Montiniaceae
Encyclopedia
Montiniaceae is a family
of flowering plant
s. It includes two or three genera
of shrub
s and small tree
s, native to southwest Africa
and tropical East Africa
as well as Madagascar
. The genera Grevea and Montinia are included in most classification systems. The genus Kaliphora
is included in the Montiniaceae in many newer classification systems, including the APG II, but other classification systems, including that of Armen Takhtajan
, include Kaliphora in its own family, the Kaliphoraceae.
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
of flowering plant
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. It includes two or three genera
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
s and small 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...
s, native to southwest 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...
and tropical East Africa
East Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
as well as Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
. The genera Grevea and Montinia are included in most classification systems. The genus Kaliphora
Kaliphora
Kaliphora madagascarensis is a species of evergreen shrub or small tree. It is endemic to Madagascar, where it inhabits subhumid woodlands and forests in eastern Madagascar, in the provinces of Antananarivo, Antsiranana, Fianarantsoa, and Mahajanga....
is included in the Montiniaceae in many newer classification systems, including the APG II, but other classification systems, including that of Armen Takhtajan
Armen Takhtajan
Armen Leonovich Takhtajan or Takhtajian , was a Soviet-Armenian botanist, one of the most important figures in 20th century plant evolution and systematics and biogeography. His other interests included morphology of flowering plants, paleobotany, and the flora of the Caucasus...
, include Kaliphora in its own family, the Kaliphoraceae.