''Spermacoce'' or false buttonweed is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

s in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Rubiaceae The Rubiaceae are a family of flowering plants, commonly known as the coffee, madder, or bedstraw family. It consists of terrestrial trees, shrubs, lianas, or herbs that are recognizable by simple, opposite leaves with interpetiolar stipules ...

. It comprises about 275 species found throughout the tropics and subtropics. Its highest diversity is found in the

Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...

, followed by

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

Description

The species are herbs or small shrubs with small- to medium-sized, four-lobed flowers arranged in capitate inflorescences. Some have a brightly coloured calyx and are eye-catching, particularly the Australian species. The corolla is variable in colour, often white, but also all shades of blue, pink and maroon. The fruit is usually a two-seeded capsule, sometimes a

schizocarp A schizocarp is a dry fruit that, when mature, splits up into mericarps. There are different definitions: * Any dry fruit composed of multiple carpels that separate. : Under this definition the mericarps can contain one or more seeds (the m ...

or nut.

Selected species

''Spermacoce'' is a highly diverse genus with about 275 species in many tropical and subtropical places around the globe.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref> North American species include:Biota of North America Program
/ref> *''

Spermacoce alata ''Spermacoce alata'', the winged false buttonweed, is a species of plant in the Rubiaceae. It is widespread across the warmer parts of the Western Hemisphere and naturalized in many other parts of the world. Description ''Spermacoce alata'' is a ...

'' Aubl. -

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

, most of

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...

; naturalized in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...

Melanesia Melanesia (, ) is a subregion of Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It extends from Indonesia's New Guinea in the west to Fiji in the east, and includes the Arafura Sea. The region includes the four independent countries of Fiji, Va ...

*''

Spermacoce assurgens ''Spermacoce remota'', the woodland false buttonweed, is a species of plant in the Rubiaceae. It is native to the southeastern United States (Texas, Florida, Georgia, Alabama), West Indies (Bermuda, Bahamas, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, the Cayman Is ...

'' Ruiz & Pav. - synonym of ''Spermacoce remota'' *''

Spermacoce brachysepala ''Spermacoce brachysepala'', the West Indian false buttonweed, is a plant species in the Rubiaceae. It is native to Puerto Rico, Haiti and the Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country locat ...

'' (Urb.) Alain in H.A.Liogier & L.F.Martorell - West Indian false buttonweed -

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares wit ...

*''

Spermacoce capitata ''Spermacoce'' or false buttonweed is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. It comprises about 275 species found throughout the tropics and subtropics. Its highest diversity is found in the Americas, followed by Africa, Australia a ...

'' Ruiz & Pav. - baldhead false buttonweed -

Central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

from

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

*''

Spermacoce confusa ''Spermacoce'' or false buttonweed is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. It comprises about 275 species found throughout the tropics and subtropics. Its highest diversity is found in the Americas, followed by Africa, Australia a ...

'' Rendle - river false buttonweed -

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

from

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

*''

Spermacoce densiflora ''Spermacoce'' or false buttonweed is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. It comprises about 275 species found throughout the tropics and subtropics. Its highest diversity is found in the Americas, followed by Africa, Australia a ...

'' (DC.) Alain - bouquet false buttonweed -

from

*'' Spermacoce ernestii'' Fosberg & Powell - synonym of ''Spermacoce ovalifolia'' *'' Spermacoce eryngioides'' (Cham. & Schltdl.) Kuntze - whorled-leaf false buttonweed -

including

; southeastern

from

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

and

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

*'' Spermacoce exilis'' (L.O. Williams) C. Adams - Pacific false buttonweed -

from

, plus

; naturalized in

southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...

and some tropical oceanic islands *'' Spermacoce floridana'' Urb. - synonym of ''Spermacoce keyensis '' *''

Spermacoce glabra ''Spermacoce glabra'', smooth false buttonweed, is a New World species of plants in the coffee family. The species is widespread across much of North America and South America. In the United States, it is found in the southern part of the Missi ...

'' Michx. - smooth false buttonweed - southern and eastern

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

(mostly in the

Lower Mississippi Valley The Mississippi River Alluvial Plain is an alluvial plain created by the Mississippi River on which lie parts of seven U.S. states, from southern Louisiana to southern Illinois (Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Lou ...

); also

*'' Spermacoce keyensis'' Urb. - Florida false buttonweed - southern

Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to ...

, southern tip of

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

( Cameron County) *'' Spermacoce latifolia'' Aubl. - synonym of ''Spermacoce alata'' *'' Spermacoce neoterminalis'' Govaerts - Everglades false buttonweed- southern

*''

Spermacoce ovalifolia ''Spermacoce ovalifolia'', the broadleaf false buttonweed, is a species of plants in the Rubiaceae. It is native to Mexico, Central America, parts of the Caribbean (Cuba, Puerto Rico, Haiti, Trinidad, and the Windward Islands), and South America ...

'' (M. Martens & Galeotti) Hemsl. - broadleaf false buttonweed -

including

from

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

*''

Spermacoce ocymoides ''Spermacoce ocymoides'' is a species of plant in the Rubiaceae The Rubiaceae are a family of flowering plants, commonly known as the coffee, madder, or bedstraw family. It consists of terrestrial trees, shrubs, lianas, or herbs that are recog ...

'' Burm.f. *'' Spermacoce prostrata'' Aubl. - prostrate false buttonweed -

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

including

; most of

; naturalized in

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

and

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 ...

*'' Spermacoce remota'' - Lam. - woodland false buttonweed -

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, much of

; naturalized in

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...

and many oceanic islands (including

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

) *''

Spermacoce sintenisii ''Spermacoce brachysepala'', the West Indian false buttonweed, is a plant species in the Rubiaceae. It is native to Puerto Rico, Haiti and the Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country loca ...

'' (Urb.) Alain - synonym of ''Spermacoce brachysepala'' *''

Spermacoce tenuior ''Spermacoce'' or false buttonweed is a genus of flowering plants in the Family (biology), family Rubiaceae. It comprises about 275 species found throughout the tropics and subtropics. Its highest diversity is found in the Americas, followed by A ...

'' L. - slender false buttonweed -

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

;

from

; naturalized in

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...

Sulawesi Sulawesi (), also known as Celebes (), is an island in Indonesia. One of the four Greater Sunda Islands, and the world's eleventh-largest island, it is situated east of Borneo, west of the Maluku Islands, and south of Mindanao and the Sulu Ar ...

and Galápagos *'' Spermacoce terminalis'' (Small) Kartesz & Gandhi - synonym of ''Spermacoce neoterminalis'' *'' Spermacoce tetraquetra'' A. Rich. - pineland false buttonweed -

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

*'' Spermacoce verticillata'' L. - shrubby false buttonweed -

, most of

; naturalized in

, assorted oceanic islands

References

External links

World Checklist of RubiaceaeThe Spermacoce of AustraliaFlora of China, v 19 p 325, 丰花草属 feng hua cao shu, Spermacoce

Gallery

File:Spermacoce articularis (S hispida- Madanghanti) in Hyderabad, AP W2 IMG 9064.jpg, '' Spermacoce articularis'' in

Hyderabad, India Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the '' de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern In ...

File:Spermacoce terminalis.jpg, '' Spermacoce terminalis'' File:Spermacoce ocymoides W IMG 2966.jpg, ''

'' at Ananthagiri Hills, in

Rangareddy district Ranga Reddy district ( R. R. district) is a district in the Indian state of Telangana. The district headquarters is located at Lakdikapool, Hyderabad. The district was named after the former deputy chief minister of the United Andhra Pradesh, K ...

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

. Image:Spermacoce pusilla (Tiny False Buttonweed) in Hyderabad, AP W IMG 0005.jpg, '' Spermacoce pusilla'' in

. {{Taxonbar, from=Q3314456 Rubiaceae genera