Casearia
Encyclopedia
Casearia is a plant
genus
in the family
Salicaceae
. The genus was included in the Flacourtiaceae
under the Cronquist system
of angiosperm
classification, and earlier in the Samydaceae
. Recent research indicates that the latter group might be reinstated as a valid family.
They are sometimes employed as honey plants, notably C. decandra and C. sylvestris. The latter species is occasionally used as food by the caterpillar
s of the Two-barred Flasher (Astraptes fulgerator). Several species are becoming rare due to deforestation
. Some appear close to extinction, and C. quinduensis
of Colombia
and C. tinifolia
from Mauritius
seem to be extinct since some time in the 20th century and about 1976, respectively.
Plant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
in the family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Salicaceae
Salicaceae
Salicaceae are a family of flowering plants. Recent genetic studies summarized by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group has greatly expanded the circumscription of the family to contain 55 genera....
. The genus was included in the Flacourtiaceae
Flacourtiaceae
Flacourtiaceae is a defunct family of flowering plants whose former members have been scattered to various other families, mostly to Achariaceae, Samydaceae, and Salicaceae. It was so vaguely defined that hardly anything seemed out of place there and it became a dumping ground for odd and anomalous...
under the Cronquist system
Cronquist system
The Cronquist system is a taxonomic classification system of flowering plants. It was developed by Arthur Cronquist in his texts An Integrated System of Classification of Flowering Plants and The Evolution and Classification of Flowering Plants .Cronquist's system places flowering plants into two...
of angiosperm
Flowering plant
The flowering plants , also known as Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta, are the most diverse group of land plants. Angiosperms are seed-producing plants like the gymnosperms and can be distinguished from the gymnosperms by a series of synapomorphies...
classification, and earlier in the Samydaceae
Samydaceae
Samydaceae is a family of tropical and subtropical woody plants, its best known genus being Casearia. It has always been of uncertain placement, in the past usually being submerged in the family Flacourtiaceae....
. Recent research indicates that the latter group might be reinstated as a valid family.
They are sometimes employed as honey plants, notably C. decandra and C. sylvestris. The latter species is occasionally used as food by the caterpillar
Caterpillar
Caterpillars are the larval form of members of the order Lepidoptera . They are mostly herbivorous in food habit, although some species are insectivorous. Caterpillars are voracious feeders and many of them are considered to be pests in agriculture...
s of the Two-barred Flasher (Astraptes fulgerator). Several species are becoming rare due to deforestation
Deforestation
Deforestation is the removal of a forest or stand of trees where the land is thereafter converted to a nonforest use. Examples of deforestation include conversion of forestland to farms, ranches, or urban use....
. Some appear close to extinction, and C. quinduensis
Casearia quinduensis
Casearia quinduensis was a species of plant in the Salicaceae family. It was endemic to Colombia.-Sources:* Calderon, E. 1998. . Downloaded on 21 August 2007....
of Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
and C. tinifolia
Casearia tinifolia
Casearia tinifolia was a species of plant in the Salicaceae family. It was endemic to Mauritius.-Sources:* Strahm, W. 1998. . Downloaded on 21 August 2007....
from Mauritius
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
seem to be extinct since some time in the 20th century and about 1976, respectively.
Selected species
|
Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin Nikolaus Joseph Freiherr von Jacquin or Baron Nikolaus von Jacquin. was a scientist who studied medicine, chemistry and botany.... Casearia engleri Casearia engleri is a species of plant in the Salicaceae family. It is endemic to Tanzania.-References:* Lovett, J. & Clarke, G.P. 1998. . Downloaded on 21 August 2007.... Casearia flavovirens Casearia flavovirens is a species of plant in the Salicaceae family. It is endemic to Indonesia.It is an Vulnerable species threatened by habitat loss.-References:* World Conservation Monitoring Centre 1998. . Downloaded on 21 August 2007.... Casearia flexula Casearia flexula is a species of plant in the Salicaceae family. It is endemic to Malaysia. It is threatened by habitat loss.-Sources:* Chua, L.S.L. 1998. . Downloaded on 21 August 2007.... Casearia gladiiformis Casearia gladiiformis, the Sword-leaf, is a small tree that occurs mostly in dry coastal forests of south-eastern Africa. It is distributed from the Eastern Cape to Malawi. It bears small inconspicuous flowers in spring. The seeds are released when the woody seed capsule splits open after drying out.... – Sword-leaf |
Casearia kaalaensis Casearia kaalaensis is a species of plant in the Salicaceae family. It is endemic to New Caledonia.-References:* Jaffré, T. et al. 1998. . Downloaded on 21 August 2007.... Casearia lasiophylla Casearia lasiophylla is a species of plant in the Salicaceae family. It is endemic to Brazil.-Sources:* Torres, R.B. 1998. . Downloaded on 21 August 2007.... Eichler Casearia macrocarpa Casearia macrocarpa is a species of plant in the Salicaceae family. It is endemic to Malaysia. It is threatened by habitat loss.-References:* Chua, L.S.L. 1998. . Downloaded on 21 August 2007.... Casearia mannii Casearia mannii is a species of plant in the Salicaceae family. It is endemic to São Tomé and Príncipe.-References:* World Conservation Monitoring Centre 1998. . Downloaded on 21 August 2007.... Casearia mauritiana Casearia mauritiana is a species of plant in the Salicaceae family. It is endemic to Mauritius.-Sources:* Strahm, W. 1998. . Downloaded on 21 August 2007.... Casearia megacarpa Casearia megacarpa is a species of plant in the Salicaceae family. It is endemic to Colombia.-References:* Calderon, E. 1998. . Downloaded on 21 August 2007.... |
Casearia mexiae Casearia mexiae is a species of plant in the Salicaceae family. It is endemic to Ecuador. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes.-Sources:* Neill, D. & Pitman, N. 2004. . Downloaded on 21 August 2007.... Casearia quinduensis Casearia quinduensis was a species of plant in the Salicaceae family. It was endemic to Colombia.-Sources:* Calderon, E. 1998. . Downloaded on 21 August 2007.... (extinct) Casearia tinifolia Casearia tinifolia was a species of plant in the Salicaceae family. It was endemic to Mauritius.-Sources:* Strahm, W. 1998. . Downloaded on 21 August 2007.... Vent. Étienne Pierre Ventenat Étienne Pierre Ventenat was a French botanist born in Limoges. He was the brother of naturalist Louis Ventenat .... (extinct) Casearia williamsiana Casearia williamsiana is a species of plant in the Salicaceae family. It is endemic to Honduras.-Sources:* Nelson, C. 1998. . Downloaded on 21 August 2007.... Casearia wynadensis Casearia wynadensis is a species of plant in the Salicaceae family. It is endemic to India.-References:* World Conservation Monitoring Centre 1998. . Downloaded on 21 August 2007.... |