''Duroia'' 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 ...

. The genus is found from

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

to tropical South America.

Ecology

A number of ''Duroia'' species, and possibly all, are capable of biochemical interactions inhibiting the growth of neighbouring plants. Analysis of root extracts from ''

Duroia hirsuta ''Duroia hirsuta'' is a myrmecophyte tree species from the Amazon Forest. It is one of some 37 species of ''Duroia,'' which are shrubs or canopy trees in the family Rubiaceae, favouring ants (myrmecophilous), and occurring in Central America as f ...

'' have yielded a strong plant growth inhibitor plumericin, a

tetracyclic Tetracyclics are cyclic chemical compounds that contain four interconnected rings of atoms, e.g. Tröger's base. They have various pharmaceutical A medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal drug or s ...

iridoid Iridoids are a type of monoterpenoids in the general form of cyclopentanopyran, found in a wide variety of plants and some animals. They are biosynthetically derived from 8-oxogeranial. Iridoids are typically found in plants as glycosides, mos ...

lactone Lactones are cyclic carboxylic esters, containing a 1-oxacycloalkan-2-one structure (), or analogues having unsaturation or heteroatoms replacing one or more carbon atoms of the ring. Lactones are formed by intramolecular esterification of the co ...

. This process, common amongst plants, is termed

allelopathy Allelopathy is a biological phenomenon by which an organism produces one or more biochemicals that influence the germination, growth, survival, and reproduction of other organisms. These biochemicals are known as allelochemicals and can have be ...

. In the case of ''Duroia hirsuta'', the chemical inhibitor is aided by the leafcutter ant ''

Myrmelachista schumanni ''Myrmelachista schumanni'', also known as the lemon ant, is a species of ant from South America. It is notable for the creation of Devil's garden. Using its own herbicide they kill off all the plants in an area except for the myrmecophytes ...

'' resident on and in the tree, and playing an active role in suppressing and destroying plant growth in the vicinity of their host by injecting and spraying

formic acid Formic acid (), systematically named methanoic acid, is the simplest carboxylic acid, and has the chemical formula HCOOH and structure . It is an important intermediate in chemical synthesis and occurs naturally, most notably in some ants. Es ...

. The area around the

understory In forestry and ecology, understory (American English), or understorey (Commonwealth English), also known as underbrush or undergrowth, includes plant life growing beneath the forest canopy without penetrating it to any great extent, but abov ...

species ''Duroia hirsuta'' is often devoid of all other plant types, leading to the local name '

Devil's garden In myrmecology and forest ecology, a devil's garden (Kichwa: ''Supay chakra''Frederickson, M. E., & Gordon, D. (2007). The devil to pay: the cost of mutualism with ''Myrmelachista schumanni'' ants in 'devil's gardens' is increased herbivory on ' ...

'. The cost to the host plant for this protection is considerable, since the resident ants subject the tree to increased leaf cutting.

Species

*''

Duroia amapana ''Duroia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. The genus is found from Costa Rica to tropical South America. Ecology A number of ''Duroia'' species, and possibly all, are capable of biochemical interactions inhibiting the g ...

'' Steyerm. *''

Duroia aquatica ''Duroia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. The genus is found from Costa Rica to tropical South America. Ecology A number of ''Duroia'' species, and possibly all, are capable of biochemical interactions inhibiting the g ...

'' ( Aubl.) Bremek. *''

Duroia bolivarensis ''Duroia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. The genus is found from Costa Rica to tropical South America. Ecology A number of ''Duroia'' species, and possibly all, are capable of biochemical interactions inhibiting the g ...

'' Steyerm. *''

Duroia costaricensis ''Duroia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. The genus is found from Costa Rica to tropical South America. Ecology A number of ''Duroia'' species, and possibly all, are capable of biochemical interactions inhibiting the g ...

Standl. Paul Carpenter Standley (March 21, 1884 – June 2, 1963) was an American botanist known for his work on neotropical plants. __TOC__ Standley was born on March 21, 1884 in Avalon, Missouri. He attended Drury College in Springfield, Missouri an ...

*''

Duroia duckei ''Duroia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. The genus is found from Costa Rica to tropical South America. Ecology A number of ''Duroia'' species, and possibly all, are capable of biochemical interactions inhibiting the g ...

'' Huber *''

Duroia eriopila ''Duroia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. The genus is found from Costa Rica to tropical South America. Ecology A number of ''Duroia'' species, and possibly all, are capable of biochemical interactions inhibiting the g ...

'' L.f. *''

Duroia fusifera ''Duroia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. The genus is found from Costa Rica to tropical South America. Ecology A number of ''Duroia'' species, and possibly all, are capable of biochemical interactions inhibiting the g ...

Spruce A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' (), a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal (taiga) regions of the Earth. ''Picea'' is the sole genus in the subfami ...

K.Schum. Karl Moritz Schumann (17 June 1851 – 22 March 1904) was a German botanist. Schumann was born in Görlitz. He was curator of the Botanisches Museum in Berlin-Dahlem from 1880 until 1894. He also served as the first chairman of the ''Deut ...

*''

Duroia genipoides ''Duroia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. The genus is found from Costa Rica to tropical South America. Ecology A number of ''Duroia'' species, and possibly all, are capable of biochemical interactions inhibiting the gr ...

*''

Duroia gransabanensis ''Duroia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. The genus is found from Costa Rica to tropical South America. Ecology A number of ''Duroia'' species, and possibly all, are capable of biochemical interactions inhibiting the g ...

'' Steyerm. *''

'' (Poepp.)

*'' Duroia hirsutissima'' Steyerm. *'' Duroia kotchubioides'' Steyerm. *'' Duroia laevis'' Devia Perss. & C.M.Taylor *'' Duroia longiflora'' Ducke *'' Duroia longifolia'' (Poepp.)

*'' Duroia macrophylla'' Huber *''

Duroia maguirei ''Duroia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. The genus is found from Costa Rica to tropical South America. Ecology A number of ''Duroia'' species, and possibly all, are capable of biochemical interactions inhibiting the gr ...

'' Steyerm. *'' Duroia martiniana'' ( Miers) Bremek. *''

Duroia melinonii ''Duroia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. The genus is found from Costa Rica to tropical South America. Ecology A number of ''Duroia'' species, and possibly all, are capable of biochemical interactions inhibiting the gr ...

*'' Duroia merumensis'' Steyerm. *'' Duroia micrantha'' (Ladbr.) Zarucchi & J.H.Kirkbr. *'' Duroia nitida'' Steyerm. *'' Duroia palustris'' Ducke *'' Duroia paraensis'' Ducke *'' Duroia paruensis'' Steyerm. *'' Duroia petiolaris''

*'' Duroia plicata'' Benoist *''

Duroia prancei ''Duroia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. The genus is found from Costa Rica to tropical South America. Ecology A number of ''Duroia'' species, and possibly all, are capable of biochemical interactions inhibiting the gr ...

'' Steyerm. *'' Duroia retrorsipila'' Steyerm. *'' Duroia saccifera'' ( Mart. ex

Schult. Josef (Joseph) August Schultes (15 April 1773 in Vienna – 21 April 1831 in Landshut) was an Austrian botanist and professor from Vienna. Together with Johann Jacob Roemer (1763–1819), he published the 16th edition of Linnaeus' ''Systema ...

Schult.f. Julius Hermann Schultes (4 February 1804 in Vienna – 1 September 1840 in Munich) was an Austrian botanist from Vienna. He co-authored volume 7 of the Roemer & Schultes edition of the ''Systema Vegetabilium'' with his father Josef August S ...

)

*'' Duroia sancti-ciprianii'' Devia Perss. & C.M.Taylor *'' Duroia soejartoi'' D.R.Simpson *'' Duroia steinbachii''

*''

Duroia strigosa ''Duroia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. The genus is found from Costa Rica to tropical South America. Ecology A number of ''Duroia'' species, and possibly all, are capable of biochemical interactions inhibiting the gr ...

'' Steyerm. *'' Duroia trichocarpa''

*'' Duroia triflora'' Ducke *'' Duroia valesca'' C.H.Perss. & Delprete *'' Duroia velutina''

Hook.f. Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker (30 June 1817 – 10 December 1911) was a British botanist and explorer in the 19th century. He was a founder of geographical botany and Charles Darwin's closest friend. For twenty years he served as director of ...

References

External links

''Duroia'' in the World Checklist of Rubiaceae

New York Botanical Garden
Rubiaceae genera Cordiereae {{Ixoroideae-stub