Epicharis (plant)

Epicharis
E. densiflora (type species) on an Indonesian stamp
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Sapindales
Family: Meliaceae
Subfamily: Melioideae
Genus: Epicharis
Blume (1825)
Type species
Epicharis densiflora
Species[1]

see text

Synonyms[1]

Piptosaccos Turcz. (1858)

Epicharis is a genus of flowering plants in the family Meliaceae. It includes seven species which range from Indochina to south-central China, Taiwan, Malesia, Papuasia, Queensland, and Fiji.[1]

The genus was first named by Carl Ludwig Blume in 1825.[3] Most of the species currently accepted were, until recently, included in genus Dysoxylum. A genetic study published in 2021 found that Dysoxylum is polyphyletic, and Epicharis was revived and re-circumscribed.[2]

The genus is named for Epicharis (d. 65 CE), a Roman woman who was a leader in the Pisonian conspiracy, and who was tortured and committed suicide rather than betray her co-conspirators.[2]

  1. ^ a b c Epicharis Blume. Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Holzmeyer, L., Hauenschild, F., Mabberley, D.J. and Muellner-Riehl, A.N. (2021), Confirmed polyphyly, generic recircumscription and typification of Dysoxylum (Meliaceae), with revised disposition of currently accepted species. Taxon, 70: 1248-1272. https://doi.org/10.1002/tax.12591
  3. ^ Blume CL (1825) Bijdr. Fl. Ned. Ind.: 166.