Mocinnodaphne
Encyclopedia
Mocinnodaphne is a neotropical genus of flowering plant
s belonging to the family Lauraceae
. The genus includes one or more species
of evergreen
trees, distributed mostly in tropical and subtropical regions of North America and Central America: California, Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Belize...
in tropical areas like the Sierra Madre Del Sur in Guerrero
, Mexico. The flowers are small, inconspicuas and bisexual. It is distinguished by the presence of only the third whorl of stamens fertile, anthers bicelled, staminodes of the fourth whorl well developed, and a cupule with persistent tepals subtending the fruit. The set of characters that make this genus distinct relates it to the cluster of genera formed by Ocotea, Nectandra, Cinnamomum, and few others. The fruit are succulent, olive fruit shaped with a deep thick cup, and dispersed mostly by birds.
Mocinnodaphne is related with Aiouea
, Cinnamomum
, where the species were included, Nectandra
, Ocotea
, Oreodaphne
, and Umbellularia
. The three most important characters were stomatal rim width, stomata and aperture length.
The more close group has a wide stomatal rim and includes all the species of Aiouea from South America, neotropical species of Cinnamomum, and Mocinnodaphne.
The close Umbellularia californica is a large evergreen tree
native to coastal forests of California
and slightly extended into Oregon
. It was set formerly in Ocotea
and Oreodaphne
.
Flowering plant
The flowering plants , also known as Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta, are the most diverse group of land plants. Angiosperms are seed-producing plants like the gymnosperms and can be distinguished from the gymnosperms by a series of synapomorphies...
s belonging to the family Lauraceae
Lauraceae
The Lauraceae or Laurel family comprises a group of flowering plants included in the order Laurales. The family contains about 55 genera and over 3500, perhaps as many as 4000, species world-wide, mostly from warm or tropical regions, especially Southeast Asia and South America...
. The genus includes one or more species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of evergreen
Evergreen
In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant that has leaves in all seasons. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which completely lose their foliage during the winter or dry season.There are many different kinds of evergreen plants, both trees and shrubs...
trees, distributed mostly in tropical and subtropical regions of North America and Central America: California, Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Belize...
Overview
Mocinnodaphne trees are shrubs or little trees hermaphodite and evergreen, of 2 to 10 m tall, called Mountain laurels. Like Oreodaphne they are present in Mountain Cloud forestCloud forest
A cloud forest, also called a fog forest, is a generally tropical or subtropical evergreen montane moist forest characterized by a persistent, frequent or seasonal low-level cloud cover, usually at the canopy level. Cloud forests often exhibit an abundance of mosses covering the ground and...
in tropical areas like the Sierra Madre Del Sur in Guerrero
Guerrero
Guerrero officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Guerrero is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 81 municipalities and its capital city is Chilpancingo....
, Mexico. The flowers are small, inconspicuas and bisexual. It is distinguished by the presence of only the third whorl of stamens fertile, anthers bicelled, staminodes of the fourth whorl well developed, and a cupule with persistent tepals subtending the fruit. The set of characters that make this genus distinct relates it to the cluster of genera formed by Ocotea, Nectandra, Cinnamomum, and few others. The fruit are succulent, olive fruit shaped with a deep thick cup, and dispersed mostly by birds.
Mocinnodaphne is related with Aiouea
Aiouea
Aiouea is a botanical genus of plants in the family of the Lauraceae endemic of Central America and South America. Genus Aiouea is distributed from southern Mexico to southern Brazil and Paraguay...
, Cinnamomum
Cinnamomum
Cinnamomum is a genus of evergreen aromatic trees and shrubs belonging to the Laurel family, Lauraceae. The species of Cinnamomum have aromatic oils in their leaves and bark. The genus contains over 300 species, distributed in tropical and subtropical regions of North America, Central America,...
, where the species were included, Nectandra
Nectandra
Nectandra is a genus of plant in family Lauraceae.-Overview:Plants from this genus have been used in the treatment of several clinical disorders in humans. It has been demonstrated that Nectandra plants have potential analgesic, antiinflammatory, febrifuge, energetic and hypotensive activities...
, Ocotea
Ocotea
Ocotea is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Lauraceae. The genus includes over 200 species of evergreen trees and shrubs, distributed mostly in tropical and subtropical regions of Central and South America, the West Indies, also with a few species in Africa and Madagascar, and...
, Oreodaphne
Oreodaphne
Oreodaphne is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Lauraceae. The genus includes five species of evergreen trees, distributed mostly in tropical and subtropical regions of South America, Mauritius, California, Sudafrica and Macaronesian archipelagos. Oreodaphne is related with Ocotea...
, and Umbellularia
Umbellularia
Umbellularia californica is a large tree native to coastal forests of California and slightly extended into Oregon.It is the sole species in the genus Umbellularia....
. The three most important characters were stomatal rim width, stomata and aperture length.
The more close group has a wide stomatal rim and includes all the species of Aiouea from South America, neotropical species of Cinnamomum, and Mocinnodaphne.
The close Umbellularia californica is a large evergreen tree
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...
native to coastal forests of California
California native plants
California native plants are plants that existed in California prior to the arrival of European explorers and colonists in the late 18th century...
and slightly extended into Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
. It was set formerly in Ocotea
Ocotea
Ocotea is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Lauraceae. The genus includes over 200 species of evergreen trees and shrubs, distributed mostly in tropical and subtropical regions of Central and South America, the West Indies, also with a few species in Africa and Madagascar, and...
and Oreodaphne
Oreodaphne
Oreodaphne is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Lauraceae. The genus includes five species of evergreen trees, distributed mostly in tropical and subtropical regions of South America, Mauritius, California, Sudafrica and Macaronesian archipelagos. Oreodaphne is related with Ocotea...
.
Species
The species previously were classified in other genus.- Mocinnodaphne cinnamomoidea