Rhipsalis baccifera, commonly known as the
Mistletoe Cactus, is an
epiphyticAn epiphyte is a plant that grows upon another plant non-parasitically or sometimes upon some other object , derives its moisture and nutrients from the air and rain and sometimes from debris accumulating around it, and is found in the temperate zone and in the...
cactusA cactus is a member of the plant family Cactaceae. Their distinctive appearance is a result of adaptations to conserve water in dry and/or hot environments. In most species, the stem has evolved to become photosynthetic and succulent, while the leaves have evolved into spines...
which originates from
CentralCentral America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
and
South AmericaSouth America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, the
CaribbeanThe Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
and
FloridaFlorida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. It is also spread throughout the tropics of
AfricaAlthough tropical Africa is most familiar in the West as depicted by its rain forests, this region of Africa is far more diverse. While the tropics are thought of as regions with warm to hot moist climates caused by latitude and the tropical rain belt, the geology of areas, particularly mountain...
and
AsiaThrough a crop-based biodiversity, natural resources and animals , Tropical Asia is economically and physiogeographically rich. There are 16 countries of Tropical Asia ranging in size from around 610 km² to 3,000,000 km²...
. This is the only
cactusA cactus is a member of the plant family Cactaceae. Their distinctive appearance is a result of adaptations to conserve water in dry and/or hot environments. In most species, the stem has evolved to become photosynthetic and succulent, while the leaves have evolved into spines...
species naturally occurring outside the
New WorldThe New World is one of the names used for the Western Hemisphere, specifically America and sometimes Oceania . The term originated in the late 15th century, when America had been recently discovered by European explorers, expanding the geographical horizon of the people of the European middle...
, although it is believed that
R. baccifera was introduced relatively recently to the
Old WorldThe Old World consists of those parts of the world known to classical antiquity and the European Middle Ages. It is used in the context of, and contrast with, the "New World" ....
by
migratory birdsBird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
.
Taxonomy
The species shows considerable
polymorphismPolymorphism in biology occurs when two or more clearly different phenotypes exist in the same population of a species — in other words, the occurrence of more than one form or morph...
and can be divided into numerous
subspeciesSubspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
.
MesoamericaMesoamerica is a region and culture area in the Americas, extending approximately from central Mexico to Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica, within which a number of pre-Columbian societies flourished before the Spanish colonization of the Americas in the 15th and...
n specimens are usually
tetraploidPolyploid is a term used to describe cells and organisms containing more than two paired sets of chromosomes. Most eukaryotic species are diploid, meaning they have two sets of chromosomes — one set inherited from each parent. However polyploidy is found in some organisms and is especially common...
and
South AmericaSouth America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
n specimens are diploid. The naming of the species is confusing and a very large number of obsolete names (junior synonyms) exist. These include:
- Cactus caripensis
- Cactus fasciculatus
- Cactus pendulus
- Cassytha
Cassytha L. is a genus of 17 species of parasitic vines in the family Lauraceae, mainly native to Australia, but with a few species in Africa, southern Asia, and one Cassytha L. (1753) is a genus of 17 species of parasitic vines in the family Lauraceae, mainly native to Australia, but with a few...
baccifera
- Cassytha filiformis
- Hariota fasciculata
- Rhipsalis baccifera ssp. fasciculata
- Rhipsalis baccifera ssp. rhodocarpa
|
Rhipsalis bartlettii
Rhipsalis caripensis
Rhipsalis cassutha
Rhipsalis cassuthopsis
Rhipsalis cassytha var. rhodocarpa
Rhipsalis cassythoides
Rhipsalis dichotoma
Rhipsalis fasciculata |
Rhipsalis heptagona
Rhipsalis hookeriana
Rhipsalis hylaea
Rhipsalis madagascariensis
Rhipsalis mesembryanthoides
Rhipsalis minutiflora
Rhipsalis neocassutha
Rhipsalis parasitica |
Rhipsalis parasitica
Rhipsalis pilosa
Rhipsalis undulata
Rhipsalis suarensis
Rhipsalis suareziana |
The
genusIn 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...
CassythaCassytha L. is a genus of 17 species of parasitic vines in the family Lauraceae, mainly native to Australia, but with a few species in Africa, southern Asia, and one Cassytha L. (1753) is a genus of 17 species of parasitic vines in the family Lauraceae, mainly native to Australia, but with a few...
belongs to the family
LauraceaeThe Lauraceae or Laurel family comprises a group of flowering plants included in the order Laurales. The family contains about 55 genera and over 3500, perhaps as many as 4000, species world-wide, mostly from warm or tropical regions, especially Southeast Asia and South America...
rather than
CactaceaeA cactus is a member of the plant family Cactaceae. Their distinctive appearance is a result of adaptations to conserve water in dry and/or hot environments. In most species, the stem has evolved to become photosynthetic and succulent, while the leaves have evolved into spines...
, and the classification of some
Rhipsalis species to the genus was an error based on the not dissimilar
habitusIn biology, morphology is a branch of bioscience dealing with the study of the form and structure of organisms and their specific structural features....
. The
genusIn 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...
HatioraHatiora Britton & Rose is a small genus of epiphytic cacti which belongs to the tribe Rhipsalideae within the subfamily Cactoideae of the Cactaceae...
is closely related to
RhipsalisRhipsalis is a genus of epiphytic cacti. They are typically known as mistletoe cacti. The scientific name derives from the Ancient Greek term for wickerwork, referring to the plants' habitus. Rhipsalis is one is part of the tribe Rhipsalideae within the subfamily Cactoideae of the Cactaceae...
and is either a misspelling of the latter (as in
de CandolleAugustin Pyramus de Candolle also spelled Augustin Pyrame de Candolle was a Swiss botanist. René Louiche Desfontaines launched Candolle's botanical career by recommending him at an herbarium...
) or (as by
Michel AdansonMichel Adanson was a French naturalist of Scottish descent.Adanson was born at Aix-en-Provence. His family moved to Paris on 1730. After leaving the College Sainte Barbe he was employed in the cabinets of R. A. F. Reaumur and Bernard de Jussieu, as well as in the Jardin des Plantes. At the end of...
) a junior synonym of
Rhipsalis.