The Hernandiaceae are a
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 ...
of
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 (angiosperms) in the order
Laurales
The Laurales are an order of flowering plants. They are magnoliids, related to the Magnoliales.
The order includes about 2500-2800 species from 85-90 genera, which comprise seven families of trees and shrubs. Most of the species are tropical and ...
. Consisting of five genera with about 58 known species,
they are distributed over the world's tropical areas, some of them widely distributed in coastal areas, but they occur from sea level to over 2000 m.
The family is closely related to the
Lauraceae
Lauraceae, or the laurels, is a plant family that includes the true laurel and its closest relatives. This family comprises about 2850 known species in about 45 genera worldwide (Christenhusz & Byng 2016 ). They are dicotyledons, and occur ma ...
, and many species inhabit
laurel forest
Laurel forest, also called laurisilva or laurissilva, is a type of subtropical forest found in areas with high humidity and relatively stable, mild temperatures. The forest is characterized by broadleaf tree species with evergreen, glossy and elo ...
habitat; they have laurel-like (lauroid) leaves. Based on morphology, chromosome numbers, geographical distribution, and phylogenetic analyses, the family is clearly divided into two groups that have been given the rank of subfamilies Gyrocarpoideae and Hernandioideae.
Overview
The Hernandiaceae are important components of
tropical forest
Tropical forests (a.k.a. jungle) are forested landscapes in tropical regions: ''i.e.'' land areas approximately bounded by the tropic of Cancer and Capricorn, but possibly affected by other factors such as prevailing winds.
Some tropical fores ...
s, ranging from low-lying to
montane
Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial f ...
forests.
In general, there is a worldwide lack of knowledge about the family; little is yet known about its diversity. At a national level, in some countries with limited economic means, the majority of specimens are poorly determined or undetermined down to species. Recently-described species come from collections made in such countries. Trees of the family Hernandiaceae occur predominantly in the world's
laurel forest
Laurel forest, also called laurisilva or laurissilva, is a type of subtropical forest found in areas with high humidity and relatively stable, mild temperatures. The forest is characterized by broadleaf tree species with evergreen, glossy and elo ...
s and
cloud forest
A cloud forest, also called a water forest, primas forest, or tropical montane cloud forest (TMCF), is a generally tropical or subtropical, evergreen, montane, moist forest characterized by a persistent, frequent or seasonal low-level cloud c ...
s, which occur in tropical, subtropical, and mild temperate regions of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, especially in the African, Indian and Pacific Ocean islands,
New Caledonia
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, map_alt = Location of New Caledonia
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,
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 ...
, and central
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
.
The main economic uses for this family are
essential oils
An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile (easily evaporated at normal temperatures) chemical compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils, aetheroleum, or simply as the o ...
, found in many species that are important for spices and perfumes, and the hardwood of many species is a source for timber around the world. A great number of species are in danger of
extinction
Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ...
due to
overexploitation
Overexploitation, also called overharvesting, refers to harvesting a renewable resource to the point of diminishing returns. Continued overexploitation can lead to the destruction of the resource, as it will be unable to replenish. The term app ...
as
medicinal plant
Medicinal plants, also called medicinal herbs, have been discovered and used in traditional medicine practices since prehistoric times. Plants synthesize hundreds of chemical compounds for various functions, including Plant defense against her ...
s,
timber extraction
Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks or skeleton cars.
Logging is the beginning of a supply chain ...
and
loss of habitat
Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...
.
Description
The family consists of trees,
shrubs
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 ...
or
liana
A liana is a long- stemmed, woody vine that is rooted in the soil at ground level and uses trees, as well as other means of vertical support, to climb up to the canopy in search of direct sunlight. The word ''liana'' does not refer to a ta ...
s. The plants bear
essential oil
An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile (easily evaporated at normal temperatures) chemical compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils, aetheroleum, or simply as the o ...
s. The leaves are alternate, aromatic, simple or compound, palmately veined, cross-venulate. They are often
peltate
The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...
in ''
Hernandia
''Hernandia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Hernandiaceae. It was named after the Spanish botanist Francisco Hernández de Toledo.
Species
, ''Plants of the World Online'' accepted the following species:
* ''Hernandia albiflora'' ...
''. Where the leaves are compound, they are
. The leaves are
stipulate. There is a
cork cambium
Cork cambium (pl. cambia or cambiums) is a tissue found in many vascular plants as a part of the epidermis. It is one of the many layers of bark, between the cork and primary phloem. The cork cambium is a lateral meristem and is responsible fo ...
present in the bark; in young growth, this is only superficial. The
node
In general, a node is a localized swelling (a "knot") or a point of intersection (a vertex).
Node may refer to:
In mathematics
*Vertex (graph theory), a vertex in a mathematical graph
*Vertex (geometry), a point where two or more curves, lines, ...
s are unilacunar.
The primary vascular tissue is arranged in a cylinder, without separate bundles.
Cortical bundles are absent. Medullary bundles are absent. Internal
phloem
Phloem (, ) is the living biological tissue, tissue in vascular plants that transports the soluble organic compounds made during photosynthesis and known as ''photosynthates'', in particular the sugar sucrose, to the rest of the plant. This tran ...
is absent. Secondary thickening develops from a conventional
cambial ring, but included phloem is absent. The
xylem
Xylem is one of the two types of transport tissue in vascular plants, the other being phloem. The basic function of xylem is to transport water from roots to stems and leaves, but it also transports nutrients. The word ''xylem'' is derived from ...
has libriform fibres.
Vessel element
A vessel element or vessel member (also called trachea or xylem vessel) is one of the cell types found in xylem, the water conducting tissue of plants. Vessel elements are typically found in angiosperms (flowering plants) but absent from most gy ...
s are without vestured pits and end-walls are simple. The wood
parenchyma
Parenchyma () is the bulk of functional substance in an animal organ or structure such as a tumour. In zoology it is the name for the tissue that fills the interior of flatworms.
Etymology
The term ''parenchyma'' is New Latin from the word π ...
is paratracheal. Sieve-tube
plastid
The plastid (Greek: πλαστός; plastós: formed, molded – plural plastids) is a membrane-bound organelle found in the Cell (biology), cells of plants, algae, and some other eukaryotic organisms. They are considered to be intracellular endosy ...
s are type I and of the P-type.
Taxonomy
The family has been recognised by most taxonomists.
The
APG IV system
The APG IV system of flowering plant classification is the fourth version of a modern, mostly molecular-based, system of plant taxonomy for flowering plants (angiosperms) being developed by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group (APG). It was publishe ...
(2016) recognizes this family, and assigns it to the order
Laurales
The Laurales are an order of flowering plants. They are magnoliids, related to the Magnoliales.
The order includes about 2500-2800 species from 85-90 genera, which comprise seven families of trees and shrubs. Most of the species are tropical and ...
in the clade
Magnoliids
Magnoliids (or Magnoliidae or Magnolianae) are a clade of flowering plants. With more than 10,000 species, including magnolias, nutmeg, bay laurel, cinnamon, avocado, black pepper, tulip tree and many others, it is the third-largest group of angio ...
. As circumscribed by APG, the family includes those plants that sometimes have been treated as forming the family Gyrocarpaceae.
Genera
*''
Gyrocarpus'' was considered in the Cronquist system to belong to a separate family, the Gyrocarpaceae.
* ''
Hernandia
''Hernandia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Hernandiaceae. It was named after the Spanish botanist Francisco Hernández de Toledo.
Species
, ''Plants of the World Online'' accepted the following species:
* ''Hernandia albiflora'' ...
'': more than 30 species.
* ''
Illigera
''Illigera'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Hernandiaceae, found tropical regions of Africa and Asia.
Species
To date, 53 species have been named, but only the following are accepted:The Plant List">The Plant List: ''Illigera''/ref ...
''
* ''
Hazomalania''
**''
Hazomalania voyronii
''Hernandia voyronii'', commonly known as Hazomalany, is a species of plant in the Hernandiaceae family. It is endemic to Madagascar.
Description
''Hernandia voyronii'' is a large tree which grows from 15 to 25 meters tall.
Range and habitat
'' ...
''
* ''
Sparattanthelium''
** ''
Sparattanthelium amazonum''
Ecology
The Hernandiaceae species inhabit ecosystems with
monoecious
Monoecy (; adj. monoecious ) is a sexual system in seed plants where separate male and female cones or flowers are present on the same plant. It is a monomorphic sexual system alongside gynomonoecy, andromonoecy and trimonoecy.
Monoecy is conne ...
(rarely
dioecious
Dioecy (; ; adj. dioecious , ) is a characteristic of a species, meaning that it has distinct individual organisms (unisexual) that produce male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproductio ...
), deciduous or evergreen trees, shrubs, and perennial climbing plants. The mode of dispersion is variable among species.
Most species of genus ''Hernandia'' have red fruit, suggesting
zoochory
In Spermatophyte plants, seed dispersal is the movement, spread or transport of seeds away from the parent plant.
Plants have limited mobility and rely upon a variety of dispersal vectors to transport their seeds, including both abiotic vectors, ...
, while ''Hernandia guianensis'' is
hydrochorian in fresh water, and ''H. nymphaeifolia'' and ''Gyrocarpus americanus'' are hydrochorian in sea water.
Some fruits open very violently, expelling the seeds at some distance. Others are small nuts or non-fleshy bodies (
achene
An achene (; ), also sometimes called akene and occasionally achenium or achenocarp, is a type of simple dry fruit produced by many species of flowering plants. Achenes are monocarpellate (formed from one carpel) and indehiscent (they do not ope ...
s) provided with hooks or filaments that attach to the fur of animals, or are shaped to float in water or to facilitate transport by wind.
They are distributed in the lower areas of the tropics, especially in rain forests, cloud forests, and laurel forest, although some species exist even in subtropical or arid areas; they occur from sea level to over 2000 m. The relict character of distributions in Africa and the Americas, for example, from ''Gyrocarpus hababensis '' and ''G. americanus'', appear to be due to marine intrusions in the past.
The family originated in the coastal laurel forests of
Gondwana
Gondwana () was a large landmass, often referred to as a supercontinent, that formed during the late Neoproterozoic (about 550 million years ago) and began to break up during the Jurassic period (about 180 million years ago). The final stages ...
, which is the main factor in its pattern of distribution. The Hernandiaceae inhabit montane tropical forests, some species living 4,000 m above sea level, but most species are more frequently found in low-altitude rainforests. Some deciduous species have adapted to demanding conditions in semiarid climates; they tend to depend on favorable, perennial or transient,
edaphic
Edaphology (from Greek , ''edaphos'', "ground",, ''-logia'') is concerned with the influence of soils on living beings, particularly plants.
It is one of two main divisions of soil science, the other being pedology. Edaphology includes the study ...
conditions. Examples of such conditions include perennial aquifers, periodic groundwater flows, or periodically flooded forests in sand substrates containing very low levels of nutrients.
Flowers and fruit
The plants can have
unisexual flowers
Plant reproductive morphology is the study of the physical form and structure (the morphology) of those parts of plants directly or indirectly concerned with sexual reproduction.
Among all living organisms, flowers, which are the reproductive st ...
(
dioecious
Dioecy (; ; adj. dioecious , ) is a characteristic of a species, meaning that it has distinct individual organisms (unisexual) that produce male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproductio ...
) or be monoecious. The
inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed o ...
forms groups of small flowers in regular
cymes. They present as the non-reproductive part of the flower (
perianth
The perianth (perigonium, perigon or perigone in monocots) is the non-reproductive part of the flower, and structure that forms an envelope surrounding the sexual organs, consisting of the calyx (sepals) and the corolla (petals) or tepals when ...
) with a different
corolla and calyx. Androecial members do not belong of the perianth and keeps in liberty of other, single-whorled. The pollen-producing reproductive organ (androecium) is only in fertile stamens. It also include a variation which form of 1–2 nectariferous glands outside the stamens, the including staminodes. Staminodes in exterior to the
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 viable to reproduction (3–5); de sepals are opposite alternating with the inner perianth whorl (oppositisepalous). The
anther
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 filam ...
s have dehiscing longitudinal valves. The wall of anther in seed of two
cotyledon
A cotyledon (; ; ; , gen. (), ) is a significant part of the embryo within the seed of a plant, and is defined as "the embryonic leaf in seed-bearing plants, one or more of which are the first to appear from a germinating seed." The numb ...
s only one type. The
pollen
Pollen is a powdery substance produced by seed plants. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm cells). Pollen grains have a hard coat made of sporopollenin that protects the gametophyt ...
grains do not have
aperture
In optics, an aperture is a hole or an opening through which light travels. More specifically, the aperture and focal length of an optical system determine the cone angle of a bundle of rays that come to a focus in the image plane.
An opt ...
, constituted by 2 cells. The ovule production are given by gynoecium of one carpel, which are reduced in number related to the perianth. The pistil has only one ovule, the
Gynoecium
Gynoecium (; ) is most commonly used as a collective term for the parts of a flower that produce ovules and ultimately develop into the fruit and seeds. The gynoecium is the innermost whorl of a flower; it consists of (one or more) ''pistils'' ...
is also monomerous with only one carpel in inferior side. The placentation seems to be in an apex. The ovules form a testa from the outer integument (bitegmic), inverted so that the micropyle faces the placenta (anatropous), with two or more cell layers between the megasporophyte and the epidermal cells (crassinucellate) and pendulous. The endosperm formation is always from cells.
[http://delta-intkey.com/angio/www/hernandi.htm ''The families of flowering plants: descriptions, illustrations, identification, information retrieval.'' Version: 3 May 2006. http://delta-intkey.com .]
The fruit in some species is not fleshy with carpel indehiscent, seem to be with wings or included in an bloomed envelope derived from connate bracteoles. The seed without endosperm has two cotyledons with the appearance of flesh, oil producing, soft). The embryo is straight.
Uses
In Samoa some species are used in traditional
herbal medicine
Herbal medicine (also herbalism) is the study of pharmacognosy and the use of medicinal plants, which are a basis of traditional medicine. With worldwide research into pharmacology, some herbal medicines have been translated into modern remed ...
for a variety of uses, and one type is a
piscicide
A piscicide is a chemical substance which is poisonous to fish. The primary use for piscicides is to eliminate a dominant species of fish in a body of water, as the first step in attempting to populate the body of water with a different fish. They ...
.
[An Overview of Family Hernandiaceae. Lakshmi et al., Rec. Nat. Prod. 3:1 (2009) 1-22.]
Among the chemical compounds isolated from the family Hernandiaceae, the
alkaloid
Alkaloids are a class of basic, naturally occurring organic compounds that contain at least one nitrogen atom. This group also includes some related compounds with neutral and even weakly acidic properties. Some synthetic compounds of similar ...
corytuberine is the oldest known compound. Later, its derivative ''O'',''O''-dimethylcorytuberine was reported from several ''
Hernandia
''Hernandia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Hernandiaceae. It was named after the Spanish botanist Francisco Hernández de Toledo.
Species
, ''Plants of the World Online'' accepted the following species:
* ''Hernandia albiflora'' ...
'' species, including ''
H. nymphaeifolia''. Actinodaphnine and hernandion, were the earliest chemical compounds reported from the family Hernandiaceae respectively.
References
External links
*
*
Hernandiaceaein L. Watson and M.J. Dallwitz (1992 onwards).
The families of flowering plants descriptions, illustrations, identification, information retrieval.'' Version: 3 May 2006. http://delta-intkey.com .
NCBI Taxonomy Browserlinks at CSDL, TexasVegetation of the Montane Region of Savai'i, W. Arthur Whistler.* "The Families of Flowering Plants". L. Watson and M. J. Dallwitz: Hernandiacea
* Lakshmi et al., ''Rec. Nat. Prod.'' 3:1 (2009) 1-2
{{Taxonbar, from=Q131310
Hernandiaceae,
Magnoliid families