''Catoferia'' is a small genus of plants in the family

Lamiaceae The Lamiaceae ( ) or Labiatae are a family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint, deadnettle or sage family. Many of the plants are aromatic in all parts and include widely used culinary herbs like basil, mint, rosemary, sage, savory ...

composed of only four different species. First described in full by

George Bentham George Bentham (22 September 1800 – 10 September 1884) was an English botanist, described by the weed botanist Duane Isely as "the premier systematic botanist of the nineteenth century". Born into a distinguished family, he initially studi ...

in 1876, said species are native to southern

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 ...

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. ...

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

and

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

. Amongst all four species, only ''

Catoferia chiapensis ''Catoferia'' is a small genus of plants in the family Lamiaceae composed of only four different species. First described in full by George Bentham in 1876, said species are native to southern Mexico, Central America, Colombia and Peru. Amongst a ...

'' are known to grow across a wide area, their growth recorded in southern Mexico,

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

and

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 ...

. Growth of the other three variants is believed to be limited to Southern Mexico. The beginning of the genus ''Catoeria'' is thought trace back to the Cretaceous era, making it around 55 to 65 million years old. * '' Catoferia capitata'' (Benth.) Hemsl. - Veracruz, Oaxaca, Chiapas, Belize, Guatemala, Peru * ''

'' A.Gray ex Benth. - Chiapas, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras * '' Catoferia martinezii'' Ramamoorthy - Guerrero * '' Catoferia spicata'' (Benth.) Benth. - Colombia, Peru

Main characteristics

The shrub can usually be identified by its flower's exaggerated, protruding stamens and very large, circular

sepals A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...

(the outer layer surrounding the petal). Petals belonging to plants of this genome typically curve inwards, the species are very similar to the genus ''

Orthosiphon ''Orthosiphon'' is a genus of plants in the family Lamiaceae native to Africa, Southern Asia and Queensland, with one species ''(O. americanus)'' in Colombia. They are herbaceous shrubs which grow to a height of . Some ''Orthosiphon'' species a ...

''. Shrubs in this group are usually 0.5 and 2 meters tall, with a stem thickness of approximately 3mm. They may also carry spikes ranging from 1.5 to 5.5 centimeters.

References

Lamiaceae Lamiaceae genera {{Lamiaceae-stub