Euphorbia caput-medusae L.
First published in Sp. Pl.: 452 (1753)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is W. & SW. Cape Prov. It is a succulent subshrub and grows primarily in the desert or dry shrubland biome.
Distribution
Native to:
Cape Provinces
Synonyms
Heterotypic Synonyms
- Euphorbia caput-medusae var. geminata Aiton in Hort. Kew. 2: 136 (1789)
- Euphorbia caput-medusae var. major Aiton in Hort. Kew. 2: 135 (1789)
- Euphorbia caput-medusae var. minor Aiton in Hort. Kew. 2: 135 (1789)
- Euphorbia commelini DC. in Cat. Pl. Horti Monsp.: 110 (1813)
- Euphorbia fructus-pini Mill. in Gard. Dict., ed. 8.: n.° 10 (1768)
- Euphorbia fructus-pini var. geminata (Aiton) Sweet in Hort. Brit. 2: 356 (1826), not validly publ.
- Euphorbia geminata (Aiton) Marloth ex A.C.White, R.A.Dyer & B.Sloane in Succ. Euphorb.: 355 (1941), nom. illeg.
- Euphorbia medusae Panz. in Vollst. Pflanzensyst. 14: 109 (1788)
- Euphorbia parvimamma Boiss. in A.P.de Candolle, Prodr. 15(2): 86 (1862)
- Euphorbia tessellata (Haw.) Steud. in Nomencl. Bot. 1: 328 (1821)
- Medusea fructus-pini (Mill.) Haw. in Syn. Pl. Succ.: 134 (1812)
- Medusea major Haw. in Syn. Pl. Succ.: 134 (1812)
- Medusea tessellata Haw. in Syn. Pl. Succ.: 135 (1812)
Publications
POWO follows these authorities in accepting this name:
- Bruyns, P.V. (2012). Nomenclature and typification of southern African species of Euphorbia. Bothalia 42: 217-245.
- Govaerts, R., Frodin, D.G. & Radcliffe-Smith, A. (2000). World Checklist and Bibliography of Euphorbiaceae (and Pandaceae) 1-4: 1-1622. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
- Möller, A. & Becker, R. (2019). Field guide to the succulent Euphorbias of Southern Africa: 1-320. BRIZA.
- van Veldhuisen, R. (2020). Revision of the informal Euphorbia caput-medusae group. Euphorbia World 16: 17-41.
Kew Species Profiles
- Goldblatt, P. & Manning, J. (2000). Cape Plants. A Conspectus of the Cape Flora of South Africa. National Botanical Institute, Cape Town & Missouri Botanical Garden, St Louis.
- Manning, J. & Goldblatt, P. (1996). West Coast: South African Wildflower Guide 7. Botanical Society of South Africa with the Darling Wildflower Society, Cape Town.
- Prain, D. (1916). Euphorbia caput-medusa e L. Curtis’s Botanical Magazine t. 8673.
- Raimondo, D. et al. (2009). Red List of South African Plants 2009. Strelitzia 25. South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria.
- World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (2010). Euphorbia caput-medusae. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
Kew Backbone Distributions
- Bruyns, P.V. (2012). Nomenclature and typification of southern African species of Euphorbia. Bothalia 42: 217-245.
Other Data
Other Kew resources that provide information on this taxon:
Sources
-
Kew Backbone Distributions
- The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2023. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
- © Copyright 2022 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 2023. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
- © Copyright 2022 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0
-
Kew Species Profiles
- Kew Species Profiles
- http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0