Rubiaceae
Mussaenda

Mussaenda elegans Schumach. & Thonn.

First published in C.F.Schumacher, Beskr. Guin. Pl.: 117 (1827)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is W. Tropical Africa to Uganda and N. Angola. It is a climbing shrub or tree and grows primarily in the wet tropical biome.

Distribution

Native to:

Angola, Benin, Burkina, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo, DR Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan-South Sudan, Togo, Uganda

Synonyms

Heterotypic Synonyms

Classification

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Publications

POWO follows these authorities in accepting this name:

  • Akoègninou, A., van der Burg, W.J. & van der Maesen, L.J.G. (eds.) (2006). Flore Analytique du Bénin: 1-1034. Backhuys Publishers.
  • Brunel, J.F., Hiepo, P. & Scholz, H. (eds.) (1984). Flore Analytique du Togo Phanérogames: 1-751. GTZ, Eschborn.
  • Catarino, L., Martins, E.S., Diniz, M.A. & Pinto-Basto, M.F. (2006). Check-list da flora vascular do parque natural das Lagos de Cufada (Guiné-Bissau). Garcia de Orta, Série de Botânica 17: 97-141.
  • Darbyshire, I., Kordofani, M., Farag, I., Candiga, R. & Pickering, H. (eds.) (2015). The Plants of Sudan and South Sudan: 1-400. Kew publishing, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  • Figueiredo, E. & Smith, G.F. (2008). Plants of Angola. Strelitzia 22: 1-279. National Botanical Institute, Pretoria.
  • Gosline, G., Bidault, E., van der Burgt, X., Cahen, D., Challen, G., Condé, N., Couch, C., Couvreur, T.L.P., Dagallier, L.M.J., Darbyshire, I., Dawson, S., Doré, T.S., Goyder, D., Grall, A., Haba, P., Haba, P., Harris, D., Hind, D.J.N., Jongkind, & al. (2023). A Taxonomically-verified and Vouchered Checklist of the Vascular Plants of the Republic of Guinea. Nature, scientific data 10, Article number: 327: [1]-[12].
  • Govaerts, R. (2003). World Checklist of Selected Plant Families Database in ACCESS: 1-216203. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  • Harris, D.J. (2002). The vascular plants of the Dzanga-Sangha Reserve, Central African Republic: 1-274. National Botanic Garden (Belgium), Meise.
  • Lebrun, J.P. (1973). Énumération des plantes vasculaires du Sénégal: 1-209. Maisons Alfort: Institut d'élevage et de médecine vétérinaire des pays tropicaux.
  • Lebrun, J.P., Toutain, B., Gaston, A. & Boudet, G. (1991). Catalogue des Plantes Vasculaires du Burkina Faso: 1-341. Institut d' Elevage et de Médecine Vétérinaire des Pays Tropicaux, Maisons Alfort.
  • Lejoy, J., Ndjele, M.-B. & Geerinck, D. (2010). Catalogue-flore des plantes vasculaires des districts de Kisangani et de la Tshopo (RD Congo). Taxonomania. Revue de Taxonomie et de Nomenclature Botaniques 30: 1-307.
  • Sita, P. & Moutsambote, J.-M. (2005). Catalogue des plantes vasculaires du Congo, ed. sept. 2005: 1-158. ORSTOM, Centre de Brazzaville.
  • Sosef, M.S.M. & al. (2006). Check-list des plantes vasculaires du Gabon. Scripta Botanica Belgica 35: 1-438.

Flora of West Tropical Africa

  • Beskr. Guin. Pl. 117 (1827)
  • Chev. Bot. 313.
  • F.T.A. 3: 69
  • Wernham in J. Bot. 51: 276

Kew Backbone Distributions

  • Akoègninou, A., van der Burg, W.J. & van der Maesen, L.J.G. (eds.) (2006). Flore Analytique du Bénin: 1-1034. Backhuys Publishers.
  • Brunel, J.F., Hiepo, P. & Scholz, H. (eds.) (1984). Flore Analytique du Togo Phanérogames: 1-751. GTZ, Eschborn.
  • Figueiredo, E. & Smith, G.F. (2008). Plants of Angola. Strelitzia 22: 1-279. National Botanical Institute, Pretoria.
  • Harris, D.J. (2002). The vascular plants of the Dzanga-Sangha Reserve, Central African Republic: 1-274. National Botanic Garden (Belgium), Meise.
  • Lebrun, J.P. (1973). Énumération des plantes vasculaires du Sénégal: 1-209. Maisons Alfort: Institut d'élevage et de médecine vétérinaire des pays tropicaux.
  • Lebrun, J.P., Toutain, B., Gaston, A. & Boudet, G. (1991). Catalogue des Plantes Vasculaires du Burkina Faso: 1-341. Institut d' Elevage et de Médecine Vétérinaire des Pays Tropicaux, Maisons Alfort.
  • Sita, P. & Moutsambote, J.-M. (2005). Catalogue des plantes vasculaires du Congo, ed. sept. 2005: 1-158. ORSTOM, Centre de Brazzaville.
  • Sosef, M.S.M. & al. (2006). Check-list des plantes vasculaires du Gabon. Scripta Botanica Belgica 35: 1-438.

Flora of Tropical East Africa

  • A. Chev., Expl. Bot. Afr. Occ. Fr.: 314 (1920).
  • F. Hallé in Adansonia, sér. 2, 1: 272 t. 31 & 292, t. 121, 2 (1961).
  • F. W. Andr., The Flowering Plants of the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan 2: 449 (1952).
  • Hepper in Flora of West Tropical Africa, ed. 2, 2: 167 (1963).
  • Hiern in Flora of Tropical Africa 3: 69 (1877).
  • Mildbr., ZAE. 1907–8, 2: 315 (1911).
  • Petit in Bulletin du Jardin Botanique de l'État a Bruxelles 25: 151 (1955).
  • Schumach. & Thonn., Beskr. Guin. Pl.: 117 (1827).
  • Wernham in Journal of Botany 51: 276 (1913).

Other Data

Other Kew resources that provide information on this taxon:

Date Reference Identified As Barcode Type Status Has image?
Dec 1, 2003 Kenfack, D. [320] Cameroon K000198319 No
Nov 1, 2001 Etuge, M. [1935] Cameroon K000109771 No
Nov 1, 2001 Etuge, M. [2018] Cameroon K000109770 No
Nov 1, 2001 Etuge, M. [2713] Cameroon K000109769 No
Jan 1, 1992 Wheatley, J.I. [364] Cameroon K000085667 No
Jan 1, 1992 Sunderland, T.C.H. [1316] Cameroon K000085675 No
Jan 1, 1992 Wheatley, J.I. [233] Cameroon K000085678 No
Jan 1, 1992 Sunderland, T.C.H. [1316] Cameroon K000085676 No
Jan 1, 1992 Watts, J. [412] Cameroon K000085677 No
Zenker [1516] Cameroon K000414488 Unknown Type Material Yes
Andrews, F.W. [1619] Sudan K:SPC-00891.000 No
Dalziel, J.M. [397] Nigeria K000414539 Unknown Type Material Yes
Cable, S.; Hermanns, M.; Laird, J.; Hurst, L.; Fraser [2031] Cameroon K001297730 Yes
Meikle, R.D. [1336] Nigeria K:SPC-05027.000 No
MacGregor, W. [104] Nigeria K000414541 Unknown Type Material Yes
MacGregor, W. [104] Nigeria K000414540 Unknown Type Material Yes

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Flora of Tropical East Africa

    • Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Flora of West Tropical Africa

    • Flora of West Tropical Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • 'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.
    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2025. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2025. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0