Orobanchaceae
Cycnium

Cycnium tenuisectum (Standl.) O.J.Hansen

First published in Dansk Bot. Ark. 32(3): 28 (1978)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is S. Ethiopia to E. Central & E. Tropical Africa. It is a perennial and grows primarily in the montane tropical biome.

Descriptions

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

Scrophulariaceae, S.A. Ghazanfar, F.N. Hepper & D. Philcox. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 2008

Type
Type: Kenya, Mt Kenya, Mearns 2338 (US, holo.)
Morphology General Habit
Perennial herb with tuberous rhizome.
Morphology Stem
Stems and leaves glabrescent or shortly strigose often with scattered stipitate glands and/or hyaline, erect hairs intermingled with shorter hairs Stems decumbent or ascending, up to 40 cm long, unbranched or with a few branches.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves bi- or pinnatisect, 0.5–3(–5) cm long; segments and rhachis filiform or flat, up to 2 mm wide; venation of simple veins in segments and rhachis
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence a spike or raceme; bracteoles linear, 5–9 mm long, adnate to the base of the calyx-tube; pedicels 0–4(–7) mm long
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx shortly tubular, campanulate at fruiting stage; tube 5–9 mm long, ribbed; lobes 5, triangular to narrowly triangular, 4–10 mm long, subequal to unequal; strigose outside especially along margins and ribs
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Corolla pink or mauve-pink; tube curved, gibbous above the middle, 13–20 mm long, glandular outside; limb 12–30 mm in diameter
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens Filaments
Filaments of the shorter pair of stamens 3–4 mm long, those of the longer pair 6–8 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens Anthers
Anthers 2–2.5 mm long, with rounded tip
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Gynoecium
Ovary compressed, ovate to elliptic, 2–3 mm long; style ± 5 mm long, including the 2 mm long compressed stigma
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Capsule ovoid, oblique or with a very short obliquely set beak, 8–16 mm long; winged and dehiscent mainly along upper-distal suture
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seeds 0.8–1 mm long, tuberculate.
Ecology
Open montane vegetation such as grassland, moorland, clearings in bushland, roadsides, evidently avoiding permanently wet soil, and tolerating fires; (1800–)2000–3000(–3500) m
Conservation
Least Concern (LC); widespread and common
Note
The wide range of flower size gave rise to the recognition of the large flowered plants in Tanzania as Rhamphicarpa meyeri-johannis, (e.g. Grimshaw 93/1248, Geilinger 3655, Chuwa 2712) in Tanzania, but Hansen has indicated that in Kenya they merge with small-flowered forms without a discontinuity.
Distribution
Flora districts: U1 U3 K1 K2 K3 K4 K5 K6 T2 Range: Sudan, Ethiopia
[FTEA]

Uses

Use
None recorded on specimens from our area
[FTEA]

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

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. 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 2024. 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