Platycarpha
Encyclopedia
Platycarpha is a genus
of flowering plant
s in the family
Asteraceae
. Until 2009, it was considered to comprise three species
, Platycarpha glomerata, Platycarpha carlinoides, and Platycarpha parvifolia, all from South Africa
. In that year, the latter two were segregated
from Platycarpha to form the genus Platycarphella, leaving Platycarpha with only its type species
, Platycarpha glomerata.
The name
Platycarpha is derived from two Greek
words, platys "broad" and karphos "a chip of straw or wood, a scale, a dry stalk". The name was first used by Christian Friedrich Lessing
in 1831. The type species
is Platycarpha glomerata. This species had been named Cynara glomerata by Carl Peter Thunberg
in 1800, and was moved to Platycarpha by A.P. de Candolle in 1836 in Prodromus Systematis Naturalis Regni Vegetabilis
.
The systematic
position of Platycarpha has long been regarded with uncertainty. Most authors have placed it in the tribe
Arctotideae until molecular phylogenetic studies
showed it to be closer to Vernonieae
. In 2009, the new tribe Platycarpheae was established for Platycarpha and Platycarphella.
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 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 in the family
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...
Asteraceae
Asteraceae
The Asteraceae or Compositae , is an exceedingly large and widespread family of vascular plants. The group has more than 22,750 currently accepted species, spread across 1620 genera and 12 subfamilies...
. Until 2009, it was considered to comprise three 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...
, Platycarpha glomerata, Platycarpha carlinoides, and Platycarpha parvifolia, all from South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. In that year, the latter two were segregated
Segregate (taxonomy)
In taxonomy, a segregate, or a segregate taxon is created when a taxon is split off, from another taxon. This other taxon will be better known, usually bigger, and will continue to exist, even after the segregate taxon has been split off...
from Platycarpha to form the genus Platycarphella, leaving Platycarpha with only its type species
Type species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...
, Platycarpha glomerata.
The name
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...
Platycarpha is derived from two Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
words, platys "broad" and karphos "a chip of straw or wood, a scale, a dry stalk". The name was first used by Christian Friedrich Lessing
Christian Friedrich Lessing
Christian Friedrich Lessing was a German botanist who was a native of Groß Wartenberg, Niederschlesien. He was a brother to painter Carl Friedrich Lessing , and a grandnephew of poet Gotthold Ephraim Lessing ....
in 1831. The type species
Type species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...
is Platycarpha glomerata. This species had been named Cynara glomerata by Carl Peter Thunberg
Carl Peter Thunberg
Carl Peter Thunberg aka Carl Pehr Thunberg aka Carl Per Thunberg was a Swedish naturalist and an apostle of Carl Linnaeus. He has been called "the father of South African botany" and the "Japanese Linnaeus"....
in 1800, and was moved to Platycarpha by A.P. de Candolle in 1836 in Prodromus Systematis Naturalis Regni Vegetabilis
Prodromus Systematis Naturalis Regni Vegetabilis
Prodromus Systematis Naturalis Regni Vegetabilis, also known by its standard botanical abbreviation Prodr. , is a 17-volume treatise on botany initiated by A. P. de Candolle. De Candolle intended it as a summary of all known seed plants, encompassing taxonomy, ecology, evolution and biogeography....
.
The systematic
History of plant systematics
The history of plant systematics—the biological classification of plants—stretches from the work of ancient Greek to modern evolutionary biologists. As a field of science, plant systematics came into being only slowly, early plant lore usually being treated as part of the study of...
position of Platycarpha has long been regarded with uncertainty. Most authors have placed it in the tribe
Tribe (biology)
In biology, a tribe is a taxonomic rank between family and genus. It is sometimes subdivided into subtribes.Some examples include the tribes: Canini, Acalypheae, Hominini, Bombini, and Antidesmeae.-See also:* Biological classification* Rank...
Arctotideae until molecular phylogenetic studies
Research
Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...
showed it to be closer to Vernonieae
Vernonieae
Vernonieae is a tribe of about 1300 species of plants in the aster family. They are mostly found in the tropics and warmer temperate areas, both in the Americas and the Old World. They are mostly herbaceous plants or shrubs, although there is at least one tree species, Vernonia arborea.- Taxonomy...
. In 2009, the new tribe Platycarpheae was established for Platycarpha and Platycarphella.
External links
- Platycarpha At:Plants of southern Africa At: PlantZAfrica.com
- CRC World Dictionary of Plant Names: M-Q At: Google Books
- Platycarpha In: Linnaea volume 6
- Platycarpha At:Index Nominum Genericorum At: References At: NMNH Department of Botany At: Research and Collections At: Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
- Cynara In: Prodromus Plantarum Capensium volume 2
- Platycarpha In: Prodr. (DC.) volume 5