Coula
Encyclopedia
Coula is a genus of one to three species of tree
s native to tropical Africa
. Currently placed in the family Olacaceae
, recent genetic evidence suggests this family is paraphyletic
, and that Coula and related genera should be transferred to a new family Strombosiaceae.
Selected species
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
s native to tropical Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. Currently placed in the family Olacaceae
Olacaceae
Olacaceae is a family of flowering plants in the order Santalales. They are woody plants, native throughout the tropical regions of the world....
, recent genetic evidence suggests this family is paraphyletic
Paraphyly
A group of taxa is said to be paraphyletic if the group consists of all the descendants of a hypothetical closest common ancestor minus one or more monophyletic groups of descendants...
, and that Coula and related genera should be transferred to a new family Strombosiaceae.
Selected species
- Coula cabrae Wildem. & Th. Dur. (syn. C. edulis var. cabrae)
- Coula edulisCoula edulisCoula edulis is a tree in the genus Coula, native to tropical western Africa from Sierra Leone to Angola. It is plentiful in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria and Sierra Leone. It prefers tropical regions and is tolerant of light shade...
Baill.