Rajania cordata
Diagnostic description 3
Rajania cordata L., Sp. Pl. 1032. 1753.
Synonym: Rajania sintenisii Uline
Non-woody vine, climbing, twining, glabrous, attainig 3-10 m in length. Stems slender, cylindrical, strong, glabrous. Leaves alternate, glabrous, 4-11.5(20) × 2-6.5(12) cm, 5-9-veined, coriaceous or less frequently chartaceous, ovate, lanceolate, or less frequently hastate, the apex acute or acuminate, the base cordiform to almost truncate; upper surface slightly shiny, with the venation flat or slightly prominent; lower surface with prominent venation; petioles 2-7 cm long, cylindrical, pulvinate at the base. Inflorescences axillary, racemose, pendulous or ascendant. Staminate inflorescences solitary or fasciculate, 4-25 cm long, the flowers grouped in lateral cymes, the cymes stipitate, 1-3 per node; flowers with the perianth white or cream-colored, 0.9-1.1 mm long, the stamens 6. Pistillate inflorescences 4-30 cm long, with solitary flowers distributed along the peduncle; flowers with the perianth 1-1.3 mm long, the hypanthium ca. 1.5 mm long. Fruits samaroid, (1.1)1.6-3.2 cm long, flattened, usually reddish or burgundy, with a wing in a lateral distal position.
Phenology: Flowering from July to March and fruiting from September to June.
Status: Native, rather common.
Selected Specimens Examined: Acevedo-Rdgz., P. 127; 5171; 5226; 6962; 7035; 7104; 7147; 7664; 7922; 7925; 7927; 9403; 9437; 10220; 10570; 10820; 10877; 10878; 11208; 11381; 11406; Axelrod, F. 11069; Britton, N.L. 947; 1732; Goll, G.P. 238; 1033; Liogier, A.H. 9701; 9866; Sargent, F.H. 385; 3159; Shafer, J.A. 2631; 3253; 3606; 3655; Sintenis, P. 1384a; Stevenson, J.A. 158; 3113; Underwood, L.M. 739; Webster, G.L. 8738.
Distribution 4
Distribution: In moist forests at middle to upper elevations, along the Cordillera Central and in the northern limestone zone. Also on Vieques, St. Croix, and St. Thomas; throughout the Antilles.
Public Forests:Carite, El Yunque, Guajataca, Guilarte, Maricao, Río Abajo, Susúa, and Toro Negro.
Diagnostic description 3
Rajania cordata L., Sp. Pl. 1032. 1753.
Non-woody vine, climbing, twining, glabrous, attainig 3-10 m in length. Stems slender, cylindrical, strong, glabrous. Leaves alternate, glabrous, 4-11.5(20) × 2-6.5(12) cm, 5-9-veined, coriaceous or less frequently chartaceous, ovate, lanceolate, or less frequently hastate, the apex acute or acuminate, the base cordiform to almost truncate; upper surface slightly shiny, with the venation flat or slightly prominent; lower surface with prominent venation; petioles 2-7 cm long, cylindrical, pulvinate at the base. Inflorescences axillary, racemose, pendulous or ascendant. Staminate inflorescences solitary or fasciculate, 4-25 cm long, the flowers grouped in lateral cymes, the cymes stipitate, 1-3 per node; flowers with the perianth white or cream-colored, 0.9-1.1 mm long, the stamens 6. Pistillate inflorescences 4-30 cm long, with solitary flowers distributed along the peduncle; flowers with the perianth 1-1.3 mm long, the hypanthium ca. 1.5 mm long. Fruits samaroid, (1.1)1.6-3.2 cm long, flattened, usually reddish or burgundy, with a wing in a lateral distal position.
Phenology: Flowering from July to March and fruiting from September to June.
Status: Native, rather common.
Distribution 4
Distribution: In moist forests at middle to upper elevations, along the Cordillera Central and in the northern limestone zone. Also on Vieques, St. Croix, and St. Thomas; throughout the Antilles.
Public Forests:Carite, El Yunque, Guajataca, Guilarte, Maricao, Río Abajo, Susúa, and Toro Negro.
Sources and Credits
- (c) Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History, Department of Botany, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), https://collections.nmnh.si.edu/services/media.php?env=botany&irn=10352145
- (c) Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History, Department of Botany, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), https://collections.nmnh.si.edu/services/media.php?env=botany&irn=10352146
- (c) Pedro Acevedo-Rodríguez, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/28435603
- (c) Pedro Acevedo-Rodríguez, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/28435997
