''Comocladia'' 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 flowering plants in the cashew family,
Anacardiaceae
The Anacardiaceae, commonly known as the cashew family or sumac family, are a family of flowering plants, including about 83 genera with about 860 known species. Members of the Anacardiaceae bear fruits that are drupes and in some cases produce ...
. It is native to the Americas, where it is distributed in
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
,
Central America
Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...
, and the
Caribbean
The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...
.
[Atha, D. E., et al. (2011)]
A new species of ''Comocladia'' (Anacardiaceae) from Belize and Guatemala.
''Brittonia'' 63(3), 370-74. Species are known commonly as maidenplums. The term ''guao'' is commonly used to refer to ''Comocladia'' species in Cuba and the Dominican Republic.
These are
shrub
A shrub or bush is a small to medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees by their multiple ...
s and
tree
In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, e.g., including only woody plants with secondary growth, only ...
s, mostly unbranched. The leaves are divided into opposite pairs of leaflets that usually have toothed or spiny edges. The
inflorescence
In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...
s are
panicle
In botany, a panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a p ...
s of flowers growing from the leaf axils. The plants are polygamodioecious, producing male, female, and bisexual flowers. The
sepal
A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106
Etymology
The term ''sepalum'' ...
s are red and the corollas are red or purple. The fruit is a
drupe
In botany, a drupe (or stone fruit) is a type of fruit in which an outer fleshy part (exocarp, or skin, and mesocarp, or flesh) surrounds a single shell (the ''pip'' (UK), ''pit'' (US), ''stone'', or ''pyrena'') of hardened endocarp with a seed ...
covered in the remnants of the flower calyx. It is fleshy with a yellow, red, or black skin.
[
The plants produce an ]exudate
An exudate is a fluid released by an organism through pores or a wound, a process known as exuding or exudation.
''Exudate'' is derived from ''exude'' 'to ooze' from Latin language, Latin 'to (ooze out) sweat' (' 'out' and ' 'to sweat').
Medi ...
that turns black on contact with air. It is known for causing contact dermatitis
Contact dermatitis is a type of acute or chronic inflammation of the skin caused by exposure to chemical or physical agents. Symptoms of contact dermatitis can include itchy or dry skin, a red rash, bumps, blisters, or swelling. These rashes ...
.[ Of the 26 species in the genus,][Sasseville, D., et al. (2009)]
Dermatitis from plants of the new world.
''European Journal of Dermatology'' 19(5) 423-30.
Taxonomy
Species
Species include:[
*'' Comocladia cordata''
*'' Comocladia cuneata'' – wedgeleaf maidenplum
*'' Comocladia dentata'' – toothed maidenplum, guao (Cuba, Dominican Republic)]Comocladia dodonaea
''Comocladia dodonaea'', with common names poison ash, and Christmas bush, is a species of tree in the cashew family, Anacardiaceae. It is Native plant, native to List of Caribbean islands, Caribbean islands.
In the sap of the plant and on the s ...
'' – poison ash, hogwood (Barbuda), Christmas tree (St. Croix), thumbtack (Tortola), brésillet (Haiti), carrasco (Puerto Rico), guao (Dominican Republic)Comocladia pinnatifolia
''Comocladia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the cashew family, Anacardiaceae. It is native to the Americas, where it is distributed in Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean.Atha, D. E., et al. (2011)A new species of ''Comocladia'' (Anac ...
'' – guao (Dominican Republic), sibliye (Haiti), maiden plum (Jamaica)
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q8348665
Anacardiaceae
Anacardiaceae genera