''Cercocarpus'', commonly known as mountain mahogany, is a small genus of at least nine species of
nitrogen-fixing 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 language, Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to ...
s in the rose family,
Rosaceae
Rosaceae (), the rose family, is a medium-sized family of flowering plants that includes 4,828 known species in 91 genera.
The name is derived from the type genus ''Rosa''. Among the most species-rich genera are '' Alchemilla'' (270), ''Sorbus ...
. They are native to the western
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 territo ...
and northern
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 Gua ...
, where they grow in
chaparral
Chaparral ( ) is a shrubland plant community and geographical feature found primarily in the U.S. state of California, in southern Oregon, and in the northern portion of the Baja California Peninsula in Mexico. It is shaped by a Mediterrane ...
and
semidesert habitat
In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...
s and climates, often at high altitudes. Several are found in the
California chaparral and woodlands
The California chaparral and woodlands is a terrestrial ecoregion of southwestern Oregon, northern, central, and southern California (United States) and northwestern Baja California (Mexico), located on the west coast of North America. It is an ...
ecoregion
An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of ...
.
The classification of ''Cercocarpus'' within the Rosaceae has been unclear. The genus has been placed in the subfamily
Rosoideae
The rose subfamily Rosoideae consists of more than 850 species, including many shrubs, perennial herbs, and fruit plants such as strawberries and brambles. Only a few are annual herbs.
The circumscription of the Rosoideae is still not wholly c ...
, but is now placed in subfamily
Dryadoideae.
Members of the genus are
deciduous
In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...
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 tree ...
s or small
tree
In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that ar ...
s, typically reaching heights of 3–6 m (9–18 ft) tall, but exceptionally up to 13 m (40 ft) high. ''
C. montanus'' usually remains under 1 m (3 ft) high because of incessant browsing by
elk and
deer
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the rei ...
.
The name is derived from the
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
words κέρκος (''kerkos''), meaning "tail" and καρπός (''karpos''), meaning "fruit". It refers to the tail-like plume on the fruits.
Taxonomy
Species
''Cercocarpus'' comprises the following species:
* ''
Cercocarpus betuloides
''Cercocarpus betuloides'' is a shrub or small tree in the rose family.Flowering Plants of the Santa Monica Mountains, Nancy Dale,2nd Ed, 2000, p. 170 Its common names include mountain mahogany and birch leaf mountain mahogany The common name "m ...
''
Nutt. – birch-leaf mountain mahogany
** var. ''betuloides''
Nutt.
** var. ''blancheae''
(C.K. Schneid.) Little – island mountain mahogany
** var. ''traskiae''
(Eastw.) Dunkle – Catalina Island mountain mahogany
* ''
Cercocarpus breviflorus''
A. Gray – hairy mountain mahogany
* ''
Cercocarpus douglasii''
Rydb.
* ''
Cercocarpus fothergilloides''
Kunth
** var. ''fothergilloides''
Kunth
** var. ''mojadensis''
(C.K. Schneid.) Henrickson
* ''
Cercocarpus intricatus''
S.Watson
* ''
Cercocarpus ledifolius''
Nutt. ex Torr. & A.Gray – curl-leaf mountain mahogany
* ''
Cercocarpus macrophyllus''
C.K.Schneid.
* ''
Cercocarpus mexicanus''
Henrard
* ''
Cercocarpus mojadensis''
C.K.Schneid.
* ''
Cercocarpus montanus''
Raf.
** var. ''argenteus''
(Rydb.) F.L.Martin – silver mountain mahogany
** var. ''glaber''
(S.Watson) F.L.Martin
** var. ''macrourus''
(Rydb.) F.L.Martin
** var. ''minutiflorus''
(Abrams) F.L.Martin – smooth mountain mahogany
** var. ''montanus''
Raf. – alder-leaf mountain mahogany
** var. ''paucidentatus''
(S.Watson) F.L.Martin
* ''
Cercocarpus pringlei''
(C.K.Schneid.) Rydb.
* ''
Cercocarpus rotundifolius''
Rydb.
* ''
Cercocarpus rzedowskii''
Henrard
Species names with uncertain taxonomic status
The status of the following species and hybrids is unresolved:
* ''Cercocarpus antiquus''
Lesq.
* ''Cercocarpus arizonicus''
M.E.Jones
* ''Cercocarpus betulaefolius''
C.K.Schneid.
* ''Cercocarpus betulaefolius''
Nutt. ex Hook.
* ''Cercocarpus breviflorus''
S.Watson
* ''Cercocarpus cuneatus''
Dorf
* ''Cercocarpus fothergilloides''
Torr.
* ''Cercocarpus harneyensis''
C.A.Arnold
* ''Cercocarpus macrophyllus''
C.K.Schneid.
* ''Cercocarpus miniscalchii''
(A.Massal.) Principi
* ''Cercocarpus orestesi''
Knowlt.
* ''Cercocarpus pallidus''
Wooton
* ''Cercocarpus parviflorus''
Wooton
* ''Cercocarpus parvifolius''
Nutt. ex Hook. & Arn.
* ''Cercocarpus praefoliolosa''
R.W.Br.
* ''Cercocarpus praeledifolius''
E.W.Berry
* ''Cercocarpus ravenscragensis''
E.W.Berry
* ''Cercocarpus treleasei''
C.K.Schneid.
References
External links
*
*
Jepson Manual Treatment - ''Cercocarpus''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2699712
Rosaceae genera