''Berlinia'' 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

Fabaceae Fabaceae () or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomen ...

. It includes 21 species of trees native to sub-Saharan Africa, ranging from Guinea to Chad, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Angola. All species of ''Berlinia'' have "explosive" pods, casting the seeds, in the case of the recently discovered '' Berlinia korupensis'', up to 50 metres away. Species of ''Berlina'' grow in the

Guineo–Congolian forest The Guineo-Congolian region is a biogeography, biogeographical region in Africa straddling the Equator and stretching from the Atlantic Ocean through the Congo Basin to the Congo-Nile Divide (Rwanda-Burundi), Congo / Nile divide in Rwanda and Burun ...

of equatorial western and central Africa, and in the transitional

forest–savanna mosaic Forest–savanna mosaic is a transitory ecotone between the tropical moist broadleaf forests of Equatorial Africa and the drier savannas and open woodlands to the north and south of the forest belt. The forest–savanna mosaic consists of drier ...

belts north and south of the forest region. Fossil pollen attributable to the genus is known from the Eocene (

Ypresian In the geologic timescale the Ypresian is the oldest age (geology), age or lowest stage (stratigraphy), stratigraphic stage of the Eocene. It spans the time between , is preceded by the Thanetian Age (part of the Paleocene) and is followed by th ...

) of Africa.

Species

21 species accepted by the

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 ...

as of August 2023: *'' Berlinia auriculata'' – Benin to Central African Republic and Republic of the Congo *'' Berlinia bracteosa'' – southern Nigeria to Chad and Democratic Republic of the Congo *'' Berlinia bruneelii'' – Cameroon and Central African Republic to Democratic Republic of the Congo and Angola *'' Berlinia confusa'' – Sierra Leone to Cameroon and Republic of the Congo *''

Berlinia congolensis ''Berlinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It includes 21 species of trees native to sub-Saharan Africa, ranging from Guinea to Chad, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Angola. All species of ''Berlinia'' have "explosive" pods, ca ...

'' – Nigeria to Democratic Republic of the Congo and Angola *'' Berlinia coriacea'' – Nigeria to Central African Republic *'' Berlinia craibiana'' – Nigeria to Central African Republic and northern Angola *''

Berlinia delevoyi ''Berlinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It includes 21 species of trees native to sub-Saharan Africa, ranging from Guinea to Chad, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Angola. All species of ''Berlinia'' have "explosive" pods, ca ...

'' – Democratic Republic of the Congo and northeastern Angola *''

Berlinia giorgii ''Berlinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It includes 21 species of trees native to sub-Saharan Africa, ranging from Guinea to Chad, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Angola. All species of ''Berlinia'' have "explosive" pods, ca ...

'' – Nigeria and Democratic Republic of the Congo, Angola, and Zambia *''

Berlinia grandiflora ''Berlinia grandiflora'' is a small to medium sized tree found in the West and West Central African region along riparian habitats or gallery forests habitat types. Description ''Berlinia grandiflora'' is a small to medium sized tree that range ...

'' – Guinea to Niger, Central African Republic, and Angola *''

Berlinia hollandii ''Berlinia hollandii'' is a species of plant in the family ''Fabaceae''. It is found only in Nigeria. It is threatened by habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no l ...

'' – southern Nigeria and Cameroon *''

Berlinia immaculata ''Berlinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It includes 21 species of trees native to sub-Saharan Africa, ranging from Guinea to Chad, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Angola. All species of ''Berlinia'' have "explosive" pods, ca ...

'' – Cameroon and Gabon *'' Berlinia korupensis'' – western Cameroon *''

Berlinia occidentalis ''Berlinia occidentalis'' is a species of plant in the family Fabaceae. It is found in Ivory Coast, Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. ...

'' – Sierra Leone to Ghana *''

Berlinia orientalis ''Berlinia orientalis'' is a species of plant in the family Fabaceae. It is found in Mozambique and Tanzania Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It is borde ...

'' – Tanzania and Mozambique *''

Berlinia phenacoa ''Berlinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It includes 21 species of trees native to sub-Saharan Africa, ranging from Guinea to Chad, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Angola. All species of ''Berlinia'' have "explosive" pods, ca ...

'' – Republic of the Congo and Democratic Republic of the Congo *''

Berlinia rabiensis ''Berlinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It includes 21 species of trees native to sub-Saharan Africa, ranging from Guinea to Chad, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Angola. All species of ''Berlinia'' have "explosive" pods, ca ...

'' – Gabon *''

Berlinia razzifera ''Berlinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It includes 21 species of trees native to sub-Saharan Africa, ranging from Guinea to Chad, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Angola. All species of ''Berlinia'' have "explosive" pods, ca ...

'' – Gabon *''

Berlinia sapinii ''Berlinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It includes 21 species of trees native to sub-Saharan Africa, ranging from Guinea to Chad, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Angola. All species of ''Berlinia'' have "explosive" pods, ca ...

'' – Democratic Republic of the Congo *''

Berlinia tomentella ''Berlinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It includes 21 species of trees native to sub-Saharan Africa, ranging from Guinea to Chad, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Angola. All species of ''Berlinia'' have "explosive" pods, ca ...

'' – Sierra Leone to Ghana and Cameroon *''

Berlinia viridicans ''Berlinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It includes 21 species of trees native to sub-Saharan Africa, ranging from Guinea to Chad, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Angola. All species of ''Berlinia'' have "explosive" pods, ca ...

'' – Gabon, Republic of the Congo, and Democratic Republic of the Congo

References

External links

Detarioideae Fabaceae genera Flora of the Afrotropical realm Taxa named by George Bentham Taxa named by Joseph Dalton Hooker {{Detarioideae-stub