''Gesneria'' is a
genus
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of
flowering plant
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...
s in the family
Gesneriaceae
Gesneriaceae, the gesneriad family, is a family (biology), family of flowering plants consisting of about 152 genera and ca. 3,540 species in the tropics and subtropics of the Old World (almost all Didymocarpoideae) and the New World (most Ges ...
. It contains 62 species which are native to islands of the
Caribbean
The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...
.
[ The genus is classified in the tribe Gesnerieae along with the genera '' Bellonia'', '' Pheidonocarpa'', and '' Rhytidophyllum''. ''Gesneria'' species are usually woody ]shrub
A shrub or 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 by their multiple ...
s or subshrubs, and (with the closely related '' Rhytidophyllum'') are unusual in the family in having alternately (rather than decussately) arranged leaves. A complete list of the accepted species and their synonyms can be found in the Smithsonian Institution's World Checklist of Gesneriaceae.
The genus name honors Conrad Gessner.
Species
62 species are accepted.[
*'' Gesneria acaulis''
*'' Gesneria alpina''
*'' Gesneria aspera''
*'' Gesneria barahonensis''
*'' Gesneria bicolor''
*'' Gesneria binghamii''
*'' Gesneria brachysepala''
*'' Gesneria bracteosa''
*'' Gesneria brevifolia''
*'' Gesneria bullata''
*'' Gesneria calycina''
*'' Gesneria calycosa''
*'' Gesneria celsioides''
*'' Gesneria christii''
*'' Gesneria citrina''
*'' Gesneria clandestina''
*'' Gesneria clarensis''
*'' Gesneria clasei''
*'' Gesneria × cornuta''
*'' Gesneria cubensis''
*'' Gesneria cuneifolia''
*'' Gesneria decapleura''
*'' Gesneria depressa''
*'' Gesneria duchartreoides''
*'' Gesneria ekmanii''
*'' Gesneria exserta''
*'' Gesneria ferruginea''
*'' Gesneria filipes''
*'' Gesneria flava''
*'' Gesneria fruticosa''
*'' Gesneria glandulosa''
*'' Gesneria gloxinioides''
*'' Gesneria haitiensis''
*'' Gesneria harrisii''
*'' Gesneria heterochroa''
*'' Gesneria humilis''
*'' Gesneria hybocarpa''
*'' Gesneria hypoclada''
*'' Gesneria jamaicensis''
*'' Gesneria lanceolata''
*'' Gesneria libanensis''
*'' Gesneria nipensis''
*'' Gesneria odontophylla''
*'' Gesneria onychocalyx''
*'' Gesneria pachyclada''
*'' Gesneria parvifolia''
*'' Gesneria pauciflora''
*'' Gesneria pedicellaris''
*'' Gesneria pedunculosa''
*'' Gesneria pulverulenta''
*'' Gesneria pumila''
*'' Gesneria purpurascens''
*'' Gesneria quisqueyana''
*'' Gesneria radiata''
*'' Gesneria reticulata''
*'' Gesneria salicifolia''
*'' Gesneria scabra''
*'' Gesneria sintenisii''
*'' Gesneria sylvicola''
*'' Gesneria tuberifera''
*'' Gesneria ventricosa''
*'' Gesneria viridiflora''
*'' Gesneria wrightii''
]
References
External links
Skog, L.E. 1976. A Study of the Tribe Gesnerieae, with a Revision of ''Gesneria'' (Gesneriaceae: Gesnerioideae). ''Smithsonian Contributions to Botany''. 29: 1-182 (pdf file).
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The Genera of Gesneriaceae
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The Gesneriad Reference WebWorld Checklist of Gesneriaceae
Gesneriaceae genera
Flora of the Caribbean
Taxa described in 1753
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus
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