Cenostigma Tul., Ann. Sci. Nat., Bot., ser . 2. 20: 140. 1843.
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https://dx.doi.org/10.3897/phytokeys.240.101716 |
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https://treatment.plazi.org/id/BE46A1D2-866A-95B0-CD50-0910B3CB11EB |
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scientific name |
Cenostigma Tul., Ann. Sci. Nat., Bot., ser . 2. 20: 140. 1843. |
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Cenostigma Tul., Ann. Sci. Nat., Bot., ser. 2. 20: 140. 1843. View in CoL
Figs 35 View Figure 35 , 36 View Figure 36 , 38 View Figure 38 , 41 View Figure 41
Type.
Description.
Unarmed multi-stemmed shrubs, small compact trees, or large trees to 35 m, the larger trees with fluted trunks at maturity. Stipules filiform, spathulate-cucullate or lanceolate, caducous or sub-persistent, unknown for some species. Leaves pinnate or bipinnate, sometimes with stellate hairs or various types of sessile or stalked glands; species with pinnate leaves either with three leaflets or 2-9 pairs of opposite leaflets; species with bipinnate leaves with 1-11 pairs of opposite to alternate pinnae, plus a terminal pinna, each pinna with 3-29 alternate to subopposite (occasionally opposite), eglandular leaflets, or with black subepidermal glands on the undersurface, and/or with conspicuous, sessile or punctate glands on the undersurface or along the margins, in addition to stipitate glands. Inflorescence an axillary or terminal raceme, sometimes pyramidal in shape, sometimes aggregated into large showy panicles, pedicels articulated. Flowers bisexual, zygomorphic; hypanthium persisting as a small cup or wide shallow cup, or abscising as a ring around the pedicel apex or fruit stipe as the fruit matures; sepals 5, caducous, the lower cucullate sepal generally slightly longer than the other four; petals 5, free, bright yellow, the median petal with red or orange markings on the inner surface of the blade, the outer surface of the petal claw with short-stalked glands; stamens 10, free, filaments pubescent on lower portion, usually with short-stipitate glands along entire length; ovary pubescent with glands intermixed. Fruits laterally compressed, coriaceous to woody legumes with conspicuously thickened margins, dehiscent, sometimes explosively so, 2-6 (8)-seeded. Seeds ochre, brown, or mottled, shiny.
Chromosome number.
2 n = 24 [ C. microphyllum (Mart ex G. Don) Gagnon & G.P. Lewis, C. pluviosum (DC.) Gagnon & G.P. Lewis, C. pyramidale (Tul.) Gagnon & G.P. Lewis], 2 n = 48 [ C. bracteosum (Tul.) Gagnon & G.P. Lewis] ( Alves and Custódio 1989; Beltrão and Guerra 1990; Rodrigues et al. 2014).
Included species and geographic distribution.
Twenty-three taxa in 15 species confined to the Neotropics. The genus extends around the Amazonian arc of dry forests and adjacent cerrado vegetation, as well as throughout Central America, and extending to the Caribbean, with endemics in Cuba and Hispaniola (Fig. 41 View Figure 41 ).
Ecology.
Seasonally dry tropical forest, bushland, and thicket (restinga, caatinga, semi-arid thorn scrub), wooded grassland (cerrado and cerradão) and terra firme forest.
Etymology.
From ceno - (Greek = empty) and stigma, presumably alluding to the chambered stigma (a character of many species of the Caesalpinieae , and not restricted to Cenostigma ).
Human uses.
Cenostigma pluviosum is often planted as an ornamental street tree in South America. Other species are used for their timber and production of charcoal, as well as for local medicine ( Queiroz 2009).
Notes.
Based on phylogenetic and morphological evidence, Gagnon and Lewis in Gagnon et al. (2016) emended the description of Cenostigma and added several species from the disbanded genus Poincianella . Subsequently, C. pyramidale var. diversifolium has been raised to the rank of species as C. diversifolium (Benth.) Gaem ( Gaem 2021), thus increasing the number of recognised species in the genus to 15.
Taxonomic references.
Freire (1994); Gaem (2021); Gagnon et al. (2016); Lewis (1987, 1998, 2005b); Lewis et al. (2010); Queiroz (2009, under both Cenostigma and Poincianella ); Ulibarri (1996); Warwick and Lewis (2009).
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