''Balanophora'' is a genus of parasitic plants in the family

Balanophoraceae The Balanophoraceae are a subtropical to tropical family of obligate parasitic flowering plants, notable for their unusual development and formerly obscure affinities. In the broadest circumscription, the family consists of 16 genera. Alternativ ...

found in parts of tropical and temperate Asia, including the Eastern Himalayas,

Malesia Malesia is a biogeographical region straddling the Equator and the boundaries of the Indomalayan and Australasian realms, and also a phytogeographical floristic region in the Paleotropical Kingdom. It has been given different definitions. The ...

region,

Pacific Islands Collectively called the Pacific Islands, the islands in the Pacific Ocean are further categorized into three major island groups: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Depending on the context, the term ''Pacific Islands'' may refer to one of se ...

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

, and tropical Africa. There are about 20 accepted species, including the newly discovered ''B. coralliformis''. Many species emit an odour which possibly attracts pollinators in the same way that pollinators are attracted to ''

Rafflesia ''Rafflesia'' () is a genus of parasitic flowering plants in the family Rafflesiaceae. The species have enormous flowers, the buds rising from the ground or directly from the lower stems of their host plants; one species has the largest flowers i ...

''. ''Balanophora'' species are used in

folk medicine Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) comprises medical aspects of traditional knowledge that developed over generations within the folk beliefs of various societies, including indigenous peoples, before the ...

in many Asian cultures. For example, in Taiwan and China, ''Balanophora'' is known as ''she-gu'' (stone-fungus) and in

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

as ''hoh-ra-tao-su-nak''. In both cases, the plant is used to treat a variety of ailments and has various ritual purposes. The tubers of ''Balanophora'' are rich in a wax-like substance which is used in

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...

as a fuel for torches.

Taxonomy

The genus was first described in 1775 by

Johann Reinhold Forster Johann Reinhold Forster (22 October 1729 – 9 December 1798) was a German Continental Reformed church, Reformed (Calvinist) pastor and natural history, naturalist of partially Scottish descent who made contributions to the early ornithology of ...

and his son

Georg Forster Johann George Adam Forster, also known as Georg Forster (, 27 November 1754 – 10 January 1794), was a German naturalist, ethnologist, travel writer, journalist and revolutionary. At an early age, he accompanied his father, Johann Reinhold F ...

in ''

Characteres Generum Plantarum ''Characteres generum plantarum'' (complete title , "Characteristics of the types of plants collected, described, and delineated during a voyage to islands of the South Seas, in the years 1772–1775 by Johann Reinhold Forster and Georg Forster ...

''. The name is derived from the

ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...

words (), meaning "acorn" and (), meaning "to carry".Backer, C.A. (1936). ''Verklarend woordenboek der wetenschappelijke namen van de in Nederland en Nederlandsch-Indië in het wild groeiende en in tuinen en parken gekweekte varens en hoogere planten'' (Edition Nicoline van der Sijs).

Species

, the following species are accepted at

Plants of the World Online Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. It was launched in March 2017 with the ultimate aim being "to enable users to access information on all the world's known seed-bearing plants by ...

: *''

Balanophora abbreviata ''Balanophora'' is a genus of parasitic plants in the family Balanophoraceae found in parts of tropical and temperate Asia, including the Eastern Himalayas, Malesia region, Pacific Islands, Madagascar, and tropical Africa. There are about 20 a ...

'' Blume *'' Balanophora aphylla'' Luu, H.Ð.Trần & H.C.Nguyen *''

Balanophora coralliformis ''Balanophora coralliformis'', sometimes known as coral plant, is a flowering plant in the Family (biology), family Balanophoraceae and is known only from Mount Mingan on the island of Luzon in the Philippines. Like others in its genus, it is ...

'' Barcelona, Tandang & Pelser *''

Balanophora cucphuongensis ''Balanophora cucphuongensis'' is a species of plant in the Balanophoraceae family. It is found in Cúc Phương National Park and Kon Tum Province, Vietnam. Local people use this plant as a medical treatment for erectile dysfunction and enhance ...

'' Ban *''

Balanophora dioica ''Balanophora'' is a genus of parasitic plants in the family Balanophoraceae found in parts of tropical and temperate Asia, including the Eastern Himalayas, Malesia region, Pacific Islands, Madagascar, and tropical Africa. There are about 20 ac ...

'' R.Br. ex Royle *''

Balanophora elongata ''Balanophora'' is a genus of parasitic plants in the family Balanophoraceae found in parts of tropical and temperate Asia, including the Eastern Himalayas, Malesia region, Pacific Islands, Madagascar, and tropical Africa. There are about 20 ac ...

'' Blume *''

Balanophora fargesii ''Balanophora'' is a genus of parasitic plants in the family Balanophoraceae found in parts of tropical and temperate Asia, including the Eastern Himalayas, Malesia region, Pacific Islands, Madagascar, and tropical Africa. There are about 20 a ...

'' (Tiegh.) Harms *''

Balanophora flava ''Balanophora'' is a genus of parasitic plants in the family Balanophoraceae found in parts of tropical and temperate Asia, including the Eastern Himalayas, Malesia region, Pacific Islands, Madagascar, and tropical Africa. There are about 20 a ...

'' (Hook.f.) Lidén *''

Balanophora fungosa ''Balanophora fungosa'', sometimes known as fungus root is a flowering plant in the family Balanophoraceae and occurs in South Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia and some Pacific Islands. It is an obligate parasite growing on the roots of rainforest ...

'' J.R.Forst. & G.Forst. (

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen ...

) *''

Balanophora harlandii ''Balanophora'' is a genus of parasitic plants in the family Balanophoraceae found in parts of tropical and temperate Asia, including the Eastern Himalayas, Malesia region, Pacific Islands, Madagascar, and tropical Africa. There are about 20 a ...

'' Hook.f. *''

Balanophora involucrata ''Balanophora'' is a genus of parasitic plants in the family Balanophoraceae found in parts of tropical and temperate Asia, including the Eastern Himalayas, Malesia region, Pacific Islands, Madagascar, and tropical Africa. There are about 20 a ...

'' Hook.f. & Thomson *''

Balanophora japonica ''Balanophora japonica'' (Japanese:ツチトリモチ; Chinese:日本蛇菰) is a plant species in the genus ''Balanophora'' found in Japan. Balanophonin is a neo-lignan that can be found in ''B. japonica''. It also contains ellagitannins, ligna ...

'' Makino *''

Balanophora latisepala ''Balanophora'' is a genus of parasitic plants in the family Balanophoraceae found in parts of tropical and temperate Asia, including the Eastern Himalayas, Malesia region, Pacific Islands, Madagascar, and tropical Africa. There are about 20 ac ...

'' (Tiegh.) Lecomte *''

Balanophora laxiflora ''Balanophora'' is a genus of parasitic plants in the family Balanophoraceae found in parts of tropical and temperate Asia, including the Eastern Himalayas, Malesia region, Pacific Islands, Madagascar, and tropical Africa. There are about 20 ac ...

'' Hemsl. *''

Balanophora lowii ''Balanophora'' is a genus of parasitic plants in the family Balanophoraceae found in parts of tropical and temperate Asia, including the Eastern Himalayas, Malesia region, Pacific Islands, Madagascar, and tropical Africa. There are about 20 ac ...

'' Hook.f. *''

Balanophora nipponica ''Balanophora'' is a genus of parasitic plants in the family Balanophoraceae found in parts of tropical and temperate Asia, including the Eastern Himalayas, Malesia region, Pacific Islands, Madagascar, and tropical Africa. There are about 20 ac ...

'' Makino *'' Balanophora papuana'' Schltr. *'' Balanophora polyandra'' Griff. *''

Balanophora reflexa ''Balanophora'' is a genus of parasitic plants in the family Balanophoraceae found in parts of tropical and temperate Asia, including the Eastern Himalayas, Malesia region, Pacific Islands, Madagascar, and tropical Africa. There are about 20 ac ...

Becc. Odoardo Beccari (16 November 1843 – 25 October 1920) was an Italian botanist famous for his discoveries in Indonesia, particularly New Guinea, and Australia. He has been called the greatest botanist to ever study Malesia. His author abbrevi ...

*''

Balanophora subcupularis ''Balanophora'' is a genus of parasitic plants in the family Balanophoraceae found in parts of tropical and temperate Asia, including the Eastern Himalayas, Malesia region, Pacific Islands, Madagascar, and tropical Africa. There are about 20 a ...

'' P.C.Tam *''

Balanophora tobiracola ''Balanophora'' is a genus of parasitic plants in the family Balanophoraceae found in parts of tropical and temperate Asia, including the Eastern Himalayas, Malesia region, Pacific Islands, Madagascar, and tropical Africa. There are about 20 a ...

'' Makino *'' Balanophora wilderi'' Setch. *'' Balanophora yakushimensis'' Hatus. & Masam.

References

Santalales genera {{Santalales-stub