Mimulus is a

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

Phrymaceae Phrymaceae, also known as the lopseed family, is a small family of flowering plants in the order Lamiales.Peter F. Stevens (2001 onwards). "Phrymaceae" At: Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. At: Botanical Databases At: Missouri Botanical Garden Websi ...

, which was traditionally placed in family

Scrophulariaceae The Scrophulariaceae are a family of flowering plants, commonly known as the figwort family. The plants are annual and perennial herbs, as well as shrubs. Flowers have bilateral (zygomorphic) or rarely radial (actinomorphic) symmetry. The Scr ...

. The genus now contains only seven species, two native to eastern North America and the other five native to Asia, Australia, Africa, or Madagascar. In the past, about 150

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

were placed in this genus, most of which have since been assigned to other genera, the majority to genus ''

Erythranthe ''Erythranthe'', the monkey-flowers and musk-flowers, is a diverse plant genus with more than 120 members (as of 2022) in the family Phrymaceae. ''Erythranthe'' was originally described as a separate genus, then generally regarded as a section w ...

''. ''Mimulus'' species prefer wet or moist areas and are not drought resistant. Several are cultivated as ornamental garden plants. The

cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture, ...

'Highland Red' has received the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr (Nort ...

Award of Garden Merit The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established annual award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions. History The Award of Garden Merit ...

Name

''Mimulus'' is based on the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

word ''mimus'' ('mimic', especially in the context of acting). This may have to do with the flowers seeming to have grinning faces resembling those of monkeys.

Taxonomy

Before the 2012 restructuring, two large groups of species had long been recognized in the genus ''Mimulus'' as it was traditionally defined, with the largest group of species in western

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

, and a second group with center of diversity in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. In the 2012 restructuring of ''Mimulus'' by Barker, et al., based largely upon DNA evidence, seven species were left in ''Mimulus'', 111 placed into ''

'' (species with axile

placentation Placentation refers to the formation, type and structure, or arrangement of the placenta. The function of placentation is to transfer nutrients, respiratory gases, and water from maternal tissue to a growing embryo, and in some instances to remove ...

and long

pedicel Pedicle or pedicel may refer to: Human anatomy *Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures ...

s), 46 placed into ''

Diplacus ''Diplacus'' is a plant genus in the family Phrymaceae, which was traditionally placed in family Scrophulariaceae. In the 2012 restructuring of ''Mimulus'' by Barker, ''et al''., based largely upon DNA evidence, seven species were left in ''Mimu ...

'' (species with parietal placentation and

sessile Sessility, or sessile, may refer to: * Sessility (motility), organisms which are not able to move about * Sessility (botany), flowers or leaves that grow directly from the stem or peduncle of a plant * Sessility (medicine), tumors and polyps that ...

flowers), two placed in ''

Uvedalia ''Uvedalia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Phrymaceae, native to Australia. It was resurrected from ''Mimulus'' in 2012. Species Currently accepted species include: *''Uvedalia clementii'' (Domin) W.R.Barker & Beardsley *''Uved ...

'', and one each placed in ''Elacholoma'', ''

Mimetanthe ''Mimetanthe'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Phrymaceae. It has only one species, ''Mimetanthe pilosa'', synonym ''Mimulus pilosus'', known by the common names false monkeyflower and downy mimetanthe. It is native to the western Un ...

'', and '' Thyridia''. Removal of ''Mimulus'' from family Scrophulariaceae has been supported by studies of

chloroplast A chloroplast () is a type of membrane-bound organelle known as a plastid that conducts photosynthesis mostly in plant and algal cells. The photosynthetic pigment chlorophyll captures the energy from sunlight, converts it, and stores it in ...

DNA first published in the mid-1990s. Multiple studies of chloroplast DNA and two regions of nuclear rDNA suggest that the genera ''

Phryma ''Phryma'' is a genus of flowering plant in the family Phrymaceae, native to temperate Asia and eastern North America. Taxonomy The genus ''Phryma'' was erected by Carl Linnaeus in 1753 with the sole species ''Phryma leptostachya''. The Japanes ...

, Berendtiella,

Hemichaena ''Hemichaena'' is a plant genus in the family Phrymaceae, which was traditionally placed in family Scrophulariaceae The Scrophulariaceae are a family of flowering plants, commonly known as the figwort family. The plants are annual and perenni ...

Leucocarpus ''Leucocarpus'' is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Phrymaceae Phrymaceae, also known as the lopseed family, is a small family of flowering plants in the order Lamiales.Peter F. Stevens (2001 onwards). "Phrymaceae" At: Angios ...

, Microcarpeae,

Peplidium ''Peplidium'' is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Phrymaceae. Its native range is Egypt to Sinai, Indian subcontinent, and Australia. The genus was first described by Alire Raffeneau Delile Alire Raffeneau Delile (23 January ...

Glossostigma ''Glossostigma'' is a genus of flowering plants in the lopseed family, Phrymaceae Phrymaceae, also known as the lopseed family, is a small family of flowering plants in the order Lamiales.Peter F. Stevens (2001 onwards). "Phrymaceae" At: Angio ...

, and

Elacholoma ''Elacholoma'' is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Phrymaceae Phrymaceae, also known as the lopseed family, is a small family of flowering plants in the order Lamiales.Peter F. Stevens (2001 onwards). "Phrymaceae" At: Angiosp ...

'' are all derived from within ''Mimulus'' and would need to be rearranged.

Species of ''Mimulus'' sensu stricto

The species remaining in ''Mimulus'' are: * '' Mimulus alatus'' – Sharpwing monkey-flower (eastern North America) * '' Mimulus aquatilis'' – (Queensland, Australia) * '' Mimulus gracilis'' – (Australia) * '' Mimulus madagascariensis'' – (Madagascar) * '' Mimulus orbicularis'' – (Bangladesh to Myanmar, central Thailand and Vietnam) * ''

Mimulus ringens ''Mimulus ringens'' is a species of monkeyflower known by the common names Allegheny monkeyflower and square-stemmed monkeyflower. It is native to eastern and central North America and has been introduced to the Pacific Northwest. It grows in a ...

'' – Allegheny monkey-flower, square-stemmed monkey-flower (eastern North America) * '' Mimulus strictus'' – (Africa, India and Australia)

References

External links

Mimulus Database - for genetics researchersMimulus Genome Browser - for genetics researchers
{{Taxonbar , from=Q159372 Lamiales genera