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FOC | Family List | FOC Vol. 13 | Araliaceae

15. Schefflera J. R. Forster & G. Forster, Char. Gen. 45, Pl. 23. 1776.

鹅掌柴属 e zhang chai shu

Agalma Miquel; Heptapleurum Gaertner; Sciodaphyllum P. Browne.

Shrubs or trees, sometimes climbers or epiphytes, evergreen, hermaphroditic or andromonoecious, unarmed. Leaves palmately compound, rarely unifoliolate (not in China), margins entire to serrate; stipules united within petiole. Inflorescence a terminal or pseudo-lateral panicle or compound raceme; flowers arranged in umbels, heads, or racemes; bracts pubescent, deciduous or persistent. Pedicels not articulate below ovary. Calyx rim entire or 5-toothed. Petals 5-11, valvate. Stamens 5-11. Ovary (4 or)5-11-carpellate; styles partly or completely united into a column or stigmas sessile. Fruit a drupe, globose or ovoid. Seeds (4 or)5-11, laterally compressed; endosperm uniform or slightly ruminate.

Nearly 1100 species: widely distributed in tropics and subtropics of both hemispheres; 35 species (14 endemic) in SW and SE China.

Several recent phylogenetic studies have shown that Schefflera is clearly polyphyletic (Lowry et al., S. Afr. J. Bot. 70: 382-392. 2004; Plunkett et al., Pl. Syst. Evol. 245: 1-39. 2004; Plunkett et al., Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 92: 202-224. 2005) and that the Asian species belong to a single, well-supported, morphologically coherent clade. The name Schefflera will ultimately have to be restricted to a small group of species from the SW Pacific while the Asian species will have to be transferred to one or more other genera.

We were unable to treat Schefflera cavaleriei (H. Léveillé) Frodin (World Checklist Bibliogr. Araliaceae, 330. 2004 ["2003"]; Heptapleurum cavaleriei H. Léveillé, Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. 9: 326. 1911) because the original description is not sufficiently detailed to associate the name with any of the species recognized here, and we were unable to locate the type material, which was collected in Guizhou according to the protologue.


1 Inflorescence a panicle of racemes or spikes; styles united into a column   (2)
+ Inflorescence a panicle of umbels or heads; styles distinct or none   (10)
       
2 (1) Flowers borne in spikes, sessile; leaflets abaxially densely stellate tomentose, tertiary veins indistinct.   1 S. delavayi
+ Flowers borne in racemes, with a distinct pedicel, abaxially glabrous or sparsely stellate pubescent, tertiary veins distinct   (3)
       
3 (2) Leaflets 12-16, rarely 7-9   (4)
+ Leaflets 3-9   (6)
       
4 (3) Leaflets abaxially stellate pubescent (sometimes very sparsely so on veins), some smaller than others, but never bractlike; lateral veins 8-15 pairs.   2 S. chapana
+ Leaflets abaxially glabrous, some highly reduced and bractlike, lateral veins 5-8 pairs   (5)
       
5 (4) Leaves adaxially with tertiary veins impressed in dry material.   3 S. metcalfiana
+ Leaves adaxially with tertiary veins raised in dry material.   4 S. hainanensis
       
6 (3) Leaflets abaxially moderately to densely stellate pubescent, margin sparsely serrate, tertiary venation adaxially impressed in dry material, abaxially raised.   5 S. wardii
+ Leaflets abaxially glabrous, margin entire, tertiary venation adaxially not impressed in dry material   (7)
       
7 (6) Petiolules to 1(-1.3) cm.   6 S. shweliensis
+ Petiolules longer than 1.5 cm   (8)
       
8 (7) Leaflets adaxially shiny, lateral veins 16-22 pairs, diverging from midvein at more than 45° angle   7 S. multinervia
+ Leaflets adaxially not shiny, lateral veins 8-12(-16) pairs, diverging from midvein at less than 45° angle   (9)
       
9 (8) Petals and stamens 5; ovary 5-carpellate.   8 S. hoi
+ Petals and stamens 6; ovary 6-carpellate.   9 S. taiwaniana
       
10 (1) Styles none, stigmas sessile   (11)
+ Styles distinct, or united into a column   (17)
       
11 (10) Inflorescence with stalked, branched trichomes; largest leaflet more than 11.5 cm wide (rarely only ca. 8 cm wide).   10 S. petelotii
+ Inflorescence with stellate trichomes but lacking stalked, branched trichomes; largest leaflet no more than 9 cm wide (rarely to 16 cm in S. elliptica)   (12)
       
12 (11) Flowers and fruit in heads, sessile or subsessile.   11 S. pauciflora
+ Flowers and fruit distinctly pedicellate   (13)
       
13 (12) Fruit red-brown glandular punctate; disk rounded to flat   (14)
+ Fruit not glandular punctate; disk usually broadly conic to pyramidal   (15)
       
14 (13) Ovary 5-carpellate, stigmas 5; calyx obscure, reduced to a line; disk rounded to nearly flat; leaflets subleathery.   12 S. leucantha
+ Ovary (7 or)8- or 9-carpellate, stigmas 7-9; calyx evident, forming a distinct rim; disk flat to slightly depressed; leaflets membranous to papery.   13 S. zhuana
       
15 (13) Ovary 5-loculed.   14 S. elliptica
+ Ovary 6-9(or 10)-loculed   (16)
       
16 (15) Leaflets 7-9, blade of largest less than 12 cm, secondary veins 4-6 pairs; ovary 6-loculed.   15 S. arboricola
+ Leaflets 5-7, blade of largest 17-35 cm, secondary veins 12-16 pairs; ovary 6-9(or 10)-loculed; inflorescence pseudo-lateral, borne below leaves.   16 S. khasiana
       
17 (10) Styles free at least apically, free arms radiating to recurved (appressed at anthesis, but not fused)   (18)
+ Styles completely united into a column   (20)
       
18 (17) Flowers long pedicellate, arranged in umbels.   17 S. hypoleucoides
+ Flowers sessile or subsessile (pedicel to 3 mm, but usually obscure), arranged in compact heads   (19)
       
19 (18) Leaflets elliptic to slightly ovate, 8-23 × 4-12 cm, base broadly cuneate or rounded; calyx margin entire or subentire.   18 S. chinensis
+ Leaflets lanceolate to elliptic-lanceolate, 12-26 × 3-6 cm, base cuneate; calyx margin with 5 sharp teeth.   19 S. guizhouensis
       
20 (17) Inflorescence pseudo-lateral, borne below leaves (at least in fruit)   (21)
+ Inflorescence terminal   (22)
       
21 (20) Leaflets 7-9(-12), leathery, petiole 7-10 mm in diam. at base, with a prominent ligule 15-20 mm; ovary 6-carpellate.   34 S. lociana
+ Leaflets 5-7, membranous, petiole 2-4 mm in diam. at base, with a small ligule 2-5 mm; ovary 6-10-carpellate.   35 S. brevipedicellata
       
22 (20) Leaflets abaxially stellate pubescent, at least when young (sometimes minute and scattered)   (23)
+ Leaflets abaxially completely glabrous   (30)
       
23 (22) Petals stellate pubescent; terminal leaflet often more than 8 cm wide (sometimes narrower in S. hypoleuca)   (24)
+ Petals glabrous; terminal leaflets less than 8 cm wide   (25)
       
24 (23) Leaf apically acute; inflorescence stellate pubescent or glabrous, inflorescence with primary axis 15-30(-40) cm.   20 S. hypoleuca
+ Leaf apically acuminate; inflorescence densely ferruginous-brown stellate pubescent (glabrescent), primary axis to ca. 75 cm.   21 S. macrophylla
       
25 (23) Secondary and tertiary veins adaxially impressed in dry material   (26)
+ Secondary and tertiary veins adaxially not impressed in dry material   (27)
       
26 (25) Leaflets oblong or elliptic to slightly obovate, abaxially densely yellow-brown stellate pubescent; inflorescence rounded, primary axis to 15(-25) cm.   22 S. fengii
+ Leaflets narrowly obovate to oblanceolate, abaxially gray stellate pubescent or sparsely pubescent; inflorescence tall, primary axis 25-40 cm.   23 S. rhododendrifolia
       
27 (25) Styles stout, shorter than 1.5 mm in fruit; ovary 5-9(or 10)-carpellate; inflorescence axes light to rusty brown pubescent.   24 S. heptaphylla
+ Styles slender, longer than 1.5 mm in fruit; ovary 5(or 6)-carpellate; inflorescence axes not light to rusty brown pubescent   (28)
       
28 (27) Inflorescence compact, primary axis 5-15(-17) cm, gray or brown tomentose; margins of leaflets often sparsely to moderately serrulate.   25 S. bodinieri
+ Inflorescence elongate, primary axis at least 25 cm, densely yellow-brown or ferruginous pubescent; margins of leaflets usually entire, sometimes sparsely serrulate   (29)
       
29 (28) Leaflets 7, elliptic, abaxially ferruginous stellate pubescent.   26 S. marlipoensis
+ Leaflets (5-)9-13, ovate to ovate-lanceolate or oblong-lanceolate, abaxially minutely stellate pubescent.   27 S. minutistellata
       
30 (22) Leaflets less than 2 cm wide, linear-oblong, abaxially ferruginous pubescent.   28 S. parvifoliolata
+ Leaflets more than 2.5 cm wide   (31)
       
31 (30) Leaflets obovate-oblong, broadest in distal half   (32)
+ Leaflets ovate-lanceolate or elliptic, broadest at middle or in basal half   (33)
       
32 (31) Leaves with secondary and tertiary veins adaxially impressed in dry material   29 S. glabrescens
+ Leaves with secondary and tertiary veins adaxially not impressed in dry material.   30 S. napuoensis
       
33 (31) Leaflets leathery, elliptic, secondary and tertiary veins adaxially impressed in dry material; inflorescence a corymbose panicle, glabrous.   31 S. pes-avis
+ Leaflets papery to subleathery, secondary and tertiary veins adaxially not impressed in dry material; inflorescence paniculate, ± pubescent   (34)
       
34 (33) Ovary 5-9(or 10)-carpellate, styles shorter than 1.5 mm.   24 S. heptaphylla
+ Ovary 5-carpellate, styles (1-)1.5-3.5 mm   (35)
       
35 (34) Inflorescence compact, primary axis 5-15(-17) cm, gray or brown tomentose.   25 S. bodinieri
+ Inflorescence elongate, primary axis at least (20-)30 cm   (36)
       
36 (35) Petals stellate pubescent.   20 S. hypoleuca
+ Petals glabrous   (37)
       
37 (36) Leaflets oblong-lanceolate, 20-25 × 5.5-6.5 cm, apex acuminate.   32 S. elata
+ Leaflets oblong-elliptic or elliptic, 11-15 × 5-9 cm, apex abruptly acute.   33 S. insignis

  • List of lower taxa


     

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