''Ruizia'' is a genus 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 belonging to the family

Malvaceae Malvaceae (), or the mallows, is a family of flowering plants estimated to contain 244 genera with 4225 known species. Well-known members of economic importance include Theobroma cacao, cacao, Cola (plant), cola, cotton, okra, Hibiscus sabdariffa, ...

. It contains 13 species native mostly to the

Mascarene Islands The Mascarene Islands (, ) or Mascarenes or Mascarenhas Archipelago is a group of islands in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar consisting of islands belonging to the Republic of Mauritius as well as the French department of Réunion. Their na ...

(

Mauritius Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island country in the Indian Ocean, about off the southeastern coast of East Africa, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island (also called Mauritius), as well as Rodrigues, Ag ...

and

Réunion Réunion (; ; ; known as before 1848) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France. Part of the Mascarene Islands, it is located approximately east of the isl ...

), and one species native to

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

. The genus was described in 1786 by

Antonio José Cavanilles Antonio José Cavanilles (16 January 1745 – 5 May 1804) was a leading Spanish taxonomic botanist, artist and one of the most important figures in the 18th century period of Enlightenment in Spain. Cavanilles is most famous for his 2-vol ...

, and named for Spanish botanist

Hipólito Ruiz López Hipólito Ruiz López (August 8, 1754 in Belorado, Burgos, Spain – 1816 in Madrid), or Hipólito Ruiz, was a Spanish botanist known for researching the floras of Peru and Chile during an expedition under Charles III of Spain, Carlos III from 17 ...

(1754–1815). It was long thought to contain a single species, '' Ruizia cordata'',

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

. In 2021 the genus was re-circumscribed to include the genus ''Trochetia'' and several species formerly classed in genus ''

Dombeya ''Dombeya'' is a flowering plant genus. Traditionally included in the family Sterculiaceae, it is included in the expanded Malvaceae in the APG and most subsequent systematics. These plants are known by a number of vernacular names which sometim ...

''.Dorr, L.J. and Wurdack, K.J. (2021), Indo-Asian Eriolaena expanded to include two Malagasy genera, and other generic realignments based on molecular phylogenetics of Dombeyoideae (Malvaceae). ''Taxon'', 70: 99-126. https://doi.org/10.1002/tax.12370

Species

13 species are currently accepted: * Subgenus Trochetia **'' Trochetia blackburniana'' – Mauritius **'' Trochetia boutoniana'' – Mauritius ** Trochetia granulata - Reunion ** Trochetia parviflora - Mauritius (Mount Corps de Garde) ** Trochetia triflora - Mauritius ** Trochetia uniflora - Mauritius * Subgenus Ruizia **'' Ruizia cordata'' – Réunion * Subgenus Dombeya **'' Dombeya ferruginea'' – Mascarene Islands **'' Dombeya mauritiana'' – Mauritius ** Dombeya parviflora - Mauritius (Mount Corps de garde) **'' Ruizia populnea'' – Mascarene Islands **''? Ruizia rosea'' – Mauritius **'' Ruizia sevathianii'' – Mauritius **'' Ruizia tremula'' – southwestern Madagascar

References

Dombeyoideae Malvaceae genera Flora of Madagascar Flora of the Mascarene Islands Taxa named by Antonio José Cavanilles {{malvaceae-stub