''Fusaea longifolia'' is a species of

plant Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plantae. Historically, the plant kingdom encompassed all living things that were not animals, and included algae and fungi; however, all current definitions of Plantae exclud ...

in the family Annonaceae. It is native to

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 ...

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 ...

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...

French Guiana French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic ...

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

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 ...

Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north ...

and

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

. Jean Baptiste Christophore Fusée Aublet, the French botanist who first formally described the species using the

basionym In the scientific name of organisms, basionym or basyonym means the original name on which a new name is based; the author citation of the new name should include the authors of the basionym in parentheses. The term "basionym" is used in both botan ...

''Annona longifolia'', named it after its long-leaved ( and in Latin) foliage.

Description

It is a tree or bush. It has very short petioles. Its oblong leaves are 25 by 8 centimeters and come to a long tapering point at their tip. The upper surface of the leaves is hairless, while the underside has sparse hairs. Its flowers are extra- axillary, and occur alone or in pairs. The flowers are on long

pedicels In botany, a pedicel is a stem that attaches a single flower to the inflorescence. Such inflorescences are described as ''pedicellate''. Description Pedicel refers to a structure connecting a single flower to its inflorescence. In the absenc ...

. The pedicels have 1–2 bracteoles. Its

sepal 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 ...

s are partially fused to form a 3-lobed calyx. The outer surface of the calyx is covered in rust-colored hairs. Its flowers have 6 purple, oval to oblong, petals in two rows of three. Its flowers have numerous

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s. The outer stamens are sterile and have a petal-like appearance. The inner stamens are fertile and the tissue connecting the anther lobes extends to form a cap. The fruits are round, smooth with a network pattern on the surface, and have red pulp with numerous seeds.

Reproductive biology

The pollen of ''F. longifolia'' is shed as loose, permanent, tetragonal or tetrahedral tetrads that are 115 micrometers in diameter.

Habitat and distribution

It has been observed growing in forest habitats.

Uses

Aublet and Safford describe it as edible and report that it is consumed by the indigenous people of French Guiana. Extracts from the leaves have been reported to contain bioactive molecules including alpha-Cadinol and

Spathulenol Spathulenol is a tricyclic sesquiterpene alcohol which has a basic skeleton similar to the azulenes. It occurs in oregano among other plants. History and occurrence A volatile oil was extracted from waterwort distillery (''Artemisia vulgaris'') ...

References

Annonaceae Flora of Brazil Flora of Colombia Flora of Ecuador Flora of French Guiana Flora of Guyana Flora of Peru Flora of Suriname Flora of Venezuela Taxa named by William Edwin Safford {{Annonaceae-stub