Bot. Mag., t. 5118 (1859)
= Columnea L. sect. Columnea (see Kvist & Skog 1993).
Full name and orig. publication: Columnea L., Sp. pl., ed. 1: 638 (1 May 1753).
Etymology: Named after Fabio Colonna (Latin Fabius Columnus) (1567-1640), professor of botany in Naples. He was the first to depict plants by copper-plate illustrations.
Infrafamilial position: Gesnerioid Gesneriaceae (Gesnerioideae) - Episcieae.
Description: Epiphytic herbaceous or suffruticose plants. Stems ascending, spreading or pendent. Leaves iso-, occasionally (strongly) anisophyllous. Axillary cymes of one to few flowers, sometimes borne below the foliage. Sepals ± equal. Corolla mostly "columneoid" (tube basally narrow, gradually widening, never inflated, upper and lateral lobes joined into a "galea", lower-most lobe narrow and reflexed); colour red or red with yellow. Stamens 4, anthers cohering. Nectary of a single dorsal gland. Ovary superior, globose. Fruit a globose or subglobose berry of usually white colour.
Chromosome number: 2n = 18.
Species number: Over 75.
Species names (incl. publication and synonyms): See Skog, L.E. & J.K. Boggan. 2005: World checklist of Gesneriaceae: http://persoon.si.edu/Gesneriaceae/Checklist.
Type species: Columnea scandens L.
Distribution: C America (the Caribbaean islands, Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Guayana Highlands and NE Brazil). Center of diversity is Panama and Costa Rica.
Ecology: Epiphytes of lowland and montane forests.
Notes: The typical "columneoid" corolla is unmistakable and most distinctive, but not exclusive. Pollination seems to be essentially by hummingbirds.
Selected references: Wiehler, Phytologia 27: 309-328 (1973); Wiehler, Selbyana 1: 32-35 (1975); Wiehler, Selbyana 6: 187 (1983); Kvist & Skog, Allertonia 6: 327-400 (1993), reg. rev. (Ecuador).
Bibliography: See Skog, L.E. & J.K. Boggan. 2005. Bibliography of the Gesneriaceae. 2nd edition: http://persoon.si.edu/Gesneriaceae/Bibliography.
Illustrations:
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Columnea scandens L., type species
Bot. Mag., t. 5118 (1859) |
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Columnea gloriosa Sprague
Cult. BG Vienna, phot. A. Weber (1971) |
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Columnea tulae var. flava Urb.
Cult. BG Vienna, phot. A. Weber (1971) |
last modified: 2007-07-13