Flora of North America species comparison

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Croton cortesianus

Croton heptalon

Cortez's croton, palillo

woolly croton
Habit Shrubs, 10–30 dm, dioecious. Herbs, annual, 5–15 dm, monoecious; stems, leaves, and buds whitish-hairy when young, becoming glabrate.
Stems

di- or trichotomously branched, stellate-hairy, young stems often blackened by fungus.

well branched distally, stellate-hairy.
Leaves

not clustered;

stipules rudimentary;

petiole 1–1.5 cm, 1/6–1/3 leaf blade length, glands absent at apex;

blade narrowly obovate, oblong, elliptic, or lanceolate, 3–10 × 1–5 cm, mostly less than 3.5 times as long as wide, base subacute to rounded, margins minutely denticulate, apex acute or acuminate, abaxial surface light green, densely ochraceous stellate-hispid when young, pale stellate-hairy when mature, adaxial surface darker green, glabrous.

not clustered;

stipules linear, 2–7 mm;

petiole 0.5–5 cm, glands absent at apex;

blade ovate-lanceolate, 3–10 × 1–5 cm, base cordate to rounded, margins entire, apex acute, abaxial surface pale green, not appearing brown-dotted, no stellate hairs with brown centers, adaxial surface darker green, both stellate-hairy.
Inflorescences

unisexual, racemes;

staminate 7–20 cm, flowers 10–30;

pistillate 1–5 cm, flowers 8–20(–30).

bisexual, racemes, 2–4 cm, staminate flowers 3–10, pistillate flowers 4–8.
Pedicels

staminate 0–1 mm, pistillate 0–0.5 mm.

staminate 2–4 mm, pistillate 1–2 mm.
Staminate flowers

sepals 5, 2.5 mm, abaxial surface stellate-hairy;

petals 5, oblong, 3 mm, abaxial surface glabrous except margins ciliate basally;

stamens 12–16.

sepals (4–)5, 1–2 mm, abaxial surface stellate-hairy;

petals 5, linear-oblong-lanceolate, 1–1.5 mm, abaxial surface stellate-hairy;

stamens 9–12.
Pistillate flowers

sepals 5, equal, 1–1.5 mm, margins entire, apex straight to slightly incurved, abaxial surface stellate-hispid;

petals rudimentary;

ovary 3-locular;

styles 3, 4–5 mm, 2-fid, terminal segments 6.

sepals 7–8, subequal, 3–6 mm, margins entire, apex straight to slightly incurved, abaxial surface whitish appressed-tomentose;

petals 0;

ovary 3-locular;

styles 3, 3–4 mm, 4-fid, terminal segments 12.
Capsules

5–6 × 4.5–5.5 mm, smooth;

columella apex with 3 rounded, inflated lobes.

6–8 × 6–7 mm, smooth;

columella tipped with 3-pronged grappling hooklike appendage.
Seeds

4–5 × 3–3.5 mm, shiny (with silvery sheen).

4–5 × 2–2.5 mm, shiny.
2n

= 20.

Croton cortesianus

Croton heptalon
Phenology Flowering Feb–Oct, possibly year-round. Flowering May–Dec.
Habitat Scrub forests. Beaches, coastal dunes, roadsides.
Elevation 0–50 m. (0–200 ft.) 0–50 m. (0–200 ft.)
Distribution
from FNA
TX; e Mexico; se Mexico; Central America
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
TX; e Mexico
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Croton cortesianus is known in the flora area only from Cameron, Hidalgo, and Starr counties.

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

Morphological differences among Croton heptalon and its multifid-styled relatives in sect. Heptallon, especially C. capitatus and C. lindheimeri, can be quite subtle. In general, C. heptalon can be distinguished from C. capitatus by its more elongate pistillate part of the inflorescence, non-recurving sepal tips in the pistillate flowers, and more cordate leaf bases on larger basal leaves. Whitish pubescence on its young growth and styles that branch once into four terminal segments distinguish C. heptalon from C. lindheimeri.

Croton muelleri J. M. Coulter, which is an illegitimate name, pertains here.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 12, p. 213. FNA vol. 12, p. 217.
Parent taxa Euphorbiaceae > Croton Euphorbiaceae > Croton
Sibling taxa
C. alabamensis, C. argenteus, C. argyranthemus, C. californicus, C. capitatus, C. ciliatoglandulifer, C. coryi, C. dioicus, C. elliottii, C. fruticulosus, C. glandulosus, C. heptalon, C. humilis, C. incanus, C. leucophyllus, C. lindheimeri, C. lindheimerianus, C. linearis, C. michauxii, C. monanthogynus, C. parksii, C. pottsii, C. punctatus, C. sancti-lazari, C. setigerus, C. soliman, C. sonorae, C. suaveolens, C. texensis, C. wigginsii
C. alabamensis, C. argenteus, C. argyranthemus, C. californicus, C. capitatus, C. ciliatoglandulifer, C. cortesianus, C. coryi, C. dioicus, C. elliottii, C. fruticulosus, C. glandulosus, C. humilis, C. incanus, C. leucophyllus, C. lindheimeri, C. lindheimerianus, C. linearis, C. michauxii, C. monanthogynus, C. parksii, C. pottsii, C. punctatus, C. sancti-lazari, C. setigerus, C. soliman, C. sonorae, C. suaveolens, C. texensis, C. wigginsii
Synonyms C. chichenensis, C. trichocarpus Oxydectes heptalon, C. albinoides, C. capitatus var. albinoides, C. engelmannii var. albinoides, C. muelleri var. albinoides, Heptallon aromaticum
Name authority Kunth: in A. von Humboldt et al., Nov. Gen. Sp. 2(fol.): 66; 2(qto.): 83. (1817) (Kuntze) B. W. van Ee & P. E. Berry: Syst. Bot. 35: 159. (2010)
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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