Artocarpus altilis.jpg
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Artocarpus'' is a genus of approximately 60 trees and shrubs of Southeast Asian and Pacific origin, belonging to the
mulberry ''Morus'', a genus of flowering plants in the family Moraceae, consists of diverse species of deciduous trees commonly known as mulberries, growing wild and under cultivation in many temperate world regions. Generally, the genus has 64 identif ...
family, Moraceae. Most species of ''Artocarpus'' are restricted to Southeast Asia; a few cultivated species are more widely distributed, especially '' A. altilis'' (breadfruit) and '' A. heterophyllus'' (jackfruit), which are cultivated throughout the tropics.


Description

All ''Artocarpus'' species are
laticifer A laticifer is a type of elongated secretory cell found in the leaves and/or stems of plants that produce latex and rubber as secondary metabolites. Laticifers may be divided into: *Articulated laticifers, i.e., composed of a series of cells joined ...
ous trees or
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 that are composed of leaves, twigs and stems capable of producing a milky sap. The flora type is
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 ...
and produces unisexual flowers; furthermore, both sexes are present within the same plant. The plants produce small, greenish, female flowers that grow on short, fleshy spikes. Following pollination, the flowers grow into a syncarpous fruit, and these are capable of growing into very large sizes. The stipulated
leaves A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...
vary from small and entire ('' Artocarpus integer'') to large and lobed (''
Artocarpus altilis Breadfruit (''Artocarpus altilis'') is a species of flowering tree in the mulberry and jackfruit family (Moraceae) believed to be a domesticated descendant of ''Artocarpus camansi'' originating in New Guinea, the Maluku Islands, and the Philippi ...
''), with the cordate leaves of the species ''A. altilis'' ending in long, sharp tips.


Taxonomy

The name ''Artocarpus'' is derived from the Greek words ''artos'' ("bread") and ''karpos'' ("fruit"). This name was coined by Johann Reinhold Forster and J. Georg Adam Forster, a father-and-son team of botanists aboard HMS ''Resolution'' on
James Cook James Cook (7 November 1728 Old Style date: 27 October – 14 February 1779) was a British explorer, navigator, cartographer, and captain in the British Royal Navy, famous for his three voyages between 1768 and 1779 in the Pacific Ocean an ...
's second voyage; they used it in their book ''
Characteres generum plantarum ''Characteres generum plantarum'' (complete title , "Characteristics of the types of plants collected, described, and delineated during a voyage to islands of the South Seas, in the years 1772–1775 by Johann Reinhold Forster and Georg Forster ...
''. It is maintained as a
conserved name A conserved name or ''nomen conservandum'' (plural ''nomina conservanda'', abbreviated as ''nom. cons.'') is a scientific name that has specific nomenclatural protection. That is, the name is retained, even though it violates one or more rules whic ...
. Although fossils of ''Artocarpus'' have been reported from as early as the Late Cretaceous, these fossils generally that lack key diagnostic characters such as that could definitively place them in the genus. The last common ancestor of all living ''Artocarpus'' likely originated in the vicinity of Borneo, from which ''Artocarpus'' dispersed elsewhere in Asia and Oceania.


Subgenera

Recent phylogenetic research, based on leaf arrangement, leaf anatomical characters and stipules, indicates that there are at least two subgenera in ''Artocarpus'': *Subgenus '' Artocarpus'': Perianth of fruit is partially connate (fused). *Subgenus '' Pseudojaca'': Perianth is entirely connate. *Subgenus ''Cauliflori'' Subgenus ''Pseudojaca'' is allied to the genus ''
Prainea ''Prainea'' is a genus of trees in the plant family Moraceae that is native to Southeast Asia. It is sometimes treated as a subgenus of Artocarpus. It is dioecious Dioecy (; ; adj. dioecious , ) is a characteristic of a species, meaning that i ...
'', and some researchers treat this taxon as a fourth subgenus of ''Artocarpus''.


Extant species


Fossil record

Fossil leaves and fruits of †''Artocarpus dicksoni'' have been found in Cretaceous formations of
West Greenland Kitaa, originally Vestgrønland ("West Greenland"), is a former administrative division of Greenland. It was by far the most populated of the divisions, being home to almost 90% of the total population. The divisions were de facto replaced by st ...
. Fossil leaves of †''Artocarpus ordinarius'' have been found in Cretaceous
stratum In geology and related fields, a stratum ( : strata) is a layer of rock or sediment characterized by certain lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it is separated by visible surfaces known as ei ...
at the south bank of the
Yukon River The Yukon River (Gwichʼin language, Gwich'in: ''Ųųg Han'' or ''Yuk Han'', Central Alaskan Yup'ik language, Yup'ik: ''Kuigpak'', Inupiaq language, Inupiaq: ''Kuukpak'', Deg Xinag language, Deg Xinag: ''Yeqin'', Hän language, Hän: ''Tth'echù' ...
just above Rampart, Alaska. Fossils of †''Artocarpus californica'' have been described from Eocene and Miocene
strata In geology and related fields, a stratum ( : strata) is a layer of rock or sediment characterized by certain lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it is separated by visible surfaces known as ei ...
of the Pacific coast of California and Oregon. 8 fossil species of ''Artocarpus'' (†''A. capellinii'', †''A. isseli'', †''A. macrophylla'', †''A. massalongoi'', †''A. multinervis'', †''A. ovalifolia'', †''A. sismondai'' and †''A. taramellii'') from the
lower Oligocene The Rupelian is, in the geologic timescale, the older of two ages or the lower of two stages of the Oligocene Epoch/Series. It spans the time between . It is preceded by the Priabonian Stage (part of the Eocene) and is followed by the Chatti ...
, have been described from a fossil leaves collected from 1857 to 1889 in Santa Giustina and Sassello in Central Liguria, Italy.Oligocene fossil leaves of the Perrando Collection: history, preservation and paleoclimatic meaning by Maria Cristina Bonci, Grazia Vannucci, Simona Tacchino & Michele Piazza – Bollettino della Società Paleontologica Italiana, 50 (3), 2011, 145–164. Modena, 30 dicembre 2011 – ISSN 0375-7633 – doi:10.4435/BSPI.2011.14


Uses

Several species in the genus bear edible fruit and are commonly cultivated: Breadfruit (''
Artocarpus altilis Breadfruit (''Artocarpus altilis'') is a species of flowering tree in the mulberry and jackfruit family (Moraceae) believed to be a domesticated descendant of ''Artocarpus camansi'' originating in New Guinea, the Maluku Islands, and the Philippi ...
''), Cempedak ('' Artocarpus integer''), Jackfruit ('' Artocarpus heterophyllus''), Kwai Muk (''
Artocarpus parvus Artocarpus parvus, also called Kwai-muk, is a species of plant in the family Moraceae. It is endemic to South-East Asia and Southern China. The species is distinguished by the dark-red and rough bark of the tree. The fruit have a yellow-orange a ...
''), Lakoocha (''
Artocarpus lakoocha ''Artocarpus lacucha'', also known as monkey jack or monkey fruit, is a tropical evergreen tree species of the family Moraceae. It is distributed throughout the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia. The tree is valued for its wood; its fruit ...
''), Pudau (''
Artocarpus kemando ''Artocarpus'' is a genus of approximately 60 trees and shrubs of Southeast Asian and Pacific origin, belonging to the Morus (plant), mulberry family, Moraceae. Most species of ''Artocarpus'' are restricted to Southeast Asia; a few cultivated spe ...
''), ''Anjily'' (a.k.a. Jungle Jack) ('' Artocarpus hirsutus''), Chaplaish (''
Artocarpus chama ''Artocarpus chama'' is a tree in the family Moraceae: a wild species of the breadfruit/jackfruit genus (''Artocarpus'') and may be referred to as the 'chaplaish'; its Vietnamese language, Vietnamese name is ''mít nài'' (also used for other for ...
''), and Marang ('' Artocarpus odoratissimus''). Breadfruit and jackfruit are cultivated widely in the tropical Southeast Asia. Other species are cultivated locally for their timber, fruit or edible seeds. Anjily, ''A. hirsutus'', is grown for fruit and timber in the Western Ghats.


Gallery

File:Artocarpus elasticus Reinw. ex Blume - Bendo, Terap.jpg, ''Artocarpus elasticus'', Heritage Tree, Terap, Fort Canning, Singapore File:Artocarpus nitidus subsp. lingnanensis.jpg, Bark of Artocarpus nitidus subsp. lingnanensis File:Starr_030807-0064_Artocarpus_odoratissimus.jpg, Marang (''A. odoratissimus'') is in the ''Artocarpus'' subgenus.


See also

* Domesticated plants and animals of Austronesia * *


Notes


References

*Zerega, N. J. C. and T. J. Motley. 2001. ''Artocarpus'' (Moraceae) molecular phylogeny and the systematics and origins of breadfruit, ''Artocarpus altilis''. Botanical Society of America Annual Meeting. Albuquerque, NM. August 12–16, 2001. {{Moraceae genera Moraceae genera Taxa named by Johann Reinhold Forster Taxa named by Georg Forster