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by | Mar 16, 2018 | Hosta

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Ayenia is a genus of flowering plants in the mallow family, Malvaceae. It includes 216 species[2] of subshrubs, shrubs, small trees, and lianas.[3] They are native to the tropical Americas and southwestern United States, tropical Africa, and tropical Asia.[2]

Description

Ayenia includes subshrubs, shrubs, small trees, and lianas. The genus is distinguished by its tiny yet extraordinarily complex flowers.[3]

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.[3]

Byttneria species are host plants to insects such as beetles of the genus Lonchophorellus.[4]

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.[3] In 2018 Christenhusz and Byng transferred the Byttneria and Rayleya names to Ayenia, which had nomenclatural priority.[5]

Selected species

216 species are currently accepted.[2] Selected species include:

References

  1. ^ "Taxon: Ayenia L." Germplasm Resources Information Network. United States Department of Agriculture. 2003-06-05. Retrieved 2011-02-20.
  2. ^ a b c d Ayenia L. Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d 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.
  4. ^ 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.
  5. ^ 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

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