''Mayaca'' 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, often placed in its own

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 ...

, the Mayacaceae (or Mayaceae in earlier systems). In the APG II system of 2003, it is assigned to the order Poales in the clade

commelinids In plant taxonomy, commelinids (originally commelinoids) (plural, not capitalised) is a clade of flowering plants within the monocots, distinguished by having cell walls containing ferulic acid. The commelinids are the only clade that the APG IV ...

. The Cronquist system, of 1981, also recognised such a family and placed it in the order Commelinales in the subclass Commelinidae. The group is widely distributed in

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...

from

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 ...

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

, as well as in the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

, the southeastern

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, and central

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 ...

.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref>

Species

Eighteen or so species names have been proposed, but only 5 are accepted as distinct. * ''

Mayaca baumii ''Mayaca'' is a genus of flowering plants, often placed in its own family, the Mayacaceae (or Mayaceae in earlier systems). In the APG II system of 2003, it is assigned to the order Poales in the clade commelinids. The Cronquist system, of 1981, ...

'' Gürke - Congo-Brazzabille, Zaïre, Angola, Zambia * ''

Mayaca fluviatilis ''Mayaca fluviatilis'', also known as bog moss, is a perennial herbaceous submerged plant in the monogeneric family Mayacaceae. It is native to Central and South America, the Caribbean, and the United States where it is often sold as an aquariu ...

'' Aubl. - southeastern United States from Texas to North Carolina; West Indies (Cuba, Jamaica, Trinidad); Latin America from central Mexico to Argentina * ''

Mayaca kunthii ''Mayaca'' is a genus of flowering plants, often placed in its own family, the Mayacaceae (or Mayaceae in earlier systems). In the APG II system of 2003, it is assigned to the order Poales in the clade commelinids. The Cronquist system, of 1981, ...

Seub. Moritz August Seubert (2 June 1818, in Karlsruhe – 8 April 1878, in Karlsruhe) was a German botanist. Life Seubert was the son of a medical officer of health. He first attended the ''Lyzeum'' in Karlsruhe and already at that time had contact w ...

- Venezuela, Brazil, Uruguay * ''

Mayaca longipes ''Mayaca'' is a genus of flowering plants, often placed in its own family, the Mayacaceae (or Mayaceae in earlier systems). In the APG II system of 2003, it is assigned to the order Poales in the clade commelinids. The Cronquist system, of 1981, ...

Mart. Carl Friedrich Philipp (Karl Friedrich Philipp) von Martius (17 April 1794 – 13 December 1868) was a German botanist and explorer. Life Martius was born at Erlangen, the son of Prof Ernst Wilhelm Martius, court apothecary. He graduated PhD f ...

- Venezuela, Brazil, Colombia, the Guianas * ''

Mayaca sellowiana ''Mayaca'' is a genus of flowering plants, often placed in its own family, the Mayacaceae (or Mayaceae in earlier systems). In the APG II system of 2003, it is assigned to the order Poales in the clade commelinids. The Cronquist system, of 1981, ...

'' Kunth - Costa Rica, Venezuela, Brazil, Colombia, the Guianas, Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, Argentina

References

External links

Mayacaceae
in L. Watson and M.J. Dallwitz (1992 onwards).
The families of flowering plants
descriptions, illustrations, identification, information retrieval.'' Version: 27 April 2006. http://delta-intkey.com .
Mayacaceae in the ''Flora of North America''

NCBI Taxonomy Browser

links at CSDL
Poales genera Poales {{Poales-stub