Caesalpinioideae
Encyclopedia
Caesalpinioideae is a botanical name
at the rank of subfamily, placed in the large family Fabaceae
or Leguminosae. Its name is formed from the generic name Caesalpinia
.
The Caesalpinioideae are mainly trees distributed in the moist tropics
. Their flowers are zygomorphic, but are very variable. Nodulation is rare in this subfamily, and where it does occur nodules have a primitive structure.
Because the Papilionoideae and Mimosoideae
arose from within the Caesalpinioideae, the Caesalpinioideae is paraphyletic. Therefore, it is likely to be split into several subfamilies, although it is not yet clear what those subfamilies should be.
In some classifications, for example the Cronquist system
, the group is recognized at the rank of family, Caesalpiniaceae.
The genera may be classified in four tribes, Caesalpinieae, Cassieae, Cercideae and Detarieae. The tribe Cercideae has sometimes been included in the subfamily Faboideae
(aka Papilionoideae) in the past.
Tribe Cercideae
Tribe Detarieae
About 81 genera of predominantly African distribution. See main article
for details.
Botanical name
A botanical name is a formal scientific name conforming to the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature and, if it concerns a plant cultigen, the additional cultivar and/or Group epithets must conform to the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants...
at the rank of subfamily, placed in the large family Fabaceae
Fabaceae
The Fabaceae or Leguminosae, commonly known as the legume, pea, or bean family, is a large and economically important family of flowering plants. The group is the third largest land plant family, behind only the Orchidaceae and Asteraceae, with 730 genera and over 19,400 species...
or Leguminosae. Its name is formed from the generic name Caesalpinia
Caesalpinia
Caesalpinia is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae. Membership within the genus is controversial, with different publications including anywhere from 70 to 165 species, depending largely on the inclusion or exclusion of species alternately listed under genera such as...
.
The Caesalpinioideae are mainly trees distributed in the moist tropics
Tropics
The tropics is a region of the Earth surrounding the Equator. It is limited in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere at approximately N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere at S; these latitudes correspond to the axial tilt of the Earth...
. Their flowers are zygomorphic, but are very variable. Nodulation is rare in this subfamily, and where it does occur nodules have a primitive structure.
Because the Papilionoideae and Mimosoideae
Mimosoideae
Mimosoideae is a subfamily of the flowering plant family Fabaceae characterized by flowers with small petals and numerous prominent stamens...
arose from within the Caesalpinioideae, the Caesalpinioideae is paraphyletic. Therefore, it is likely to be split into several subfamilies, although it is not yet clear what those subfamilies should be.
In some classifications, for example the Cronquist system
Cronquist system
The Cronquist system is a taxonomic classification system of flowering plants. It was developed by Arthur Cronquist in his texts An Integrated System of Classification of Flowering Plants and The Evolution and Classification of Flowering Plants .Cronquist's system places flowering plants into two...
, the group is recognized at the rank of family, Caesalpiniaceae.
The genera may be classified in four tribes, Caesalpinieae, Cassieae, Cercideae and Detarieae. The tribe Cercideae has sometimes been included in the subfamily Faboideae
Faboideae
Faboideae is a subfamily of the flowering plant family Fabaceae or Leguminosae. One acceptable alternative name for the subfamily is Papilionoideae....
(aka Papilionoideae) in the past.
Tribe Cassieae
Tribe CercideaeCercideaeCercideae is a tribe in the pea family, Fabaceae. Well-known members include Cercis , including species widely cultivated as ornamental trees in the United States and Europe, Bauhinia, widely cultivated as an ornamental tree in tropical Asia, and Tylosema esculentum , a traditional food crop in...
- AdenolobusAdenolobusAdenolobus is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae. It belongs to the sub family Caesalpinioideae....
- BarklyaBarklyaBarklya is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae. It belongs to the subfamily Caesalpinioideae....
- BaudouiniaBaudouiniaBaudouinia is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae. It belongs to the sub family Caesalpinioideae....
- BauhiniaBauhiniaBauhinia is a genus of more than 200 species of flowering plants in the subfamily Caesalpinioideae of the large flowering plant family Fabaceae, with a pantropical distribution. The genus was named after the Bauhin brothers, Swiss-French botanists....
- CercisCercisCercis , is a genus of about 10 species in the subfamily Caesalpinioideae of the pea family Fabaceae, native to warm-temperate regions. It contains small deciduous trees or large shrubs commonly known as Redbuds...
- GigasiphonGigasiphonGigasiphon is a genus of legume in the Fabaceae family.It contains the following species:* Gigasiphon gossweileri* Gigasiphon humblotianum* Gigasiphon macrosiphon...
- GriffoniaGriffoniaGriffonia is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae. It belongs to the subfamily Caesalpinioideae. Griffonia is known to have a high concentration of 5-HTP in its seeds....
- LysiphyllumLysiphyllumLysiphyllum is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae. It belongs to the sub family Caesalpinioideae....
- PiliostigmaPiliostigmaPiliostigma is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae. It belongs to the subfamily Caesalpinioideae....
- TylosemaTylosemaThe genus Tylosema is in the plant family Fabaceae.There are four documented species within the genus Tylosema:*Tylosema esculentum , Schreiber - Marama bean*T. fassoglensis*T. argentea Brenan...
Tribe DetarieaeDetarieaeThe tribe Detarieae is one of the subdivisions of the plant family Fabaceae . This tribe includes many tropical trees, some of which are used for timber or have ecological importance. The tribe consists of 81 genera, 53 of which are native to Africa...
About 81 genera of predominantly African distribution. See main articleDetarieae
The tribe Detarieae is one of the subdivisions of the plant family Fabaceae . This tribe includes many tropical trees, some of which are used for timber or have ecological importance. The tribe consists of 81 genera, 53 of which are native to Africa...
for details.