Boerhavia spicata
Boerhavia coccinea
creeping spiderling
hierba de la hormiga, hierba del cancer, red boerhaavia, red spiderling, scarlet spiderling
erect or ascending, sparingly branched throughout, 30–70 dm, densely glandular-villous, or glandular-puberulent, with spreading, nonglandular hairs basally, glabrous distally.
prostrate to decumbent, usually profusely branched throughout, 3–15 dm, minutely pubescent, often glandular, sometimes spreading villous or hirsute in basal portions, minutely pubescent, sometimes glandular, glabrate, or glabrous distally.
mostly in basal 1/2;
larger leaves with petiole 10–30 mm, blade oval, oblong, ovate, or ± triangular, 18–45 × 13–30 mm (distal leaves usually smaller, sometimes longer, proportionately narrower), adaxial surface lightly to densely glandular-pubescent, abaxial surface paler than adaxial, lightly to densely glandular-pubescent, neither surface punctate or both minutely punctate with clusters of brown cells, base truncate, round, or obtuse, margins sinuate, sometimes crisped, apex round to obtuse, rarely acute.
usually distributed throughout plant and into much of inflorescence;
larger leaves with petiole 5–25 mm, blade broadly lanceolate, ovate, or broadly ovate, occasionally ± round, 20–70 × 10–60 mm (distal leaves smaller, often proportionally narrower), base truncate, broadly cuneate, or round, rarely cordate, margins sinuate, apex acute to obtuse or round, adaxial surface glabrous or sometimes sparsely puberulent, rarely densely glandular-pubescent, abaxial surface paler than adaxial surface, glabrous or sometimes sparsely puberulent, rarely densely glandular-pubescent, often with large multicellular hairs along veins, neither surface punctate.
terminal and axillary, branched 1–4 times unequally, with sticky internodal bands;
branches strongly ascending, terminating in spicate or racemose flower clusters, axis 10–55 mm.
axillary or terminal, forked unequally ca. 3–6 times, open, without sticky internodal bands;
branches divergent, terminating in compact subumbellate or capitate 5-flowered clusters.
pedicel 0.4–2.3[–3.7] mm;
bracts at base of perianth usually soon deciduous, usually 2, narrowly to broadly lanceolate, 0.7–1.8 mm, apex often acuminate;
perianth white to pale pink, campanulate distal to constriction, 1–1.3 mm;
stamens (2–)3, slightly exserted or included.
pedicel shorter than 0.5 mm;
bract at base of perianth usually quickly deciduous, 1, linear-lanceolate to ovate, 0.5–1 mm;
perianth maroon, or magenta (or rarely white or yellow) [pink], campanulate beyond constriction, 1–3.5 mm;
stamens 2–3, slightly exserted.
5–33 per cluster, usually overlapping or 2–4 in group separated by small gap from next group, straw colored to grayish or reddish tan, broadly obovoid, 1.9–2.4(–2.8) × 1.1–1.3 mm (l/w: 1.7–2.1[–2.3]), apex rounded, glabrous;
ribs 5, obtuse-rounded to obtuse, often with low winglike ridge, slightly rugose near sulci;
sulci (0.2–)0.5 times as wide as base of ribs, slightly rugose, not papillate.
(2–)5–20(–30) per cluster, gray-brown to brown, narrowly obovate and tapering at both ends or clavate, 2.6–4 × 0.9–1.2 mm (l/w: 2.7–3.5), apex rounded to rounded-conic, moderately densely to densely stipitate-glandular on ribs and in sulci;
ribs 5, rounded, smooth;
sulci 1–2.5 times as wide as base of ribs, not rugose, not papillate.
= ca. 52.
= 52.
Boerhavia spicata
Boerhavia coccinea
C. F. Reed (1969) and subsequent authors have included one or more of Boerhavia coulteri, B. torreyana, and B. watsoni as synonymous with B. spicata. Even when those taxa are removed, B. spicata remains a variable species, widespread at low to middle elevations in southwestern North America, and distinguished by its mostly overlapping, obovoid fruits with rather open sulci, and the glandular pubescence on basal parts of the plant.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Boerhavia coccinea is weedy and probably adventive along the Gulf and southern Atlantic coasts in North America; it can be expected in waste areas anywhere in that region. Worldwide, it probably also has a broader range than indicated, particularly on oceanic islands. The complex, which is in need of taxonomic clarification, is extremely variable with regard to robustness, pubescence, and fruit number in individual terminal inflorescences. In the New World, flowers are usually some shade of deep wine red, although populations of white-flowered or yellow-flowered plants are rarely found (R. Spellenberg 2000). In the Old World, pink-flowered plants are frequent (C. Whitehouse 1996).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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