''Mangifera'' 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 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
cashew
Cashew is the common name of a tropical evergreen tree ''Anacardium occidentale'', in the family Anacardiaceae. It is native to South America and is the source of the cashew nut and the cashew apple, an accessory fruit. The tree can grow as t ...
family,
Anacardiaceae. It contains 64 species, with the best-known being the common
mango
A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree '' Mangifera indica''. It originated from the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South and Southeast As ...
(''
Mangifera indica''). The
center of diversity of the genus is in the
Malesia
Malesia is a biogeographical region straddling the Equator and the boundaries of the Indomalayan and Australasian realms. It is a phytogeographical floristic region in the Paleotropical kingdom. It was first recognized as a distinct region ...
n ecoregion of
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...
, particularly in
Sumatra
Sumatra () is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the list of islands by area, sixth-largest island in the world at 482,286.55 km2 (182,812 mi. ...
,
Borneo
Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...
, and the
Malay Peninsula
The Malay Peninsula is located in Mainland Southeast Asia. The landmass runs approximately north–south, and at its terminus, it is the southernmost point of the Asian continental mainland. The area contains Peninsular Malaysia, Southern Tha ...
.
They are generally
canopy 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 in lowland
rainforests
Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...
, reaching a height of .
Uses
''Mangifera'' species are widely cultivated in Asia and elsewhere. More than 27 species in the genus bear edible, fleshy
fruit
In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants (angiosperms) that is formed from the ovary after flowering.
Fruits are the means by which angiosperms disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propaga ...
s, especially the common mango (''M. indica''). Others, such as ''
M. foetida'', yield astringent fruits that can be eaten
pickled.
Mango wastes, such as the seed kernel and peel, have high functional and nutritional potential. Mango seed contains important bioactive compounds that have high
antioxidant
Antioxidants are Chemical compound, compounds that inhibit Redox, oxidation, a chemical reaction that can produce Radical (chemistry), free radicals. Autoxidation leads to degradation of organic compounds, including living matter. Antioxidants ...
activity, lipids that have acceptable physical and chemical characteristics (free of ''trans'' fatty acids), and a somewhat high (about 6%)
protein
Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residue (biochemistry), residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including Enzyme catalysis, catalysing metab ...
content. The mango peel contains considerable amounts of
antioxidants and
dietary fiber
Dietary fiber (fibre in English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) or roughage is the portion of plant-derived food that cannot be completely broken down by human digestive enzymes. Dietary fibers are diverse in chemical co ...
.
Fossil record
The earliest
fossil
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserve ...
species thought to be related to ''Mangifera'' is ''
Eomangiferophyllum damalgiriense'' from the upper
Paleocene
The Paleocene ( ), or Palaeocene, is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 mya (unit), million years ago (mya). It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), ...
in northeastern
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. Leaves have also been reported from the Paleocene of
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
and the
Eocene
The Eocene ( ) is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (Ma). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes ...
of
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
, though these have been considered questionable. Leaf fossils confidently assignable to ''Mangifera'' have been collected from
Oligocene
The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch (geology), epoch of the Paleogene Geologic time scale, Period that extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that defin ...
or early
Miocene
The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...
sediments in northern
Thailand
Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...
.
Taxonomy
Subgenera
*Subgenus ''Mangifera''
**Section ''Marchandora''
Pierre
**Section ''Euantherae''
Pierre
**Section ''Rawa''
Kosterm.
**Section ''Mangifera''
Kosterm.
*Subgenus ''Limus''
(Marchand) Kosterm.
Species
These species are accepted:
*''
Mangifera acutigemma''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera altissima''
Blanco
*''
Mangifera andamanica''
King
*''
Mangifera applanata''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera austroindica''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera blommesteinii''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera bullata''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera caesia''
Jack
*''
Mangifera caloneura''
Kurz
*''
Mangifera campnospermoides''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera camptosperma''
Pierre
*''
Mangifera casturi''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera cochinchinensis''
Engl. (
Indo-China
Mainland Southeast Asia (historically known as Indochina and the Indochinese Peninsula) is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to th ...
)
*''
Mangifera collina''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera decandra''
Ding Hou
*''
Mangifera dewildei''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera dongnaiensis''
Pierre
*''
Mangifera duperreana''
Pierre
*''
Mangifera flava''
Evrard
*''
Mangifera foetida''
Lour.
*''
Mangifera gedebe''
Miq.
*''
Mangifera gracilipes''
Hook.f.
*''
Mangifera griffithii''
Hook.f.
*''
Mangifera havilandii''
Ridl.
*''
Mangifera indica''
L.: the common mango (type sp.) (synonym ''M. austroyunnanensis''
Hu)
*''
Mangifera inocarpoides''
Merr. & L.M.Perry
*''
Mangifera khasiana''
Pierre
*''
Mangifera khoonmengiana''
Kochummen
*''
Mangifera lagenifera''
Griff.
*''
Mangifera lalijiwa''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera laurina''
Blume
*''
Mangifera linearifolia''
(Mukh.) Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera macrocarpa''
Blume
*''
Mangifera magnifica''
Kochummen
*''
Mangifera mariana''
Buch.-Ham.
*''
Mangifera merrillii''
Mukherji
*''
Mangifera minor''
Blume
*''
Mangifera minutifolia''
Evrard
*''
Mangifera monandra''
Merr.
*''
Mangifera nicobarica''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera odorata''
Griff.
*''
Mangifera orophila''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera pajang''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera paludosa''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera parvifolia''
Boerl. & Koord.
*''
Mangifera pedicellata''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera pentandra''
Hook.f.
*''
Mangifera persiciforma''
C.Y. Wu & T.L. Ming: (synonyms: ''M. persiciformis''
C.Y. Wu & T.L. Ming, ''
Mangifera hiemalis''
J.Y. Liang )
*''
Mangifera pseudoindica''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera quadrifida''
Jack ex Wall.
*''
Mangifera reba''
Pierre.
*''
Mangifera rubropetala''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera rufocostata''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera similis''
Blume (synonym: ''
Mangifera torquenda''
Kosterm.)
*''
Mangifera subsessilifolia''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera sulavesiana''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera sumatrana''
Miq.
*''
Mangifera sumbawaensis''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera superba''
Hook.f.
*''
Mangifera swintonioides''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera sylvatica''
Roxb.
*''
Mangifera timorensis''
Blume
*''
Mangifera transversalis''
Kosterm.
*''
Mangifera zeylanica''
(Blume) Hook.f.
Formerly placed here
*''
Bouea oppositifolia''
(Roxb.) Meisn. (as ''M. oppositifolia''
Roxb.)
* ''
Buchanania cochinchinensis''
(Lour.) M.R.Almeida (as ''M. axillaris''
Desr.)
* ''
Elaeodendron glaucum''
(Rottb.) Pers. (as ''M. glauca''
Rottb.)
* ''
Irvingia gabonensis''
(Aubry-Lecomte ex O'Rorke) Baill. (as ''M. gabonensis''
Aubry-Lecomte ex O'Rorke)
* ''
Fegimanra africana''
(Oliv.) Pierre. (as ''M. africana''
Oliv.)
*''
Spondias pinnata''
(J.Koenig ex L.f.) Kurz (as ''M. pinnata''
J.Koenig ex L.f.)
References
{{Authority control
Anacardiaceae genera