Flora of North America species comparison

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Acalypha virginica

Acalypha australis

Virginia copperleaf, Virginia three-seed-Mercury

Asian copperleaf
Habit Herbs, annual, 1–5 dm, monoecious. Herbs, annual, 3–6 dm, monoecious.
Stems

usually erect, sometimes ascending, pubescent and usually hirsute.

erect, densely to sparsely pilose.
Leaves

petiole 0.3–7 cm;

blade narrowly rhombic to broadly lanceolate, 1–8(–11) × 0.5–3(–4) cm, base acute, margins serrate, apex acute to acuminate.

petiole 0.5–4 cm;

blade ovate to broadly lanceolate, 2–8 × 1.5–4 cm, base cuneate to obtuse, margins serrate, apex acute to short-acuminate.
Inflorescences

bisexual, axillary;

peduncle 0.1–0.6 cm, pistillate portion 0.7–1.5 × 1.3–1.7 cm or pistillate bract solitary, staminate portion 0.3–1(–1.8) cm;

allomorphic pistillate flowers absent.

bisexual, axillary;

peduncle 0.5–4(–6) cm, pistillate portion 1–2 × 1.5–2.5 cm or pistillate bract solitary, staminate portion 0.5–3 cm;

allomorphic pistillate flowers rare, when present replacing staminate part of inflorescence.
Pedicels

of allomorphic flowers rudimentary.
Pistillate flowers

pistil 3-carpellate;

styles multifid or laciniate.

pistil 3-carpellate (normal flowers), 2-carpellate (allomorphic flowers);

styles multifid or laciniate.
Capsules

smooth, pubescent.

muricate, pubescent;

allomorphic fruits obovoid, 2 × 1.2 mm, muricate, pubescent.
Seeds

(1.2–)1.5–1.6(–1.8) mm, minutely pitted.

1.5–1.8 mm, minutely pitted.
Pistillate

bracts loosely arranged to crowded (inflorescence axis clearly to scarcely visible between bracts) or solitary, 6–13 × 9–20 mm, abaxial surface hirsute and sometimes stipitate-glandular;

lobes (9–)10–14(–16), triangular, 1/4–1/2 bract length.

bracts (normal flowers) loosely arranged (inflorescence axis visible between bracts) or solitary, 10–15(–20) × 8–12 mm, abaxial surface sparsely pubescent;

lobes 12–15, rounded, 1/20 bract length; of allomorphic flowers absent.

Acalypha virginica

Acalypha australis
Phenology Flowering and fruiting summer–fall. Flowering and fruiting late summer–fall.
Habitat Deciduous and evergreen woods, riverbanks, agricultural fields, disturbed areas. Disturbed areas.
Elevation 30–1200 m. (100–3900 ft.) 0–20 m. (0–100 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; AR; CT; DC; DE; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; MI; MO; MS; NC; NE; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; TN; TX; VA; WV
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
NJ; NY; Asia (China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan); Pacific Islands (Philippines) [Introduced in North America]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Acalypha virginica overlaps geographically with A. rhomboidea but is more frequently found in grassy or prairielike habitats. See the discussion of 15. A. rhomboidea for notes on the nomenclatural and taxonomic confusion associated with these species.

Acalypha virginica and A. gracilens can sometimes be difficult to distinguish, especially when young. They can generally be distinguished by the pistillate bracts, which in A. virginica are hirsute and lack red sessile glands abaxially and in A. gracilens are sparsely pubescent and bear some red sessile glands abaxially.

Reports of Acalypha virginica from states other than those listed here are based on misidentifications.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Acalypha australis, native to eastern Asia, became established in metropolitan New York City in the 1980s. It was also collected once in 1900 in Oregon (Suksdorf 2892, GH), and apparently has not persisted there.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 12, p. 171. FNA vol. 12, p. 169.
Parent taxa Euphorbiaceae > Acalypha Euphorbiaceae > Acalypha
Sibling taxa
A. alopecuroidea, A. arvensis, A. australis, A. californica, A. chamaedrifolia, A. deamii, A. gracilens, A. monococca, A. monostachya, A. neomexicana, A. ostryifolia, A. phleoides, A. poiretii, A. radians, A. rhomboidea, A. setosa, A. wilkesiana
A. alopecuroidea, A. arvensis, A. californica, A. chamaedrifolia, A. deamii, A. gracilens, A. monococca, A. monostachya, A. neomexicana, A. ostryifolia, A. phleoides, A. poiretii, A. radians, A. rhomboidea, A. setosa, A. virginica, A. wilkesiana
Synonyms A. digyneia
Name authority Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 1003. (1753) — name conserved Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 1004. (1753)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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