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A, B Asclepias occidentalis. A habit, with rootstock and single dehisced follicle; B flower. C, D A. mtorwiensis. C habit. D flower. A & B from Baldwin 14170; C & D from Brummitt et al. 18142. DRAWN BY MARGARET TEBBS.

A, B Asclepias occidentalis. A habit, with rootstock and single dehisced follicle; B flower. C, D A. mtorwiensis. C habit. D flower. A & B from Baldwin 14170; C & D from Brummitt et al. 18142. DRAWN BY MARGARET TEBBS.

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In preparation for two major regional Flora accounts, Asclepias has been reassessed in tropical Africa. 38 species not assigned to the allied genera Aspidoglossum, Glossostelma, Gomphocarpus, Margaretta, Pachycarpus, Stathmostelma, Stenostelma or Xysmalobium are recognised in the region. Nine species and one subspecies are described for the first t...

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... Related species have white, yellow, green, or brownish corollas with variously colored corona, and are missing corona tooth, which are sometimes inconspicuous and included within the cavity of the lobe. It is an annual or short-lived perennial with fibrous, non-tuberous rootstock [42]. ...
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A taxonomic revision of the family Apocynaceae (Gentianales) from Tunisia is presented. Field surveys carried out during the last two decades allowed us to identify new records at the national level, i.e., Asclepias curassavica, Carissa macrocarpa, Cascabela thevetia, and Cryptostegia grandiflora (the latter three are new to the non-native Mediterranean and North African woody vascular flora). The genus Asclepias is new at a national level, whereas Carissa, Cascabela, and Cryptostegia are recorded here for the first time in the Mediterranean basin. Information is provided about nomenclature (accepted names, main synonyms, and types), morphology, chromosome number, chorology, occurrence in Tunisia, habitat, phenology, and taxonomic annotations, and original photos are prepared. Diagnostic keys relating to generic and species ranks are also given. Using typificitions, the identity of the Linnaean names Cynanchum erectum and C. monspeliensis, Pourret’s Vinca difformis, and Roxburgh’s Nerium grandiflorum is discussed.
... Only three species of Asclepias were reported from Angola by Goyder (2008). Asclepias baumii Schltr., known only from the type collection which was destroyed in Berlin, is almost certainly synonymous with A. aurea, as is A. radiata S.Moore (Goyder 2009). Asclepias randii S.Moore is also present. ...
... Asclepias randii S.Moore is also present. Following the transfer of Odontostelma Rendle to Asclepias by Goyder (2009), A. minor (S.Moore) Goyder, also occurs in the country. All of these species occur in scattered populations with few individuals, as is common for Asclepias and allied genera in tropical Africa. ...
... Asclepias minor has a corona which is much reduced, not even reaching the base of the anther wings and has a short ventral appendage. So the species most similar to our new collection appears to be the highly variable A. aurea, which occurs across Namibia, southern Angola, Zambia, the Katanga region of the D.R.Congo, Zimbabwe, northern provinces of South Africa, Eswatini (Swaziland) and Lesotho (Goyder 2009). ...
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Four new species are described from central and eastern Angola and adjacent NW Zambia. All occur in Kalahari sand savannas rich in endemic and more widely distributed geoxylic suffrutices. Despite being known from very few collections, the conservation status of one of these new species is assessed as Least Concern, as these grasslands are nutrient-poor, are in remote sparsely populated areas, and are not threatened with conversion to agriculture. The remaining three are treated as Data Deficient. In addition, one new combination is provided for Ancylanthos rubiginosus Desf. under Vangueria as V. rubiginosa (Desf.) Lantz is an illegitimate later homonym. We also make orthographic corrections to specific epithets commemorating Ilse von Nolde, a collector who made important collections from Quela in Malange in the 1930s.
... Eriosema batekense and Kalaharia schaijesii have been described in the past decade or so (van der Maesen and Walters 2011; Bamps 2013), and show that within their limited distribution they are very abundant across vast savanna areas (sensu Rabinowitz et al. 1986), demonstrating a previous lack of attention to herbaceous species and the area in general. Asclepias occidentalis, a Plateaux Batéké endemic not in the fire plots, and rarely collected, flowers only after burning (Goyder 2009). Other species where fire stimulates flowering could be additionally found in future collections. ...
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Background and aims – Old-growth savannas in Africa are impacted by fire, have endemic and geoxylic suffrutices, and are understudied. This paper explores the Parc National des Plateaux Batéké (PNPB) in Gabon and the impact of fire on its flora to understand if it is an old-growth savanna. It presents 1) a vascular plant checklist, including endemic species and geoxylic suffrutices and 2) an analysis of the impact of fire on the savanna herbaceous flora, followed by recommendations for fire management to promote plant diversity. Material and methods – 1,914 botanical collections from 2001–2019 collected by the authors and others were extracted from two herbaria databases in 2021 to create the checklist. The impact of fire was explored through a three season plot-based inventory of plant species (notably forbs and geoxylic suffrutices) in five annually, dry-season burned study areas located at 600 m in elevation. A two-factor ANOVA was conducted across two burn treatments and three season treatments. Key results – The area has a vascular flora of 615 taxa. Seven species are endemic to the Plateaux Batéké forest-savanna mosaic. Seventeen species are fire-dependent geoxylic suffrutices, attesting to the ancient origins of these savannas. Burning promotes fire-dependent species. Conclusion – The PNPB aims to create a culturally-adapted fire management plan. The combination of customary fire and fire-adapted species in the savanna creates a unique ancient forest-savanna mosaic in Central Africa that merits protection while recognising the role that the Batéké-Alima people have in shaping and governing this landscape.
... A. curassavica diff ers from other closely related species by fl owers with bright red corolla, orange or yellow corona with prominent tooth arising from the cavity and arching over the stylar head (the other species have white, yellow, green or brownish corolla with corona variously coloured, corona tooth missing or inconspicuous and included within the cavity of the lobe); it is an annual or short-lived perennial from fi brous, non-tuberous rootstock (see Goyder, 2009). ...
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Seven species of alien flowering plants collected in the Emirate of Fujairah (the UAE) in 2020 are recorded for the first time for the flora of the Arabian Peninsula: Hydrocotyle verticillata Thunb. (Apiaceae), Asclepias curassavica L. (Asclepiadaceae / Apocynaceae), Croton bonplandianus Baill. (Euphorbiaceae), Glinus oppositifolius (L.) Aug. DC. (Molluginaceae), Eucalyptus camaldulensis Dehnh. (Myrtaceae), Oxalis debilis subsp. corymbosa (DC.) O. Bolòs & Vigo (Oxalidaceae), and Tropaeolum majus L. (Tropaeolaceae). For all the species, data on their distribution, citations of voucher herbarium specimens, characteristics of their habitats in Fujairah and appropriate notes are given. The herbarium specimens are stored at the Komarov Botanical Institute of RAS (LE) in St. Petersburg, Russia, and the Fujairah Scientific Herbarium (FSH) in the UAE.
... However, if a broad concept of the genus Asclepias is accepted, it would include ca. 400 species distributed in Africa, West Asia, North and South America (Goyder 2009;Chuba et al. 2017). Several species of the genus Asclepias have been registered as aliens in other continents, and some of them are invasive (Ping-Tao et al. 1995;Randall 2007;Botta-Dukát 2008). ...
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Studies on populations of Asclepias syriaca L. in Lithuania revealed the occurrence of a new alien plant species, the North American native Asclepias speciosa Torr. (Apocynaceae, Asclepiadoideae), in southern parts of Lithuania-the first report of the latter species in Europe. Interestingly, a thorough analysis of her-barium specimens revealed that A. speciosa had first been collected in Lithuania in 1962, but the specimen was misidentified at the time as A. syriaca. The newly discovered population of A. speciosa occupies mesic grasslands, tall-herb fringe communities and arable field habitats. Sexual reproduction of this species was not recorded; it spreads locally by means of vegetative reproduction. We present here an exhaustive analysis of morphological characteristics and differences between A. speciosa and A. syriaca and other species of the genus, as well as a key for identification of alien Asclepias species in Europe. We predict that the effect of A. speciosa on native habitats and communities, and its economic impact, are comparable to those of the highly invasive A. syriaca. Although A. speciosa currently occurs very rarely as an alien species in Europe, its existence in other regions of Europe is highly probable.
... Sosef et al. 2007, Bissiengou & Sosef 2008, Breteler 2008, Ntore et al. 2010, Fischer & Lachenaud 2013) and taxonomic revisions of several genera (e.g. Onana 2008, Goyder 2009, Breteler 2010, Sonké et al. 2012, Lachenaud & Zemagho 2015. Important contributions have also been made to the floristic study of neighbouring countries (e.g. ...
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Background and aims – The intensive botanical prospections carried out in Gabon since the publication of the national checklist in 2006 have resulted in c. 34 300 new specimens (amounting to 30% of all collections made in the country) and an annual increase of 25 species in average. As a result, 5175 species of vascular plants are now recorded from Gabon, of which 650 are considered endemic. However, most of the recent discoveries have not yet been published. This paper is the first of a series documenting additions to the flora of Gabon, and new records of poorly known species. It concerns specifically new records from the Lower Ogooué Ramsar site, the third largest delta of Africa, and certainly the most intact, which includes 80% of the country’s wetlands and a wide variety of other habitats. Methods – The new records presented here come essentially from fieldwork conducted in Gabon between 2008 and 2016 by the authors and colleagues. Further information comes from the study of herbarium specimens in BR, BRLU, K, LBV, MO, P and WAG. For each species, information on distribution and ecology is given, and the studied Gabonese collections listed. In case of rare or range-restricted species, collections from other countries are also listed, and a distribution map is provided, as well as an evaluation of the conservation status based on the categories and criteria of the IUCN Red List. Key results – We report 18 additions to the flora of Gabon, including four genera new to the country (Capparis, Gisekia, Hoffmanniella and Leptochloa) and the first records of the neotropical Justicia secunda being naturalised in tropical Africa. New distribution records are also provided for 16 rare Gabonese endemics or near-endemics. Some species are also newly reported from Cameroon (Cissus leemansii, Salacia coronata) and Equatorial Guinea (Cissus leemansii, C. louisii, Lychnodiscus grandifolius, Placodiscus resendeanus, Rutidea gabonensis, Uvaria bipindensis). Two species, which were reported in the 2006 checklist based on misidentifications, are excluded from the Gabonese flora. © 2018 Meise Botanic Garden and Royal Botanical Society of Belgium. All rights reserved.
... The revision by Goyder and Nicholas (2001) of Gomphocarpus, the synopsis of Asclepias for Africa (Goyder 2009), and continued work on the American species of Asclepias (Fishbein et al. 2011) suggests that understanding the position of Gomphocarpus may be key to our understanding of how the Old World and New World parts of the Asclepias complex evolved. This highlights the recurring problem of the circumscription of many genera of the subtribe Asclepiadinae in Africa, to which the genus Gomphocarpus belong. ...
... Bullock (subsequently returned to Asclepias by Goyder in 2009), Schizoglossum E.Mey. and Xysmalobium, in an African context. ...
... The revision by Goyder and Nicholas (2001) of Gomphocarpus, the synopsis of Ascle pias for Africa (Goyder 2009), and continued work on the American species of Asclepias (Fishbein et al. 2011) suggests that understanding the position of Gomphocarpus may be key to our understanding of how the Old World and New World parts of the Asclepias complex evolved. This highlights the recurring problem of the circumscription of many genera of the subtribe Asclepiadinae in Africa, to which the genus Gomphocarpus belong. ...
... The generic taxonomy of Asclepiadinae has taken divergent paths for Old and New World speciesall American members are currently classified in Asclepias (Woodson 1941(Woodson , 1954, whereas African and Asian representatives, many of which have been historically included in Asclepias, are currently placed among 16 genera, including Asclepias (Goyder 2001a(Goyder , 2009. For convenience, the American species of Asclepiadinae will be referred to here as "Asclepias s. s.", and all Old World species, except those placed in the well marked genera Calotropis, Kanahia, and Pergularia, will be referred to as the "African Asclepias complex". ...
... Goyder et al. 2007). More recently, Goyder (2009) expressed disappointment in the difficulty of achieving phylogenetic resolution in the group (e.g. Goyder 2009) and resorted "to a broad, non-monophyletic concept of Asclepias simply to accommodate species excluded from other genera and species of uncertain affinity." ...
... More recently, Goyder (2009) expressed disappointment in the difficulty of achieving phylogenetic resolution in the group (e.g. Goyder 2009) and resorted "to a broad, non-monophyletic concept of Asclepias simply to accommodate species excluded from other genera and species of uncertain affinity." ...
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Abstract—We infer phylogenetic relationships and test the monophyly of genera of the African Asclepias complex with three non-coding plastid DNA regions, rpl16 intron, trnC-rpoB spacer, and trnS-G spacer/trnG intron. We find that Asclepias (Trachycalymma) pseudofimbriata forms a polytomy with a clade of all other sampled African species of Asclepias s. l. and a clade of the American Asclepias s. s. Asclepias s. l. and the African species classified in Asclepias are both paraphyletic groups since segregate genera are all nested among species of African Asclepias. Most segregate genera are not monophyletic, i.e. Gomphocarpus, Pachycarpus, Stathmostelma, Xysmalobium, Schizoglossum, and Aspidoglossum; however, Glossostelma is monophyletic. Due in part to low levels of divergence in the sampled plastid markers, the approximately unbiased test did not reject the monophyly of the African species of Asclepias nor the segregate African genera, although the monophyly of Asclepias circumscribed to include American and African species but excluding currently recognized genera was rejected. Based on the results of this study, the species comprising the African Asclepias complex cannot be readily partitioned into monophyletic genera.
... Masumbeni, Cyperus swamp in Ugweno). As frequency and amplitude of flooding events increased, a herbaceous swamp with abundant ferns and entomophilous Asclepiadaceae was established; the latter frequently occurring on seasonal flooded areas and grassy swamps (Goyder, 2009). ...
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A sediment and pollen record from the North Pare Mountains in north-eastern Tanzania provides evidence for strong anthropogenic landscape transformations since the 7th century AD and demonstrates that, shortly after the arrival of Early Iron Age farmers, agricultural land use became the main driving force of vegetation and landscape change, predominating over external climatic factors. The absence of pollen characteristic for the corresponding altitudinal submontane forest implies widespread forest clearance and agriculture land use prior to the onset of the sedimentary record. Land clearance, soil erosion, and corresponding accumulation of colluvial slope deposits on the valley floor triggered paludification and the establishment of the Lomwe palaeowetland in the 7th century AD. Accelerated soil erosion and rapid alluvial burial of the palaeowetland between AD 1200 and AD 1500 represent an environmental tipping point with important repercussions for present day land degradation and resources restraints. Age control is complicated by radiocarbon date reversals and draws on introduced forest taxa Cupressus and Eucalyptus as biostratigraphic markers of the 20th century. Geoarchives from agricultural landscapes that are shaped by long-term settlement and land use, such as the Pare Mountains, can enhance archaeological occupation histories and provide crucial information for both the identification of ecological thresholds and for the reconstruction of environmental transitions during anthropogenic landscape transformations.