Moullava Adans., Fam. Pl. 2: 318. 1763, descr. emended E. Gagnon & G. P. Lewis

Gagnon, Edeline, Bruneau, Anne, Hughes, Colin E., de Queiroz, Luciano Paganucci & Lewis, Gwilym P., 2016, A new generic system for the pantropical Caesalpinia group (Leguminosae), PhytoKeys 71, pp. 1-160 : 42

12. Moullava Adans., Fam. Pl. 2: 318. 1763, descr. emended E. Gagnon & G. P. Lewis Figs 20A-C , 21

Wagatea Dalzell (1851).

Cinclidocarpus Zoll. & Moritzi (1846).

Caesalpinia sect. Cinclidocarpus (Zoll. & Moritzi) Benth. & Hook. (1865).

Diagnosis.

Moullava is related to Mezoneuron , but differs by its fleshy, oblong-elliptic, indehiscent, sub-torulose, wingless pods, with thickened sutures (vs. laterally compressed, chartaceous, coriaceous or ligneous, indehiscent pods, with a longitudinal wing along the upper suture), and by its subglobular (vs. compressed) seeds.

Type.

"H.M. 6 t. 6" (= Rheede`s Hortus Malabaricus 6, plate 6, 1686) = Moullava spicata .

Emended description.

Lianas and scrambling shrubs, armed with deflexed prickles on shoots. Stipules not seen. Leaves alternate, bipinnate, ending with a pair of pinnae, 12-40 cm long, glabrous to pubescent-tomentose, with a pair of prickles at the insertion of each pinna; pinnae opposite, in 7-20 pairs; leaflets in 5-40 opposite pairs per pinna, sessile, narrowly oblong to ovate-oblong, apex rounded to emarginate, sometimes mucronate, base asymmetrical to rounded, blades eglandular, glabrous to pubescent, 4-20 × 2-6 mm. Inflorescence an elongated terminal or axillary raceme, the flowers subsessile, pedicels, when present, 10-25 mm long, the racemes sometimes aggregated into panicles, 8-60 cm long, unarmed or with a few prickles at the base. Flowers bisexual, sub-actinormophic or zygomorphic; calyx comprising a hypanthium with 5 sepals, 6-12 × 2-4 mm, the lower sepal strongly cucullate, covering the other 4 sepals in bud, all sepals eglandular and glabrous; petals 5, free, yellow, the median and lateral petals sometimes streaked red, eglandular; stamens 10, free, barely exserted beyond the corolla, densely pubescent on lower half of filaments, 8-15 mm long; ovary glabrous or pubescent. Fruit fleshy, oblong-elliptic, unarmed, indehiscent, sub-torulose, with thickened sutures, the apex apiculate, 35-50 (-80) × 15-30 mm, drying black (immature fruits of Moullava spicata red-tomentose), exocarp and endocarp strongly adnate, glabrous, 1-4-seeded. Seeds sub-globular, 12-20 mm in diameter, olive-brown to black.

Geographic distribution.

A genus of four species, three in south Asia: India, Nepal, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, southern China (Yunnan and Hainan), and the Malay Peninsula and Archipelago, and one in Africa: Cameroun, Gabon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola, Zambia (Kabompo Dist.), Uganda and Tanzania (Kigoma Dist.).

Habitat.

The Asian species are found in seasonally dry tropical semi-evergreen forest margins, secondary thickets, and on mountain slopes, up to 1200 m elevation. The African species occurs mostly in riverine habitats in lowland rainforests.

Etymology.

Derived from the vernacular name of Moullava spicata , “mulu” (Malayalam: spiny), a spiny climber.

References.

Brenan (1963, 1967); Hattink (1974); Vidal and Hul Thol (1976); Nicolson (1980); Ansari (1990); Sanjappa (1992: 33); Brummitt et al. (2007, see both Moullava and Mezoneuron welwitschianum ); Chen et al. (2010a).

Figures

Figure 20. Moullava spicata (Dalzell) Nicolson. A inflorescences B fruit (P. Awale, Flowers of India (http: // www. flowersofindia. net /), Maharashtra, India, unvouchered) C flowers (M. Sanjappa, India, unvouchered). Guilandina bonduc L. D young fruits (F. Starr and K. Starr, Starr Environmental (http: // www. starrenvironmental. com / images / species /? q = Caesalpinia + bonduc), Florida, USA, unvouchered) E fruits with mature seeds (G. P. Lewis, Madagascar, Du Puy et al. M 665 (K )) F inflorescence (M. Sanjappa, India, unvouchered). Biancaea decapetala (Roth) O. Deg. G fruits with seeds H fruit with thickened suture (C. E. Hughes, Ancash, Peru, Hughes et al. 2227 (FHO )) I inflorescence (E. Gagnon, Ancash, Peru, Hughes et al. 3055 (MT )). Biancaea godefroyana (Kuntze) Molinari, Mayta & Sanchez Och. J inflorescences and fruits (F. Xaver, Wikicommons (https: // commons. wikimedia. org / wiki / File: Caesalpinia _ godefroyana _ 1. jpg), Cambodia, unvouchered).

Figure 21. Moullava spicata (Dalzell) Nicolson. A flowering branch B single pinna of bipinnate leaf C leaflet undersurface D leaflet undersurface detail E young stem F older stem G part inflorescence H calyx opened out I median petal J upper lateral petal K lower lateral petal L stamen M gynoecium N stigma O fruit P seed. A, G from photo by P. S. Green B - D, H - N from Cult. Foster Bot. Gard. F 1901, specimen Hutchinson 2784 E from Critchett 11 / 79 F from Nana 5620 O, P from Meebold 8605. Drawn by Eleanor Catherine.