''Bassia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family
Amaranthaceae
Amaranthaceae is a family of flowering plants commonly known as the amaranth family, in reference to its type genus ''Amaranthus''. It includes the former goosefoot family Chenopodiaceae and contains about 165 genera and 2,040 species, making i ...
. They are distributed in the western Mediterranean to eastern Asia. Some occur outside their native ranges as
introduced species
An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived there ...
The species of genus ''Bassia'' are annuals or perennial subshrubs. Their leaves are variable. The flowers are normally inconspicuous, in spike-like inflorescences without bracteoles. The fruits are
achene
An achene (; ), also sometimes called akene and occasionally achenium or achenocarp, is a type of simple dry fruit produced by many species of flowering plants. Achenes are monocarpellate (formed from one carpel) and indehiscent (they do not o ...
s. The seed contains an annular, horseshoe-shaped or folded embryo that surrounds the perisperm. The fruiting perianth remains either unappendaged or develops 5 wings. The wings are spiny in '' Bassia hyssopifolia''.
According to its most recent description, the genus is defined by its three types of C4 "kochioid" leaf anatomy. Many other characters cannot be used to differentiate species from one another, because they are variable among individuals within the species.Kadereit, G. and H. Freitag. (2011) Molecular phylogeny of Camphorosmeae (Camphorosmoideae, Chenopodiaceae): Implications for biogeography, evolution of C4-photosynthesis and taxonomy. ''Taxon'' 60(1), 51-78.
Habitat
The genus mainly occurs in
steppe
In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes.
Steppe biomes may include:
* the montane grasslands and shrublands biome
* the temperate gras ...
and
desert
A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...
ecosystems. Some species can be found in ruderal sites and
salt marsh
A salt marsh or saltmarsh, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. It is domin ...
es up to subalpine altitudes.
Phylogenetical
In biology, phylogenetics (; from Greek φυλή/ φῦλον [] "tribe, clan, race", and wikt:γενετικός, γενετικός [] "origin, source, birth") is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among or within groups o ...
research suggests that the genus evolved in the
Miocene
The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recen ...
.
Uses
Some palatable species of ''Bassia'' with high protein content are valuable components of rangelands, sometimes seeded for the melioration of overgrazed rangelands.
Systematics
The genus name ''Bassia'' was first published in 1766 by
Carlo Allioni
Carlo Allioni (23 September 1728 in Turin – 30 July 1804 in Turin) was an Italian physician and professor of botany at the University of Turin. His most important work was ''Flora Pedemontana, sive enumeratio methodica stirpium indigenarum P ...
, with the type species ''Bassia muricata'' L. (under the name ''B. aegyptiaca''). The genus belongs to the subfamily
Camphorosmoideae
Camphorosmeae is a species-rich tribe of the Amaranthaceae, formerly Chenopodiaceae, with 20 genera and about 179 species. It is classified as a single tribe of subfamily Camphorosmoideae.
Description
The Camphorosmeae are mostly dwarf shrubs ...
of the Amaranthaceae.
As of 2011, after its most recent reorganization, it contains about 20 species.
Species include:
*'' Bassia angustifolia'' (Turcz.) Freitag & G.Kadereit
*''
Bassia arabica
''Bassia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Amaranthaceae. They are distributed in the western Mediterranean to eastern Asia. Some occur outside their native ranges as introduced species.Bassia dinteri'' (Botsch.) A.J.Scott
*''
Bassia eriophora
''Bassia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Amaranthaceae. They are distributed in the western Mediterranean to eastern Asia. Some occur outside their native ranges as introduced species.Bassia hyssopifolia'' (Pall.) Kuntze – fivehorn smotherweed''Bassia''. USDA PLANTS.
*''
Bassia indica
''Bassia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Amaranthaceae. They are distributed in the western Mediterranean to eastern Asia. Some occur outside their native ranges as introduced species.Bassia laniflora'' (S.G.Gmel.) A.J.Scott
*''
Bassia lasiantha
''Bassia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Amaranthaceae. They are distributed in the western Mediterranean to eastern Asia. Some occur outside their native ranges as introduced species.Bassia littorea
''Bassia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Amaranthaceae. They are distributed in the western Mediterranean to eastern Asia. Some occur outside their native ranges as introduced species.Bassia muricata
''Bassia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Amaranthaceae. They are distributed in the western Mediterranean to eastern Asia. Some occur outside their native ranges as introduced species.Bassia odontoptera
''Bassia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Amaranthaceae. They are distributed in the western Mediterranean to eastern Asia. Some occur outside their native ranges as introduced species.Bassia pilosa
''Bassia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Amaranthaceae. They are distributed in the western Mediterranean to eastern Asia. Some occur outside their native ranges as introduced species.Bassia prostrata
''Bassia prostrata'', the forage kochia, is a Eurasian plant in the subfamily Camphorosmoideae of the family Amaranthaceae
Amaranthaceae is a family of flowering plants commonly known as the amaranth family, in reference to its type genus '' ...
Bassia salsoloides
''Bassia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Amaranthaceae. They are distributed in the western Mediterranean to eastern Asia. Some occur outside their native ranges as introduced species.Bassia scoparia
''Bassia scoparia'' is a large annual herb in the family Amaranthaceae ('' sensu lato'') native to Eurasia. It has been introduced to many parts of North America,
Bassia stellaris
''Bassia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Amaranthaceae. They are distributed in the western Mediterranean to eastern Asia. Some occur outside their native ranges as introduced species.Bassia tianschanica
''Bassia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Amaranthaceae. They are distributed in the western Mediterranean to eastern Asia. Some occur outside their native ranges as introduced species.Bassia tomentosa
''Bassia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Amaranthaceae. They are distributed in the western Mediterranean to eastern Asia. Some occur outside their native ranges as introduced species.Bassia villosissima
''Bassia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Amaranthaceae. They are distributed in the western Mediterranean to eastern Asia. Some occur outside their native ranges as introduced species.Camphorosmoideae
Camphorosmeae is a species-rich tribe of the Amaranthaceae, formerly Chenopodiaceae, with 20 genera and about 179 species. It is classified as a single tribe of subfamily Camphorosmoideae.
Description
The Camphorosmeae are mostly dwarf shrubs ...
, some of them
monotypic
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...
. ''B. hirsuta'' is now the only member of genus ''
Spirobassia
''Spirobassia'' is a monotypic plant genus with the species ''Spirobassia hirsuta''.
It has cosmopolitan distribution
In biogeography, cosmopolitan distribution is the term for the range of a taxon that extends across all or most of the wor ...
'', and ''B. sedoides'' is the monotypic '' Sedobassia''. ''B. dasyphylla'' is part of '' Grubovia''. ''Bassia saxicola''Domina, G. and A. Santangelo. 2011 ''Bassia saxicola''. In: IUCN 2013. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.1. Downloaded on 04 August 2013. is now '' Eokochia saxicola''.