''Mimophytum'' 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 ...

Boraginaceae. The species are native to northeastern

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 ...

and adjacent areas of

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. They are similar to the closely related genus '' Omphalodes'' but a distinct group.

Morphology

''Mimophytum'' species are (sub-)perennial herbs, either with a

rhizome In botany and dendrology, a rhizome ( ) is a modified subterranean plant stem that sends out roots and Shoot (botany), shoots from its Node (botany), nodes. Rhizomes are also called creeping rootstalks or just rootstalks. Rhizomes develop from ...

or erect. The leaves have petioles and are heart-shaped or rhombic. They produce blue flowers similar to forget-me-nots. The

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 consist of four winged nutlets. The nutlet wing can be turned upwards, creating a navel-like shape, similar to the fruits of '' Omphalodes''. In two species, '' M. alienum'' and '' M. alienoides'', there are two differently shaped fruits: two navel-like nutlets and two nutlets with flat wings. In three species, '' M. omphalodoides'', '' M. benitomartinezii'', and '' M. richardsonii'', the wings of the navel-shaped nutlets are beset with small barbed

glochid Glochids or glochidia (: "glochidium") are hair-like spines or short prickles, generally barbed, found on the areoles of Cactus, cacti in the sub-family ''Opuntioideae''. Cactus glochids easily detach from the plant and lodge in the skin, causi ...

ia.

Species

11 species are accepted. *'' Mimophytum alienoides'' *''

Mimophytum alienum ''Mimophytum'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family (biology), family Boraginaceae. The species are native to northeastern Mexico and adjacent areas of Texas, United States. They are similar to the closely related genus ''Omphalodes'' but ...

'' *'' Mimophytum australe'' *'' Mimophytum benitomartinezii'' *'' Mimophytum cardiophyllum'' *'' Mimophytum carranzae'' *'' Mimophytum chiangii'' *'' Mimophytum erectum'' *'' Mimophytum mexicanum'' *'' Mimophytum omphalodoides'' *'' Mimophytum richardsonii''

Systematics

The ''barbed glochidia'' on the nutlet wing was a character that led Greenman to describe his new species, ''Mimophytum omphalodoides'', in new genus. However, Greenman already recognized the similarity of many characters of his new species to ''Omphalodes''. The species without these glochidiate nutlet wings were considered as belonging to ''Omphalodes'', but the similarity was always recognized. New phylogenetic work showed that the native Mexican and Texan "''Omphalodes''" species are a

clade In biology, a clade (), also known as a Monophyly, monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that is composed of a common ancestor and all of its descendants. Clades are the fundamental unit of cladistics, a modern approach t ...

, distinct from the true ''Omphalodes'' from Europe. A later phylogenetic placement of the type species of ''Mimophytum'' within the North American clade of ''Omphalodes'' confirmed the suggested close relationship, leading to the taxonomic transfer of most of the native North American ''Omphalodes'' names to ''Mimophytum''. A single remaining ''Omphalodes'' species from Mexico, ''O. erecta'' was initially excluded from this process, because it is morphologically too deviant to infer an unequivocal classification to ''Mimophytum'' from morphology alone. A phylogenetic study published in 2019 confirmed that ''O. erecta'' belongs to the ''Mimophytum'' clade, and it was renamed '' Mimophytum erectum''.Otero, A., Jiménez-Mejías, P., Valcárcel, V. and Vargas, P. (2019), Worldwide long-distance dispersal favored by epizoochorous traits in the biogeographic history of Omphalodeae (Boraginaceae). ''Journal of Systematics and Evolution'', 57: 579-593. https://doi.org/10.1111/jse.12504

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q9033241 Boraginaceae genera Flora of Northern America