''Carica'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family

Caricaceae The Caricaceae are a family of flowering plants in the order Brassicales, found primarily in tropical regions of Central and South America and Africa. They are usually short-lived evergreen pachycaul shrubs or small to medium-sized trees growi ...

including the

papaya The papaya (, ), papaw, () or pawpaw () is the plant species ''Carica papaya'', one of the 21 accepted species in the genus ''Carica'' of the family Caricaceae. It was first domesticated in Mesoamerica, within modern-day southern Mexico and ...

(''C. papaya'' syn. ''C. peltata'', ''C. posoposa''), a widely cultivated fruit tree native to the American tropics. The genus was formerly treated as including about 20-25 species of short-lived evergreen

pachycaul Pachycauls are plants with a disproportionately thick Trunk (botany), trunk for their height, and few branches. This can be the product of exceptional primary growth (as with Arecaceae, palms and cycads) or disproportioate secondary growth as with ...

shrub A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...

s or small trees growing to 5–10 m tall, native to tropical

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 South is one of the cardinal directions or Points of the compass, compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Pro ...

America, but recent genetic evidence has resulted in all of these species other than ''C. papaya'' being reclassified into three other

genera Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nomenclat ...

Taxonomy

The genus name comes from the botanical name of the

fig The fig is the edible fruit of ''Ficus carica'', a species of small tree in the flowering plant family Moraceae. Native to the Mediterranean and western Asia, it has been cultivated since ancient times and is now widely grown throughout the world ...

, ''Ficus carica'', because of the species' leaves or fruits resemble that of it. The ''carica'' epithet comes from Caria in southwest Anatolia (Asia Minor), Turkey, where the fig was mistakenly thought to have come from.

Species

According to World Flora Online, the genus ''Carica'' lists 21 species. Most of the other species have since been transferred to the genus '' Vasconcellea'', with a few to the genera '' Jacaratia'' and '' Jarilla''. According to the Catalogue of Life, the four remaining species in the genus are: *''

Carica aprica ''Carica'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Caricaceae including the papaya (''C. papaya'' syn. ''C. peltata'', ''C. posoposa''), a widely cultivated fruit tree native to the American tropics. The genus was formerly treated as incl ...

'' V. M. Badillo *''

Carica augusti ''Carica'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Caricaceae including the papaya (''C. papaya'' syn. ''C. peltata'', ''C. posoposa''), a widely cultivated fruit tree native to the Neotropical realm, American tropics. The genus was former ...

'' Harms *''

Carica cnidoscoloides ''Horovitzia cnidoscoloides'' is a plant species in the family Caricaceae, endemic to the cloud forest of Sierra de Juarez in Oaxaca, Mexico at elevations of 800 to 1600 meters. It is the only species in the genus ''Horovitzia''. The type specime ...

'' Lorence & R. Torres *'' Carica papaya'' L. (

Papaya The papaya (, ), papaw, () or pawpaw () is the plant species ''Carica papaya'', one of the 21 accepted species in the genus ''Carica'' of the family Caricaceae. It was first domesticated in Mesoamerica, within modern-day southern Mexico and ...

) The species that have since been transferred to their new genera are as follows: *''Carica baccata'' = ''Vasconcellea microcarpa'' subsp. ''baccata'' *''Carica candamarcensis'' = ''Vasconcellea cundinamarcensis'' (

Mountain papaya The mountain papaya (''Vasconcellea pubescens'') also known as mountain pawpaw, papayuelo, chamburo, or simply "papaya" is a species of the genus ''Vasconcellea'', native to the Andes of northwestern South America from Colombia south to centra ...

) *''Carica candicans'' = ''

Vasconcellea candicans ''Vasconcellea candicans'' is a small tree native to the western slopes of the Andes in southern Ecuador and Peru. Description Small dioecious shrub or tree to 8 m high. Leaves ovate or almost rounded, with a slightly cordate base, margin enti ...

'' (Mito) *''Carica caudata'' = ''Jarilla heterophylla'' *''Carica cauliflora'' = ''Vasconcellea cauliflora'' *''Carica cestriflora'' = ''Vasconcellea cundinamarcensis'' *''Carica chilensis'' = ''Vasconcellea chilensis'' *''Carica crassipetala'' = ''Vasconcellea crassipetala'' *''Carica cundinamarcensis'' = ''Vasconcellea cundinamarcensis'' *''Carica dodecaphylla'' = ''Jacaratia spinosa'' *''Carica glandulosa'' = ''Vasconcellea glandulosa'' *''Carica goudotiana'' = ''Vasconcellea goudotiana'' *''Carica heterophylla'' = ''Vasconcellea microcarpa'' subsp. ''heterophylla'' *''Carica horovitziana'' = '' Vasconcellea horovitziana'' *''Carica longiflora'' = ''Vasconcellea longiflora'' *''Carica mexicana'' = ''Jacaratia mexicana'' *''Carica microcarpa'' = ''Vasconcellea microcarpa'' *''Carica monoica'' = ''Vasconcellea monoica'' *''Carica nana'' = ''Jarilla nana'' *''Carica omnilingua'' = '' Vasconcellea omnilingua'' *''Carica palandensis'' = '' Vasconcellea palandensis'' *''Carica parviflora'' = ''Vasconcellea parviflora'' *''Carica pentagona'' = ''Vasconcellea × heilbornii'' (

Babaco The babaco (''Vasconcellea'' × ''heilbornii''; syn. ''Carica pentagona''), is a hybrid cultivar in the genus ''Vasconcellea'' from Ecuador. It is a hybrid between '' Vasconcellea cundinamarcensis'' (syn. ''Carica pubescens'', "mountain papaya". ...

) *''Carica pubescens'' = ''Vasconcellea pubescens'' (

or Chilean Carica) *''Carica pulchra'' = ''

Vasconcellea pulchra ''Vasconcellea pulchra'' is a species of plant in the family Caricaceae. It is endemic to Ecuador. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forest. It is threatened by habitat loss. It was previously placed in genus ''Carica ...

'' *''Carica quercifolia'' = ''

Vasconcellea quercifolia ''Vasconcellea quercifolia'' is a species of shrub or tree in the family Caricaceae. It is found in Argentina, Peru, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Bolivia and Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), ...

'' *''Carica sphaerocarpa'' = ''Vasconcellea sphaerocarpa'' *''Carica spinosa'' = ''Jacaratia spinosa'' *''Carica sprucei'' = ''

Vasconcellea sprucei ''Vasconcellea sprucei'' is a species of plant in the family Caricaceae. It is endemic to Ecuador. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forest. It is threatened by habitat loss. It was previously placed in genus ''Carica ...

'' *''Carica stipulata'' = ''Vasconcellea stipulata'' *''Carica weberbaueri'' = ''Vasconcellea weberbaueri''

Notes

References

Germplasm Resources Information Network: ''Carica''Germplasm Resources Information Network: ''Carica'' species list and synonymy
*Aradhya, M. K. et al. (1999). A phylogenetic analysis of the genus Carica L. (Caricaceae) based on restriction fragment length variation in a cpDNA intergenic spacer region. ''Genet. Resources Crop Evol''. 46: 579–586. *Badillo, V. M. (2000). Carica L. vs. Vasconcella St. Hil. (Caricaceae) con la rehabilitacion de este ultimo. ''Ernstia'' 10: 74–79. *Van Droogenbroeck, B. et al. (2002). AFLP analysis of genetic relationships among papaya and its wild relatives (Caricaceae) from Ecuador. ''Theoret. Appl. Genet''. 105: 289–297.

External links

IUCN Red List entry
* {{Taxonbar, from=Q1752510 Caricaceae Brassicales genera