Ayenia | |
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Ayenia compacta | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Malvales |
Family: | Malvaceae |
Subfamily: | Byttnerioideae |
Tribe: | Byttnerieae |
Genus: | Ayenia L. (1756) |
Species | |
216; See text. | |
Synonyms | |
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Ayenia is a genus of flowering plants in the mallow family, Malvaceae. It includes 216 species of subshrubs, shrubs, small trees, and lianas. They are native to the tropical Americas and southwestern United States, tropical Africa, and tropical Asia.
Description
Ayenia includes subshrubs, shrubs, small trees, and lianas. The genus is distinguished by its tiny yet extraordinarily complex flowers.
Ecology
Species of Ayenia grow in diverse habitats, from open areas in dry and seasonally-dry regions to humid forests, river banks, and from lowlands to high elevations.
Byttneria species are host plants to insects such as beetles of the genus Lonchophorellus.
Taxonomy
Ayenia, Byttneria, and Rayleya were formerly described as separate genera, with Ayenia having a Neotropical distribution, Byttneria as a Pantropical genus, and Rayleya as a monotypic genus with a single Brazilian species, Rayleya bahiensis. A phylogenetic analysis found that Byttneria was paraphyletic and Ayenia was nested within it, and Rayleya was a sister clade to the others. In 2018 Christenhusz and Byng transferred the Byttneria and Rayleya names to Ayenia, which had nomenclatural priority.
Selected species
216 species are currently accepted. Selected species include:
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References
- "Taxon: Ayenia L." Germplasm Resources Information Network. United States Department of Agriculture. 2003-06-05. Retrieved 2011-02-20.
- ^ Ayenia L. Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
- ^ Whitlock, B. A., & Hale, A. M. (2011). The phylogeny of Ayenia, Byttneria, and Rayleya (Malvaceae s.l.) and its implications for the evolution of growth forms. Systematic Botany, 36(1), 129-136.
- Clark, W. 1989. Lonchophorellus Clark, un nuevo género de Anthomini neotropical (Coleoptera: Curculionidae). Archived 2016-03-11 at the Wayback Machine The Coleopterists Bulletin v. 43, no. 3 p. 279-289.
- Dorr, L.J. 2023. New combinations in Ayenia (Malvaceae, Byttnerioideae) for the flora of Ecuador. Phytoneuron 2023-04: 1– 5. Published 17 February 2023. ISSN 2153-733X
External links
- Data related to Ayenia at Wikispecies
- Media related to Ayenia at Wikimedia Commons
- Jepson Manual Treatment
- USDA Plants Profile
Taxon identifiers | |
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Ayenia |