Family:
Apocynaceae Juss.
Genus:
Raphionacme Harv.

Raphionacme brownii Scott Elliot

This species is accepted, and its native range is W. Tropical Africa to South Sudan.

[FTEA]

Apocynaceae (part 2), David Goyder, Timothy Harris, Siro Masinde, Ulrich Meve, Johan Venter. Flora of Tropical East Africa, 2012

Morphology General Habit
Erect herb.
Vegetative Multiplication Tubers
Tuber ovoid, up to 10 × 6 cm.
Morphology Stem
Aerial stems up to 25 cm long, branching lateral, sparsely to densely scabrous and siliceous
Morphology Leaves
Leaves mostly absent till after flowering, sessile, sub-sessile to shortly petiolate; blade linear or linear-ovate, 8–16 × 0.3–0.8 cm, acuminate, base cuneate, conduplicate, glabrous to sparsely siliceous above, sparsely to densely siliceous beneath, midvein prominent, secondary veins arching to apex
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescences terminal, lax cymes of several 3–6-flowered branches, scabrous or siliceous.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Peduncles
Peduncles frail, 10–50 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts
Bracts narrowly triangular, 1–2 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Pedicel
Pedicels frail, 6–10 mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Sepals triangular to ovate, 1–2 × 0.5–1 mm, acute to obtuse, scabrous to siliceous
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Corolla violet, mauve, pink or greenish-pink or tube pale green with lobes lilac, outside sparsely scabrous or siliceous, inside glabrous; tube cylindrical, 3–4 mm long; lobes ovate to narrowly ovate, 4–6 × 1.5–2 mm, acute to rounded.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corona
Corona lobes white, green or yellow, filiform, 4–6 mm long, apex entire or bifid, tortuous, papillose
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens
Staminal filaments at base laterally dilated and fused to corolla tube, upper part filiform, 0.5 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens Anthers
Anthers greenish to pinkishwhite, ovate, 1–1.5 mm long, mucronate
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium Style
Style very narrowly obconical, 3 mm long; style-head ovoid to broadly ovoid, 1 × 1–2 mm
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynostegium
Gynostegium base in corolla mouth
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Follicles erect, solitary or paired, very narrowly obovoid, 5–28 × 0.5 cm, acuminate
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds oblong-ovate, 5–6 × 1 mm; coma 4 cm long.
Ecology
Dry open savanna or short grassland on shallow soils on laterite, schistose rock and shales, or in rock pans; 0–1000 m
Note
Raphionacme brownii is a pyrophyte and can be found flowering two weeks after a fire. R. brownii is known from just north of the Uganda/South Sudan border, its absence from the FTEA area is probably due to poor collecting. A U.K.W.F. ed. 2: 175 (1994) record from K 4, Langata, has not been substantiated.
Distribution
Range: Senegal, Sierra Leone, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Chad, Central African Republic and South Sudan Flora districts: U 1?

[FWTA]

Periplocaceae, A. A. Bullock. Flora of West Tropical Africa 2. 1963

Morphology General Habit
A precocious herb 6-12 in. high
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Diffuse cymes of pink flowers about 1-2 in. diam.

[FTEA]
Use
Tuber and follicles used as food

Native to:

Benin, Burkina, Central African Repu, Chad, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Togo

Raphionacme brownii Scott Elliot appears in other Kew resources:

Date Reference Identified As Barcode Type Status Has image?
Keay, R.W. [FHI 22525], Nigeria 23678.000 No
Meikle, R.D. [1230], Nigeria 24360.000 No
Milne-Redhead, E. [5045], Nigeria 24363.000 No
Stanfield, D. [411], Nigeria 27537.000 No
Scott Elliot, G.F. [5179], Sierra Leone K000234191 Unknown type material Yes

First published in J. Linn. Soc., Bot. 30: 91 (1894)

Accepted by

  • Akoègninou, A., van der Burg, W.J. & van der Maesen, L.J.G. (eds.) (2006). Flore Analytique du Bénin: 1-1034. Backhuys Publishers.
  • Albers, F. & Meve, U. (eds.) (2002). Illustrated handbook of succulent plants Asclepiadaceae, corr. 2nd printing: 1-318. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg,New York.
  • 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.
  • Goyder, S., Harris, T., Masinde, S., Meve, U. & Venter, J. (2012). Flora of Tropical East Africa, Apocynaceae(2): 1-530.
  • Hepper, F.N. (ed.) (1963). Flora of West Tropical Africa, ed. 2, 2: 1-544.
  • Venter, H.J.T. (2009). A taxonomic revision of Raphianacme (Apocynaceae: Periplocoideae) South African Journal of Botany 75: 292-350.

Literature

Flora of West Tropical Africa

  • Bullock in Kew Bull. 8: 60 (1953).
  • F.T.A. 4, 1: 273
  • in J. Linn. Soc. 30: 91 (1894)

Kew Backbone Distributions

  • Venter, H.J.T. (2009). A taxonomic revision of Raphianacme (Apocynaceae: Periplocoideae) South African Journal of Botany 75: 292-350.

Flora of Tropical East Africa

  • F.T.A. 4: 273 (1902).
  • J.L.S. 30: 91 (1895)

  • 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

    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 Selected Plant Families 2022. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
    © Copyright 2017 World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2022. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
    © Copyright 2017 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0