Colubrina greggii

Colubrina greggii is a species of flowering plant in the family Rhamnaceae, that is commonly known as the Sierra nakedwood[2] or Gregg's colubrina. It is native to eastern Mexico, with a disjunct population in southern Texas in the United States.[3][4][5] It is very similar to C. arborescens of Southern Florida and the Caribbean, and herbarium specimens of the two species are difficult to distinguish.[6] The name honours American botanist Josiah Gregg (1806 – 1850),[7] who collected the holotype[8] near Monterrey, Nuevo León in 1848.[9]

Colubrina greggii

Secure  (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Rosales
Family: Rhamnaceae
Genus: Colubrina
Species:
C. greggii
Binomial name
Colubrina greggii

Description

Colubrina greggii is a shrub 2–3 m in height or a small tree, reaching 5 m. Stems zigzag and are glabrate to loosely sericeous. Leaves are alternately arranged, simple, ovate to lanceolate-ovate or elliptic-ovate, and have finely toothed margins. The blades measure 6–18 cm in length and 3–8 cm in width. Petioles are 4–20 mm long. The inflorescence is a thyrse with 20-80 flowers. Peduncles measure 5–12 mm in length. The flowers are greenish-yellow, with stamens opposite the spoon-shaped petals. Flowering takes place in the spring or summer through fall. Fruiting pedicels are 5–10 mm in length. The fruit is a hard, globose capsule approximately 8–10 mm in diameter, on which calyx remnants form an equatorial ring.[3][5][10][11][12]

Habitat and range

Colubrina greggii can be found in the states of Coahuila, Guanajuato, Hidalgo, Nuevo León, Queretaro, San Luis Potosi, Tamaulipas, and Veracruz in Mexico.[12] In Texas, this species is restricted to the lower Rio Grande Valley,[3] where it is associated with Sabal mexicana at 0–10 m (0–33 ft).[12] In Queretaro and Guanajuato, C. greggii can be found in primary and secondary tropical dry forests, xeric shrublands, and oak forests from 300–1,600 m (980–5,250 ft).[13]

Systematics

Colubrina greggii is part of a species complex with C. angustior of San Luis Potosi, southern Tamaulipas, and northern Veracruz and C. yucatanensis of Campeche, Quintana Roo, Yucatán, and Guatemala's Petén Department. The latter two species were considered varieties of C. greggii until they were raised to full species in 2013.[5][14]

References
  1. "Colubrina greggii - S. Wats". NatureServe Explorer. NatureServe. Retrieved 2018-01-01.
  2. "Colubrina greggii". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 2013-05-27.
  3. Richardson, Alfred; Ken King (2010). Plants of Deep South Texas: A Field Guide to the Woody and Flowering Species. Texas A&M University Press. p. 364. ISBN 978-1-60344-144-5.
  4. Grandtner, Miroslav M. (2005). Elsevier's Dictionary of Trees. Vol. 1. Elsevier. p. 241. ISBN 0-444-51784-7.
  5. Nesom, Guy L. (2013). "Taxonomic Notes on Colubrina (Rhamnaceae)" (PDF). Phytoneuron. 4: 1–21.
  6. Austin, Daniel F. (2004). Florida Ethnobotany. CRC Press. p. 367. ISBN 978-0-8493-2332-4.
  7. Blakely, Larry. "Plants whose current scientific names have 'greggii', honoring Josiah Gregg, for the specific epithet". Who's in a Name?. California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. Retrieved 2017-12-30.
  8. "Colubrina greggii S. Watson". Tropicos. Missouri Botanical Garden. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
  9. "Josiah Gregg - 154". Tropicos. Missouri Botanical Garden. Retrieved 2018-01-01.
  10. Hayden, W. John. "Colubrina greggii Watson; pook'im, balsamo". Flora of Kaxil Kiuic. University of Richmond. Retrieved 2013-05-27.
  11. Richardson, Alfred (1995). Plants of the Rio Grande Delta. University of Texas Press. p. 45. ISBN 9780292785946.
  12. Nesom, Guy L. "Colubrina greggii". In Flora of North America Editorial Committee (ed.). Flora of North America North of Mexico (FNA). New York and Oxford. Retrieved 29 December 2017 – via eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
  13. Nava, Rafael Fernández (1996). "Rhamnaceae" (PDF). Flora del Bajío y de Regiones Adyacentes (in Spanish). 43: 17–19.
  14. Conrad, Jim (2015-11-29). "Nakedwood's Flowers". Excerpts from Jim Conrad's Naturalist Newsletter. Backyard Nature. Retrieved 2017-12-28.
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