipped; tube straight, not or only slightly exserted from calyx tube; upper lip 4-lobed, lower lip horizontal or deflexed, slightly concave, +/- as long as upper one; bracts subtending a single flower. Stamens 4, declinate, but posterior 2 sterile, arising near midpoint of corolla; anterior 2 fertile, arising near corolla throat; filaments free; anthers dorsifixed, synthecate, held within basal part of corolla lip. Ovary 4-lobed; style curved, 2-lobed at apex. Nutlets basifixed, surrounded by a 4-lobed disc.
Distribution:
Species +/- 9, trop. Africa; sthn trop. Afr. 6, Angola, Zambia. Very close to Orthosiphon and perhaps best recognised as a section within O. subgenus Orthosiphon (Paton 1993: 130).
Source:
SSTA

Mon, 2009-03-23 13:08 -- Emily Smith

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