Mallotus in Flora of China @ efloras.org

24. Mallotus Loureiro, Fl. Cochinch. 2: 635. 1790.

野桐属 ye tong shu

Authors: Huaxing Qiu & Michael G. Gilbert

Coelodiscus Baillon; Echinus Loureiro; Rottlera Roxburgh.

Trees or shrubs, rarely climbers, usually dioecious; indumentum usually of simple and stellate hairs, and whitish to reddish glandular scales. Leaves alternate or opposite with one member of pair smaller; stipules usually subulate; leaf blade undivided or lobate, sometimes peltate, abaxially often glandular-scaly, adaxially often distinctly glandular, base usually with 2 or more glands, venation palmate or pinnate. Inflorescences terminal or axillary, mostly unbranched, less often branched, usually many flowered. Male flowers usually several per bract; calyx 3-5-partite, valvate; petals and disk absent; stamens 15-250; filaments free; anthers 2-locular, connective often broad; pistillode absent [or rarely present]. Females flowers 1(or 2) per bract; calyx 3-5-lobed, sometimes spathaceous and caducous; ovary (2 or)3(or 4)-locular; styles simple, plumose or long papillose; ovules 1 per locule. Capsule (2 or)3(or 4)-locular, smooth or softly spiny. Seeds subglobose or ovoid, smooth, sometimes with aril.

About 150 species: tropical and subtropical regions in Asia, a few species in Africa and Australia; 28 species (seven endemic) in China.

Phylogenetic studies (Sierra et al., Blumea 51: 519-540. 2006; Kulju et al., Blumea 52: 115-136. 2007) have revealed that Mallotus and Macaranga are closely related and that the species of Cordemoya are distinct from both. These also show that Trevia is embedded within Mallotus but its inclusion has serious nomenclatural consequences and so this is not followed here until the situation is resolved.

Govaerts et al. (World Checkl. Euphorbiaceae: http://www.kew.org/wcsp/home.do) indicated that Mallotus dispar (Blume) Müller Argoviensis, recorded from Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, Philippines, and Vietnam, occurs in Hainan and Taiwan, but we have not seen the support for this statement. It most closely resembles M. decipiens and M. yunnanensis but differs by the larger stipules, 5-6 mm, longer petiole, 4-5 cm, and more densely softly spiny capsule.

Mallotus neocavaleriei H. Léveillé (Fl. Kouy-Tchéou, 165. 1914-1915) is a synonym of Deeringia amaranthoides (Lamarck) Merrill in the Amaranthaceae (see Fl. China 5: 416. 2003).

1 Leaves always opposite, sometimes very unequal, or with one member stipulelike [or even obsolete] (2)

+ At least some leaves alternate (7)

2 (1) Leaves palmately 3-veined (3)

+ Leaves pinnately veined, basal lateral veins similar to distal lateral veins (5)

3 (2) Petiole 3-12 cm, stipules obsolete; male inflorescence 6-15 cm; stamens 80-100. 1 M. tiliifolius

+ Petiole 0.5-3 cm, stipules 2-4 mm; male inflorescence 4-6 cm; stamens 30-40 (4)

4 (3) Branchlet indumentum dull yellow; leaf blade thinly leathery. 2 M. decipiens

+ Branchlet indumentum densely brownish; leaf blade stiffly papery. 3 M. yunnanensis

5 (2) Female inflorescence 10-18 cm; male inflorescence 5-15 cm; capsule densely softly spiny, spines 2-3 mm. 5 M. esquirolii

+ Female inflorescence 2-8 cm; male inflorescence 2-6 cm; capsule sparsely shortly softly spiny, spines ca. 1 mm (6)

6 (5) Leaf blade abaxially gray pubescent along veins, and barbate in vein-axils, lateral veins 4-6 pairs. 3 M. yunnanensis

+ Leaf blade abaxially ferruginous stellate-pubescent, lateral veins 7-9 pairs. 4 M. anomalus

7 (1) Leaves alternate and opposite on same branch; dried plant smelling of fenugreek; female calyx spathaceous; capsule softly spiny (8)

+ Leaves either strictly alternate or strictly opposite; plant not smelling of fenugreek; female calyx not spathaceous; capsule smooth or softly spiny (11)

8 (7) Leaves adaxially sparsely glandular-scaly; capsule gray tomentulose, densely and shortly softly spiny. 6 M. thorelii

+ Leaves adaxially not glandular-scaly; capsule pilose or glandular-scaly, more laxly softly spiny (9)

9 (8) Leaf blade oblong or elliptic, base obtuse or narrowly cordate, abaxially stellate-hirsute only along midrib. 7 M. peltatus

+ Leaf blade ovate or orbicular, base often rotund (10)

10 (9) Leaves clearly peltate, apex caudate-acuminate, abaxially stellate-pilose, palmately 7-9-veined. 8 M. roxburghianus

+ Leaves not or only obscurely peltate, apex acuminate, abaxially glaucous, palmately 3-veined. 9 M. garrettii

11 (7) Capsule smooth, densely brightly colored glandular-scaly, or tomentose (12)

+ Capsule softly spiny (15)

12 (11) Erect shrubs or trees (13)

+ Climbing shrubs (14)

13 (12) Leaf blade abaxially, ovary, and fruit with red or crimson gland-scales; seed ca. 4 mm in diam.. 10 M. philippensis

+ Leaf blade abaxially, ovary, and fruit with golden-yellow gland-scales; seed ca. 6 mm in diam.. 11 M. pallidus

14 (12) Leaf blade longer than wide, thickly papery or leathery; ovary and fruit 3-locular, densely orange-yellow stellate-tomentose; seed ca. 6 mm in diam.. 12 M. millietii

+ Leaf blade about as long as wide, papery or membranous, abaxially sparsely yellowish glandular-scaly; ovary and fruit 2- or 3-locular, yellowish-brownish tomentulose; seed ca. 5 mm in diam.. 13 M. repandus

15 (11) Leaves always peltate, palmately veined (16)

+ At least some leaves not peltate, sometimes also narrowly peltate on same branch (21)

16 (15) Leaves adaxially sparsely glandular-scaly and villous; capsule sparsely shortly softly spiny and densely yellowish glandular-scaly. 14 M. dunnii

+ Leaves adaxially not glandular-scaly; capsule densely stellate-pubescent and softly spiny, forming a continuous uniform layer (17)

17 (16) Leaves undivided, narrowly peltate or peltate (18)

+ Leaves often tricuspidate or 1- or 2-lobed, broadly peltate (19)

18 (17) Branchlets ferruginous tomentose; stipules triangular, 3-5 mm; capsule setae 6-8 mm. 15 M. metcalfianus

+ Branchlets brown pulveraceous-tomentose; stipules obsolete; capsule setae ca. 3 mm. 16 M. conspurcatus

19 (17) Female inflorescence branched or unbranched (var. croizatianus, var. pedicellaris); branchlets densely floccose or tomentose; stipules subulate, 5-15 mm. 17 M. barbatus

+ Female inflorescence unbranched; branchlets densely stellate-tomentose; stipules filiform or lanceolate, 3-8 mm (20)

20 (19) Branchlets reddish brown tomentose; stipules filiform, 6-8 mm; capsule ca. 20 mm in diam.. 18 M. luchenensis

+ Branchlets yellowish brown tomentose; stipules narrowly lanceolate, 3-4 mm; capsule 12-15 mm in diam.. 19 M. lotingensis

21 (15) Capsule ca. 10 mm in diam., densely softly spiny; female inflorescence branched or unbranched; leaf blade 3-veined from base (22)

+ Capsule 10-20 mm in diam., sparsely softly spiny, subulate; female inflorescence branched; leaf blade 3- or 5-veined from base (25)

22 (21) Female inflorescence branched; capsule 4-locular, spines subulate; leaf base with 2-4 glands. 20 M. tetracoccus

+ Female inflorescence unbranched; capsule 3(or 4)-locular, spines not subulate; leaf base with 2 conspicuous glands (23)

23 (22) Female inflorescence and infructescence pendulous, more than 15 cm, whitish tomentose; capsule setae filiform, yellowish when dried. 21 M. apelta

+ Female inflorescence or infructescence erect, 8-20 cm, gray or yellowish tomentose or pilosulose; capsule setae linear, brown when dried (24)

24 (23) Female inflorescence 8-15 cm, peduncle ca. 5 mm thick. 22 M. tenuifolius

+ Female inflorescence 10-20 cm, peduncle ca. 3 mm thick. 23 M. nepalensis

25 (21) Branchlet indumentum whitish; capsule ca. 6 mm in diam., setae ca. 2 mm. 24 M. microcarpus

+ Branchlet indumentum brownish, yellowish-brownish, or reddish; capsule 8-12 mm in diam., setae 3-7 mm (26)

26 (25) Branchlets tomentose; styles 6-7(-10) mm, partly connate; capsule setae 5-7 mm. 28 M. lianus

+ Branchlets tomentulose; styles 3-5 mm, almost free; capsule setae 3-4 mm (27)

27 (26) Leaf blade 3-veined from base; capsule 10-12 mm in diam.; leaves never peltate; branchlet indumentum yellowish-brownish. 25 M. oreophilus

+ Leaf blade 3-5-veined from base; capsule less than 10 mm in diam.; some leaves narrowly peltate; branchlet indumentum dull brown or reddish (28)

28 (27) Branchlets dull brownish tomentulose; ovary and capsule densely orange-reddish glandular-scaly. 26 M. japonicus

+ Branchlets reddish tomentulose; ovary and capsule tomentulose. 27 M. paniculatus

List of lower taxa

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