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Secamone racemosa

Overview

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Vulnerable

Threat status

Interesting Facts

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Description

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Family Apocynaceae

Trees , shrubs , or vines , rarely subshrubs or herbs, with latex or rarely watery juice. Leaves simple , opposite, rarely whorled or alternate, pinnately veined; stipules absent or rarely present. Inflorescences cymose , terminal or axillary , with bracteoles. Flowers bisexual , 5- [or 4]-merous, actinomorphic . Calyx 5- or rarely 4-partite, quincuncial, basal glands usually present. Corolla 5- or rarely 4-lobed, salverform , funnelform , urceolate , or rarely rotate, lobes overlapping to right or left, rarely valvate . Stamens 5 or rarely 4; filaments short; anthers mostly sagittate , free or connivent into a cone adherent to pistil head , dehiscing longitudinally, base rounded , cordate, sagittate, or prolonged into an empty spur; pollen granular ; disc ringlike or cup-shaped, 2-5-lobed, or absent. Ovaries superior, rarely half-inferior, connate or distinct , 1- or 2-locular; ovules (1 or) 2-numerous per locule. Style 1; pistil head capitate, conical , or lampshade-shaped, base stigmatic, apex 2-cleft and not stigmatic . Fruit a berry, drupe, capsule, or follicle. Seeds with or without coma; endosperm thick and often horny , scanty, sometimes absent; embryo straight or nearly so, cotyledons often large, radicle terete .

About 155 genera and 2000 species distributed primarily in the tropics and subtropics, poorly represented in the temperate regions . Of the 44 genera and 145 species present in China, one genus and 38 species are endemic, and nearly 95% of the taxa grow in the southern and southwestern portions of the country.

Fruit type is highly diversified in the family , and it is diagnostic of many genera. Genera 1-4 produce 1, 2-celled berries from a flower; genus 5 produces 2, 1-celled berries from a flower; 6 and 7 produce mostly fleshy follicles containing deeply indented seeds with ruminate endosperm; 8 has follicles and winged seeds; 9 produces follicles and seeds with 2 comas; 10-12 have follicles with globose seeds; 13-18 have drupes mostly with fleshy mesocarp; 19 has samaroid fruit; 20 has spiny capsules with seeds winged all around; and 21-44 have free or fused follicles and comose seeds. Double flowers are known only from cultivated forms of Nerium oleander, Tabernaemontana divaricata, and Wrightia religiosa.

Plants of the Apocynaceae are often poisonous and are rich in alkaloids or glycosides, especially in the seeds and latex. Some species are valuable sources of medicine, insecticides , fibers, and rubber.[1]

Genus Secamone

Lianas or scandent shrubs . Leaves opposite, often with translucent dots. Cymes terminal or axillary , forked , sessile or short pedunculate . Flowers small. Sepals ciliate at margin ; basal glands usually absent. Corolla subrotate; tube short; lobes erect patent , overlapping to right . Corona usually double , outer lobes 5, reduced to longitudinal ridges below corolla lobe sinus; inner lobes 5, inserted on gynostegium, usually laterally compressed , straight or incurved . Filaments free or connate at base ; anthers with short, incurved apical appendages ; pollinia minute, 4 per pollinarium , erect, globose to ellipsoid , retinaculum minute, translator arm absent. Ovaries glabrous . Stigma head capitate or short conical . Follicles terete , smooth . Seeds ovate .

About 80 species: mostly in Africa, especially Madagascar (62 species), 2-7 species in tropical and subtropical Asia and Australia; six species in China.[2]

Habitat

Biome: Terrestrial [3].

Ecology: The species occurs in montane forest at 1,200–2,400 m altitude . (Ref. 306168).

List of Habitats :

Taxonomy

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Synonyms

Rhynchostigma racemosum

Notes

Synonym = Rhynchostigma racemosum Benth.[3].

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Secamone

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 0 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus:

More Info

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Further Reading

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Notes

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Contributors

Identifiers

Footnotes

  1. Bingtao Li, Antony J. M. Leeuwenberg & David J. Middleton "Apocynaceae". in Flora of China Vol. 16 Page 143. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
  2. "Secamone". in Flora of China Vol. 16 Page 200. Published by Science Press (Beijing) and Missouri Botanical Garden Press. Online at EFloras.org. [back]
  3. Cheek, M. 2004. Secamone racemosa. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 04 February 2012. [back]
Last Revised: 7/22/2012