''Atractocarpus'' 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 ...

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 Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Rubiaceae Rubiaceae () is a family (biology), family of flowering plants, commonly known as the coffee, madder, or bedstraw family. It consists of terrestrial trees, shrubs, lianas, or herbs that are recognizable by simple, opposite leaves with Petiole ( ...

. Its members are commonly known as native gardenias in Australia. The genus name is derived from the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

terms ''atractos'' "spindle", and ''karpos'' "fruit", from the spindle-shaped fruit of the type species.

Taxonomy

Defined by botanists

Rudolf Schlechter Friedrich Richard Rudolf Schlechter (16 October 1872 – 16 November 1925) was a German taxonomist, botanist, and author of several works on orchids. He went on botanical expeditions in Africa, Indonesia, New Guinea, South and Central America an ...

and

Kurt Krause Kurt Krause (April 20, 1883 in Potsdam – November 19, 1963 in Berlin) was a German botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant tax ...

in 1908, the

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

is ''Atractocarpus bracteatus'', which is found only on

New Caledonia New Caledonia ( ; ) is a group of islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean, southwest of Vanuatu and east of Australia. Located from Metropolitan France, it forms a Overseas France#Sui generis collectivity, ''sui generis'' collectivity of t ...

.Schlechter, Friedrich Richard Rudolf & Krause, Kurt. 1908. Botanische Jahrbücher für Systematik, Pflanzengeschichte und Pflanzengeographie 40 Beibl. 92: 43. Subsequently, several other species were described from

. Meanwhile, the genera '' Randia'' and ''

Gardenia ''Gardenia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the coffee family, Rubiaceae, native to the tropical and subtropical regions of Africa, Asia, Madagascar, Pacific Islands, and Australia. The genus was named by Carl Linnaeus and John Ellis after ...

'' had been used as

wastebasket taxa Wastebasket taxon (also called a wastebin taxon, dustbin taxon or catch-all taxon) is a term used by some taxonomists to refer to a taxon that has the purpose of classifying organisms that do not fit anywhere else. They are typically defined by e ...

, where many species that had been difficult to place had been placed by default. Several Australian species of the genus ''Randia'' were found to be not closely related to

Neotropical The Neotropical realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting Earth's land surface. Physically, it includes the tropical terrestrial ecoregions of the Americas and the entire South American temperate zone. Definition In biogeogra ...

species and were transferred in a review of the genera by Australian botanist Christopher Puttock in 1999; these include several garden plant species such as '' A. benthamianus'', '' A. chartaceus'', and '' A. fitzalanii''. Puttock also proposed that the genera ''Sukunia'', ''Trukia'', ''Neofranciella'', and ''Sulitia'' (the last two consisting of once species each) be sunk into ''Atractocarpus''. The resulting genus now contains around forty species, with seven found in Australia, and others in the

Federated States of Micronesia The Federated States of Micronesia (, abbreviated FSM), or simply Micronesia, is an island country in Micronesia, a region of Oceania. The federation encompasses the majority of the Caroline Islands (excluding Palau) and consists of four Admin ...

, the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

, the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands, also known simply as the Solomons,John Prados, ''Islands of Destiny'', Dutton Caliber, 2012, p,20 and passim is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 1000 smaller islands in Melanesia, part of Oceania, t ...

Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (; ), is an island country in Melanesia located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, east o ...

Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...

Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...

, and east to

Tahiti Tahiti (; Tahitian language, Tahitian , ; ) is the largest island of the Windward Islands (Society Islands), Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France. It is located in the central part of t ...

. All species are found in a type of lowland rainforest known as mesophyll vine forests, as well as swamp forests and vine thickets.

Species

The following 40 species are accepted by

Plants of the World Online Plants of the World Online (POWO) is an online taxonomic database published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. History Following the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew launched Plants of the World Online i ...

* ''

Atractocarpus aragoensis ''Atractocarpus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. Its members are commonly known as native gardenias in Australia. The genus name is derived from the Ancient Greek terms ''atractos'' "spindle", and ''karpos'' "fruit", fro ...

'' * ''

Atractocarpus artensis ''Atractocarpus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. Its members are commonly known as native gardenias in Australia. The genus name is derived from the Ancient Greek terms ''atractos'' "spindle", and ''karpos'' "fruit", fro ...

'' * ''

Atractocarpus baladicus ''Atractocarpus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. Its members are commonly known as native gardenias in Australia. The genus name is derived from the Ancient Greek terms ''atractos'' "spindle", and ''karpos'' "fruit", fro ...

'' * ''

Atractocarpus benthamianus ''Atractocarpus benthamianus'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Rubiaceae growing in eastern Australia, commonly known as native gardenia. It is an understorey species of subtropical and tropical rainforest on fertile soils. The natu ...

'' * ''

Atractocarpus bracteatus ''Atractocarpus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. Its members are commonly known as native gardenias in Australia. The genus name is derived from the Ancient Greek terms ''atractos'' "spindle", and ''karpos'' "fruit", fro ...

References

External links

World Checklist of RubiaceaeFlickriver interesting photos tagged as ''Atractocarpus'' (several species)
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2841202 Rubiaceae genera Flora of New Guinea Flora of New Caledonia Flora of the Philippines Flora of the Pacific Flora of Norfolk Island Flora of Queensland Flora of New South Wales Taxa named by Kurt Krause Taxa named by Rudolf Schlechter