''Cuphocarpus'' is an

obsolete Obsolescence is the state of being which occurs when an object, service, or practice is no longer maintained or required even though it may still be in good working order. It usually happens when something that is more efficient or less risky r ...

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

Araliaceae The Araliaceae are a family of flowering plants composed of about 43 genera and around 1500 species consisting of primarily woody plants and some herbaceous plants. The morphology of Araliaceae varies widely, but it is predominantly distinguisha ...

. Mabberley (2008) treated it as a synonym of '' Polyscias'',David J. Mabberley. 2008. ''Mabberley's Plant-Book'' third edition (2008). Cambridge University Press: UK. . (See ''External links'' below). but other authors still recognized it at that time. In 2010, in a

phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics (; from Greek φυλή/ φῦλον [] "tribe, clan, race", and wikt:γενετικός, γενετικός [] "origin, source, birth") is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among or within groups o ...

analysis Analysis ( : analyses) is the process of breaking a complex topic or substance into smaller parts in order to gain a better understanding of it. The technique has been applied in the study of mathematics and logic since before Aristotle (38 ...

DNA sequence DNA sequencing is the process of determining the nucleic acid sequence – the order of nucleotides in DNA. It includes any method or technology that is used to determine the order of the four bases: adenine, guanine, cytosine, and thymine. Th ...

s, it was shown that ''Cuphocarpus'' was biphyletic and embedded in the large genus ''Polyscias''. Gregory M. Plunkett and Porter P. Lowry II. 2010. "Paraphyly and polyphyly in ''Polyscias'' sensu lato: molecular evidence and the case for recircumscribing the "pinnate genera" of Araliaceae". ''Plant Diversity and Evolution'' (formerly ''Botanische Jahrbucher'') 128(1-2):23-54. . In an accompanying paper, ''Polyscias'' was divided into 11

subgenera In biology, a subgenus (plural: subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between t ...

, with seven species left incertae sedis. Porter P. Lowry II and Gregory M. Plunkett. 2010. "Recircumscription of ''Polyscias'' (Araliaceae) to include six related genera, with a new infrageneric classification and a synopsis of species". ''

Plant Diversity and Evolution This is a list of academic journals, monographic series, and other serials published by E. Schweizerbart. A B C D E F G H I J K L M N P Q R S T U V W Z {{columns-list, colwidth=30em, *''Zeitschrift d ...

'' (formerly ''Botanische Jahrbucher'') 128(1-2):55-84. . (See ''External links'' below). Since ''Cuphocarpus'' is no longer an accepted genus, its species will be referred to herein by their names in ''Polyscias''. '' Polyscias aculeata'' is the

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 ...

for ''Cuphocarpus''. ''Cuphocarpus'' In: Index Nominum Genericorum. In: Regnum Vegetabile (see ''External links'' below). It is now the sole species in ''Polyscias'' subgenus Cuphocarpus. Four other species, formerly in ''Cuphocarpus'', are now in ''Polyscias'' subgenus Maralia. All species that have ever been placed in ''Cuphocarpus'' are

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

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 ...

. David G. Frodin and Rafaël Govaerts. 2003. ''World Checklist and Bibliography of Araliaceae''. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. . (See ''External links'' below). ''Polyscias inermis'' has been recognized by some authors, but others have regarded it as conspecific with ''Polyscias aculeata''. ''Polyscias aculeata'' ( sensu lato) is indigenous to the coastal forest of eastern Madagascar. '' Polyscias briquetiana'', '' Polyscias humbertiana'', '' Polyscias leandriana'', and '' Polyscias compacta'' (= ''Cuphocarpus commersonii'') are montane species of the Madagascan interior. They were transferred from ''Cuphocarpus'' to ''Polyscias subgenus Maralia'' in 2010. Recognizing six species, Frodin and Govaerts (2003) described ''Cuphocarpus'' as "

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

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

s, closely related to ''Polyscias'', but

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

s 1-

seed A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiospe ...

ed; these latter are moreover surmounted by the persistent calyptroid corolla".

René Viguier René Viguier (19 May 1880, in Paris – 17 January 1931, in Caen) was a French botanist known for his investigations of plants within the family Araliaceae. He worked as a préparateur at the Muséum national d'histoire naturelle with Philippe � ...

thought that they were sometimes parthenocarpous. René Viguier. 1905. "Sur les Araliacées du groupe ''Polyscias''". ''Bulletin de la Société Botanique de France'' 52():285-314. (See ''External links'' below).

History

The genus ''Cuphocarpus'' was erected by Decaisne and Planchon in 1854. ''Cuphocarpus'' in

International Plant Names Index The International Plant Names Index (IPNI) describes itself as "a database of the names and associated basic bibliographical details of seed plants, ferns and lycophytes." Coverage of plant names is best at the rank of species and genus. It inclu ...

. (see ''External links'' below). Joseph Decaisne and Jules Émile Planchon. 1854. "Equisse d'une monographie des Araliacées". ''Revue Horticole; résumé de tout ce qui parait d'intérresant en jardinage tc'. Paris. series 4. 3:109. Quattrocchi writes that the name is "from the Greek ''kyphos'' "bent, curved, humped" and ''carpos'' "fruit"".Umberto Quattrocchi. 2000. ''CRC World Dictionary of Plant Names'' volume I. CRC Press: Boca Raton; New York; Washington,DC;, USA. London, UK. (vol. I). (see ''External links'' below). Decaisne and Planchon named only one species, ''Cuphocarpus aculeatus'' (now '' Polyscias aculeata''). ''Cuphocarpus inermis'' (now ''Polyscias inermis'') was added by John Gilbert Baker in 1884. John Gilbert Baker. 1884. page 350. In: "Further Contributions to the Flora of Central Madagascar". ''Journal of the Linnean Society'', Botany. London. 21(135):317-353.

Hermann Harms Hermann August Theodor Harms (16 July 1870 – 27 November 1942) was a German taxonomist and botanist. Harms was born in Berlin. He worked as a botanist at the Berlin-Dahlem Botanical Garden and Botanical Museum, Botanical Museum in Berlin. ...

put both of these in ''Polyscias'' in 1898, but his treatment was not followed by others. Hermann A.T. Harms. 1898. "Araliaceae". pages 1-62. In: H.G Adolf Engler and Karl A.E. Prantl. ''Die Natürlichen Pflanzenfamilien'' III.Teil. 8. Abteilung. (volume 3, part 8). Verlag von Wilhelm Engelmann: Leipzig, Germany. In 1966, Luciano Bernardi described four new species in ''Cuphocarpus''. Luciano Bernardi. 1966. ''Berichte. Schweizerische Botanische Gesellschaft'' 76():352-395. When these were transferred to ''Polyscias'' in 2010, ''Cuphocarpus commersonii'' was renamed as '' Polyscias compacta'', because the name ''Polyscias commersonii'' already existed. The latter is a synonym for ''

Polyscias paniculata ''Polyscias paniculata'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Araliaceae. It is endemic to Mauritius. It is threatened by habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a ...

'', a Madagascan endemic in ''Polyscias'' subgenus Grotefendia. The four species described by Bernardi are now in ''Polyscias'' subgenus Maralia. In 2003, Frodin and Govaerts stated that ''Cuphocarpus'' "is seen as biphyletic". It was confirmed to be so in 2010 in a

molecular phylogenetic Molecular phylogenetics () is the branch of phylogeny that analyzes genetic, hereditary molecular differences, predominantly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. From these analyses, it is possible to ...

study Study or studies may refer to: General * Education **Higher education * Clinical trial * Experiment * Observational study * Research * Study skills, abilities and approaches applied to learning Other * Study (art), a drawing or series of drawi ...

of nuclear and

chloroplast A chloroplast () is a type of membrane-bound organelle known as a plastid that conducts photosynthesis mostly in plant and algal cells. The photosynthetic pigment chlorophyll captures the energy from sunlight, converts it, and stores it in ...

DNA. ''Polyscias aculeata'' (including ''Polyscias inermis'') was resolved as sister to ''Polyscias'' subgenus Sciadopanax, which consists of 13 species from

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 ...

, and nearby

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

s. ''Polyscias aculeata'' was placed in its own subgenus, ''Polyscias'' subgenus Cuphocarpus. The four species described by Bernardi are now in ''Polyscias'' subgenus Maralia. This is the largest subgenus of ''Polyscias'' and will contain about 115 species, when all of the undescribed species are published. Nearly all of them are restricted to Madagascar.

History

References

External links