Family Bonnetiaceae

Bonnetiaceae Beauvis

~ Theaceae, while Maguire (1972) refers to Bonnetiaceae several genera (e.g. Kielmeyera, Marila, Caraipa) referred by Airy Shaw and here to Guttiferae

Habit and leaf form. Mostly glabrous trees, or shrubs (mostly of sandy or swampy (including coastal) ground); resinous, or not resinous. Plants non-succulent. Leaves alternate (crowded towards the branch tips); very shortly and broadly petiolate to sessile; non-sheathing; simple. Lamina entire; conspicuously asymmetric, or not conspicuously asymmetric; oblanceolate, or obovate; pinnately veined (with closely ascending veins); cross-venulate. Leaves exstipulate. Lamina margins entire.

Leaf anatomy. Mucilaginous epidermis present. Stomata present; paracytic.

The mesophyll with sclerencymatous idioblasts (?).

Stem anatomy. Cork cambium present; initially superficial. Internal phloem absent. Secondary thickening developing from a conventional cambial ring. ‘Included’ phloem absent. Vessel end-walls mostly simple. Wood parenchyma apotracheal and paratracheal.

Reproductive type, pollination. Fertile flowers hermaphrodite. Plants hermaphrodite.

Inflorescence, floral, fruit and seed morphology. Flowers solitary, or aggregated in ‘inflorescences’; in racemes, or in panicles. Inflorescences terminal; terminal panicles, false umbels or racemes. Flowers conspicuously bracteate; (bi-) bracteolate; medium-sized to large; fragrant. Free hypanthium absent. Hypogynous disk absent.

Perianth with distinct calyx and corolla; 10; 2 whorled; isomerous. Calyx 5; 1 whorled; polysepalous (the sepals unequal); persistent, or not persistent; imbricate. Corolla 5; 1 whorled; polypetalous; contorted; red.

Androecium 40–100 (‘many’). Androecial members branched (with trunk bundles); maturing centrifugally; free of the perianth, or adnate (to the bases of the petals); free of one another, or coherent; when coherent, 1 adelphous (slightly connate basally), or 5 adelphous (bundled, in Archytaea and Ploiarium). The androecial bundles when present, opposite the corolla members (and adnate to them). Androecium exclusively of fertile stamens. Stamens 40–100 (‘many’, deciduous or persistent); polystemonous; when bundled, alternisepalous. Anthers small, versatile; dehiscing via longitudinal slits; tetrasporangiate. Pollen grains aperturate; 3 aperturate; colporate.

Gynoecium 3 carpelled, or 5 carpelled. Carpels reduced in number relative to the perianth, or isomerous with the perianth. The pistil 3 celled, or 5 celled. Gynoecium syncarpous; synovarious, or synstylovarious, or eu-syncarpous; superior. Ovary 3 locular, or 5 locular; sessile. Gynoecium stylate. Styles 1, or 3, or 5; when not wholly united, free to partially joined; apical. Stigmas 3, or 5. Placentation axile. Ovules 30–50 per locule (‘many’); pendulous to horizontal (usually ‘spreading’); non-arillate.

Fruit non-fleshy; dehiscent; a capsule. Capsules septicidal (usually with the columella persistent). Fruit many seeded. Seeds endospermic, or non-endospermic. Embryo well differentiated. Cotyledons 2. Embryo straight.

Geography, cytology. Paleotropical and Neotropical. Tropical. Southeast Asia, Malesia, tropical America.

Taxonomy. Subclass Dicotyledonae; Crassinucelli, or Tenuinucelli (?). Dahlgren’s Superorder Theiflorae; Theales. Cronquist’s Subclass Dilleniidae; Theales. APG (1998) family of uncertain position at the highest group level. APG 3 (2009) Order: Malpighiales.

Species 32. Genera 4; Archytaea, Bonnetia, Neblinaria, Ploiarium.

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