''Mitrastemon'' is a genus of two widely disjunct species of parasitic plants. It is the only genus within the family Mitrastemonaceae. ''Mitrastemon'' species are root endoparasites, which grow on Fagaceae. It is also a non-photosynthetic plant that parasitizes other plants such as ''

Castanopsis sieboldii ''Castanopsis sieboldii'', also known as the Itajii chinkapin or Itajii, is a species of evergreen tree that lives in subtropical eastern Asia. This is a climax species that is commonly found in the Japanese temperate rainforest. Specimens are al ...

''. The parasitic plant was first discovered by botanist

Eizi Matuda (1894–1978) was a Mexican botanist of Japanese origin. In scholarly works his name is generally romanised Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) scri ...

during an expedition to Mt. Ovand in the state of

Chiapas, Mexico Chiapas (; Tzotzil language, Tzotzil and Tzeltal language, Tzeltal: ''Chyapas'' ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Chiapas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Chiapas), is one of the states that make up the Political divisions of Mexico, ...

(Matuda, 1947). The different species were originally named by a friend of Matuda, Yamamoto in 1925–1926. ''Mitrastemon yamamotoi'' is a

protandrous Sequential hermaphroditism (called dichogamy in botany) is a type of hermaphroditism that occurs in many fish, gastropods, and plants. Sequential hermaphroditism occurs when the individual changes its sex at some point in its life. In particular, ...

plant. Its flowers go through a male phase before transforming into their final female form. The flowers of ''M. yamamotoi'' attract a variety of insects ranging from wasps to flies and beetles. Among these, beetles are the best pollinators for this plant since their visit to the flower would pick up a large amount of pollen and they would pollinate from each of the flowers that they had already visited. The plant is endemic to tropical and subtropical forest regions such as Southeast Asia and Japan.

Taxonomy

Originally ''Mitrastemon'' was placed within the order

Rafflesiales Rafflesiales is a botanical name of an order of flowering plants. The name was first published by Oliver in 1895. The Cronquist system used this name for an order placed in subclass Rosidae with the following circumscription (1981) : * order Ra ...

, together with other parasitic plants, but this order was long suspected to be actually polyphyletic. In 2004, the genus was found to be related to

Ericales The Ericales are a large and diverse order of dicotyledons. Species in this order have considerable commercial importance including for tea, persimmon, blueberry, kiwifruit, Brazil nuts, argan, and azalea. The order includes trees, bushes, lia ...

by comparing their mitochondrial DNA. Several orthographic variants of the name ''Mitrastemon'' exist, including ''Mitrastema'' and ''Mitrastemma''. The correct taxonomic name is ''Mitrastemon'', the use of which was proposed and justified in an article by Reveal and approved by the

Nomenclature Committee for Vascular Plants Nomenclature (, ) is a system of names or terms, or the rules for forming these terms in a particular field of arts or sciences. The principles of naming vary from the relatively informal conventions of everyday speech to the internationally ag ...

of the International Association for Plant Taxonomy in a subsequent article. The species has a cylindrical body ranging from 3 cm to 7 cm in height with a tuberous base. During an early developmental stage it appears an off-white color; however, once it is dried it becomes a dark brown color (Mir ''et al''., 2016).

Life cycle

The plant is observed only during the winter season and it completes its visible life cycle from November to April (Mir ''et al''., 2016). ''Mitrastemon'' is completely embedded within the tissues of its host, except during the reproduction stage when above-ground parts emerge from host tissues.

Ecology

Unlike other plants, the flowers of this organism change sex from male to female. Various insects are involved in

pollination Pollination is the transfer of pollen from an anther of a plant to the stigma of a plant, later enabling fertilisation and the production of seeds, most often by an animal or by wind. Pollinating agents can be animals such as insects, birds, a ...

. ''Mitrastemon yamamotol'' is mainly pollinated by social wasps, but previously unnoticed pollination are also important, based on visitation frequency and pollen loads. There have been studies of the pollination that suggest that nocturnal visitors, such as crickets and cockroaches, contribute to geitonogamous pollination. Diurnal visitors like social wasps facilitate outcrossing.

Distribution

''Mitrastemon yamamotoi'' is distributed in tropical and subtropical forests of Southeast Asia and Japan. ''Mitrastemon matudae'' is distributed from Southern Mexico to Colombia.

Species

There are two known species. '' M. matudae'' is found in Central America, while '' M. yamamotoi'' is found in Southeast Asia and Japan.

Taxonomy

Life cycle

Ecology

Distribution

Species

References

Further reading