''Anthocercis'', commonly known as tailflower, 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 shrubs which are endemic to southern temperate Australia with the center of distribution in the South West Botanical Province of

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

.George ''et al.''. (1982) All species of ''Anthocercis'' contain

tropane alkaloid Tropane alkaloids are a class of bicyclic .2.1alkaloids and secondary metabolites that contain a tropane ring in their chemical structure. Tropane alkaloids occur naturally in many members of the plant family Solanaceae. Certain tropane alkaloi ...

s, and have occasionally caused poisoning in children or been suspected of poisoning stock. Anthocercis is known as the only Solanaceous plant known to produce

resin A resin is a solid or highly viscous liquid that can be converted into a polymer. Resins may be biological or synthetic in origin, but are typically harvested from plants. Resins are mixtures of organic compounds, predominantly terpenes. Commo ...

compounds on glandular

trichomes Trichomes (; ) are fine outgrowths or appendages on plants, algae, lichens, and certain protists. They are of diverse structure and function. Examples are hairs, glandular hairs, scales, and papillae. A covering of any kind of hair on a plant ...

Taxonomy

The

, which is placed within the family

Solanaceae Solanaceae (), commonly known as the nightshades, is a family of flowering plants in the order Solanales. It contains approximately 2,700 species, several of which are used as agricultural crops, medicinal plants, and ornamental plants. Many me ...

, was first formally described by botanist

Jacques Labillardière Jacques-Julien Houtou de Labillardière (28 October 1755 – 8 January 1834) was a French biologist noted for his descriptions of the flora of Australia. Labillardière was a member of a voyage in search of the Jean-François de Galaup, comte ...

in ''

Novae Hollandiae Plantarum Specimen ''Novae Hollandiae Plantarum Specimen'' is a two-volume work describing the flora of Australia. Facsimiles of the originals can be found in the onlinBiodiversity Heritage Library (Vol.1)anVol 2) The author was the French botanist Jacques Labillar ...

'', Vol. 2: 19 (1806). The type species of the

is '' Anthocercis littorea'' Labill. ''Anthocercis'' lies in the subfamily

Nicotianoideae Nicotianoideae is a subfamily within the family ''Solanaceae''. Most genera are found in Australia, but they are also found in America and Africa. The subfamily contains eight genera and about 125 species, 90 of them are included in ''Nicotiana'' ...

. The genus is considered to be part of the tribe "Anthocercideae," but the

monophyly In biological cladistics for the classification of organisms, monophyly is the condition of a taxonomic grouping being a clade – that is, a grouping of organisms which meets these criteria: # the grouping contains its own most recent comm ...

of this grouping has been called into question. The species within ''Anthocercis'', however, form a monophyletic group, and lie sister to all other genera of the "Anthocercidoid clade.".

Etymology

''Anthocercis''; from the Greek ''anthos'' (a flower) and ''kerkis'' (a ray), in reference to the narrow corolla-lobes.

Species

* ''

Anthocercis angustifolia ''Anthocercis'', commonly known as tailflower, is a genus of shrubs which are endemic to southern temperate Australia with the center of distribution in the South West Botanical Province of Western Australia.George ''et al.''. (1982) All species ...

F.Muell. Baron Sir Ferdinand Jacob Heinrich von Mueller, (; 30 June 1825 – 10 October 1896) was a German-Australian physician, geographer, and most notably, a botanist. He was appointed government botanist for the then colony of Victoria (state), Vic ...

* '' Anthocercis anisantha'' Endl. * '' Anthocercis aromatica'' C.A.Gardner * '' Anthocercis fasciculata'' F.Muell. * '' Anthocercis genistoides''

Miers Miers is a surname. Notable people with the name include: *Sir Anthony Miers (1906–1985), Royal Navy admiral *Sir David Miers (born 1937), British ambassador *Earl Schenck Miers (1910–1972), American historian *Edward J. Miers (1851–1930), Eng ...

* ''

Anthocercis gracilis ''Anthocercis gracilis'', also known as slender tailflower, is a rare species of shrub in the family Solanaceae. It is native to Western Australia where it grows on sandy or loamy soils, and on granite outcrops. It is a spindly, erect shrub wh ...

Benth. George Bentham (22 September 1800 – 10 September 1884) was an English botanist, described by the weed botanist Duane Isely as "the premier systematic botanist of the nineteenth century". Born into a distinguished family, he initially studie ...

— Slender tailflower * ''

Anthocercis ilicifolia ''Anthocercis'', commonly known as tailflower, is a genus of shrubs which are endemic to southern temperate Australia with the center of distribution in the South West Botanical Province of Western Australia.George ''et al.''. (1982) All species ...

Hook. Sir William Jackson Hooker (6 July 178512 August 1865) was an English botanist and botanical illustrator, who became the first director of Kew when in 1841 it was recommended to be placed under state ownership as a botanic garden. At Kew he ...

— Red striped yellow tailflower * ''

Anthocercis intricata ''Anthocercis'', commonly known as tailflower, is a genus of shrubs which are endemic to southern temperate Australia with the center of distribution in the South West Botanical Province of Western Australia.George ''et al.''. (1982) All species ...

'' F.Muell. * '' Anthocercis littorea'' Labill. — Yellow tailflower * ''

Anthocercis sylvicola ''Anthocercis'', commonly known as tailflower, is a genus of shrubs which are endemic to southern temperate Australia with the center of distribution in the South West Botanical Province of Western Australia.George ''et al.''. (1982) All species ...

'' T. D. Macfarl. & Ward.-JohnsonMacfarlane & Wardell-Johnson (1996) * ''

Anthocercis viscosa ''Anthocercis viscosa'', also known as sticky tailflower, is a species of shrub in the family Solanaceae, native to the south coast of Western Australia. It grows up to 3 metres in height and produces white or cream flowers between May and Febr ...

'' R.Br. — Sticky tailflower

Hybrids

* ''

Anthocercis tenuipes ''Anthocercis'', commonly known as tailflower, is a genus of shrubs which are endemic to southern temperate Australia with the center of distribution in the South West Botanical Province of Western Australia.George ''et al.''. (1982) All species ...

'' Gand. (putative hybrid between

Duboisia myoporoides ''Duboisia myoporoides'', or corkwood, is a shrub or tree native to high-rainfall areas on the margins of rainforest in eastern Australia. It has a thick and corky bark. The leaves are obovate to elliptic in shape, 4–15 cm long and 1–4&n ...

R.Br. &

Cyphanthera scabrella ''Cyphanthera'' is a genus of nine species of flowering plants in the family Solanaceae and are endemic to Australia. Taxonomy The genus ''Cyphanthera'' was first formally described in 1853 by John Miers in ''Journal of Natural History''. The g ...

(Benth.) Miers)

Renamed

* ''Anthocercis microphylla'' F.Muell. → ''

Cyphanthera microphylla ''Cyphanthera'' is a genus of nine species of flowering plants in the family Solanaceae and are endemic to Australia. Taxonomy The genus ''Cyphanthera'' was first formally described in 1853 by John Miers in ''Journal of Natural History''. The g ...

'' Miers — Small-leaved anthocercis * ''Anthocercis odgersii'' F.Muell. → ''

Cyphanthera odgersii ''Cyphanthera'' is a genus of nine species of flowering plants in the family Solanaceae and are endemic to Australia. Taxonomy The genus ''Cyphanthera'' was first formally described in 1853 by John Miers in ''Journal of Natural History''. The g ...

'' F.Muell. — Woolly anthocercis * ''Anthocercis racemosa'' F.Muell. → ''

Cyphanthera racemosa ''Cyphanthera'' is a genus of nine species of flowering plants in the family Solanaceae and are endemic to Australia. Taxonomy The genus ''Cyphanthera'' was first formally described in 1853 by John Miers in ''Journal of Natural History''. The g ...

'' (F. Muell.) Haegi

References

Notes

Bibliography

* , (1982): ''Flora of Australia. Volume 29: Solanaceae'', pp. 6 – 13. * (2003): ''Plant Resins'', p. 95. * , (1996): ''Anthocercis sylvicola (Solanaceae), a rare new species from the tingle forests of Walpole, south western Australia'', Nuytsia, Vol. 11, no.1, p. 71-78 : ill.

External links

* * {{Taxonbar, from=Q141671 Nicotianoideae Solanaceae genera Solanales of Australia Eudicots of Western Australia