Acalypha rhomboidea
Acalypha radians
common three-seed-Mercury, rhombic copper-leaf, rhombic or common threeseed Mercury, ricinelle rhomboïde
cardinal feather, cardinal's feather, palmate copperleaf
usually erect, sometimes ascending, usually sparsely pubescent, rarely sparsely hirsute.
prostrate to ascending, short-pubescent and hirsute.
petiole 0.4–7 cm;
blade ovate to broadly rhombic, 2–9 × 0.8–5 cm, base obtuse, margins crenate to serrate, apex acute to acuminate.
petiole 0.4–1.6 cm;
blade reniform or suborbiculate, 0.5–1.5 × 0.8–2 cm, base cordate or rounded, margins deeply crenate, apex rounded.
bisexual, axillary;
peduncle 0.1–0.6 cm, pistillate portion 0.7–1.5(–2) × 1–2(–2.5) cm or pistillate bract solitary, staminate portion 0.3–1 cm;
allomorphic pistillate flowers rare, solitary in axils near base of stem.
unisexual, terminal (staminate and pistillate) and axillary (pistillate);
staminate peduncle 0.5–3 cm, fertile portion 1–4(–5) cm;
pistillate peduncle 0.1–0.5 cm, fertile portion 1–2.5 × 0.8–1.2 cm;
allomorphic pistillate flowers absent.
of allomorphic flowers 1–2 mm.
pistil 3-carpellate (normal flowers), 1-carpellate (allomorphic flowers);
styles multifid or laciniate.
pistil 3-carpellate;
styles multifid or laciniate.
smooth, pubescent;
allomorphic fruits obovoid, 2 × 1 mm, spiny, pubescent.
smooth, pubescent and hirsute.
(1.2–)1.5–1.7(–2) mm, minutely pitted.
1.8–2 mm, minutely pitted.
bracts (normal flowers) loosely arranged to crowded (inflorescence axis clearly to scarcely visible between bracts) or solitary, 6–15 × 9–23 mm, abaxial surface sparsely pubescent and stipitate-glandular;
lobes (5–)7–9(–11), lanceolate to triangular, 1/3–2/3 bract length;
bracts of allomorphic flowers absent.
bracts crowded (inflorescence axis not visible between bracts), 7–10 × 12–16 mm, abaxial surface hirsute, sessile- and stipitate-glandular;
lobes (7–)8–10(–13), spatulate, 1/2 bract length.
Acalypha rhomboidea
Acalypha radians
Acalypha rhomboidea often has been called A. virginica due to controversy about the typification of that name. Conservation of the type of A. virginica resolved the issue. This nomenclatural problem, combined with use of inappropriate characters to distinguish A. rhomboidea and A. virginica, has resulted in considerable confusion between these amply distinct species. The two can be distinguished most readily by the pistillate bracts, which are clearly hirsute abaxially in A. virginica but sparsely pubescent abaxially in A. rhomboidea. In addition, the bracts of A. virginica have (8–)10–14(–16) triangular lobes one fourth to one half the bract length, whereas those of A. rhomboidea have (5–)7–9(–11) lanceolate or triangular lobes one third to two thirds the bract length, and the stems of A. virginica usually are hirsute whereas the stems of A. rhomboidea are rarely so.
In the southern part of its range, many Acalypha rhomboidea plants have been confused with A. gracilens. These plants are more delicate than A. rhomboidea from farther north, with notably smaller pistillate bracts, and they usually produce allomorphic flowers, whereas more robust or northerly plants rarely do. They can be distinguished from A. gracilens by having relatively wider leaves and pistillate bracts with fewer lobes and no red sessile glands.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Acalypha radians is found in the flora area from the Edwards Plateau south to the Mexican border.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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