''Erythroxylum platyclados'',

synonyms A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are ...

including ''Erythroxylum acranthum'', is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of ...

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. They include all forbs (flowering plants without a woody stem), grasses and grass-like plants, a vast majority of ...

in the family

Erythroxylaceae Erythroxylaceae (the coca family) is a family of flowering trees and shrubs consisting of 4 genera and 271 species. The four genera are '' Aneulophus'' Benth., '' Erythroxylum'' P.Browne, '' Nectaropetalum'' Engl., and '' Pinacopodium'' Exell & ...

, native to parts of eastern Africa and the islands of

Aldabra Aldabra is the world's second-largest coral atoll, lying south-east of the continent of Africa. It is part of the Aldabra Group of islands in the Indian Ocean that are part of the Outer Islands of the Seychelles, with a distance of 1,120 k ...

and Comoros. It grows as a tree or shrub. It was first described by

Wenceslas Bojer Wenceslas Bojer (also Václav Bojer in Czech or Wenzel Bojer in German) (23 September 1795 in Řesanice, Bohemia, now the Czech Republic – 4 June 1856 in Port Louis, Mauritius) was a Czech naturalist, botanist and botanical illustrator. L ...

in 1842.

Distribution and habitat

''Erythroxylum platyclados'' is native to

in Seychelles, the Comoros,

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Mala ...

and

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...

. It mainly grows in seasonally dry tropical habitats.

Conservation

''Erythroxylum acranthum'' was assessed as "

vulnerable Vulnerable may refer to: General * Vulnerability * Vulnerability (computing) * Vulnerable adult * Vulnerable species Music Albums * ''Vulnerable'' (Marvin Gaye album), 1997 * ''Vulnerable'' (Tricky album), 2003 * ''Vulnerable'' (The Used album) ...

" in the 1998

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...

, where it is said to be native only to the

Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (french: link=no, République des Seychelles; Creole: ''La Repiblik Sesel''), is an archipelagic state consisting of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, ...

. , ''E. acranthum'' was regarded as a synonym of ''Erythroxylum platyclados'', which has a much wider distribution.

References

platyclados Flora of Aldabra Flora of the Comoros Flora of Kenya Flora of Madagascar Flora of Mozambique Flora of Tanzania Plants described in 1842 {{Malpighiales-stub