Phyllanthus tenellus
Phyllanthus warnockii
Mascarene Island leaf-flower
sand reverchonia
main stems terete, not winged, glabrous or scabridulous; ultimate branchlets subterete, not winged, glabrous or scabridulous.
terete, not winged, glabrous.
on main stems spiral, scalelike;
stipules not auriculate, reddish brown.;
leaves on ultimate branchlets distichous, well developed;
stipules not auriculate, pale green or pink with paler margins;
blade elliptic to obovate, 6–25 × 4–11 mm, base acute to rounded, apex acute to obtuse, both surfaces glabrous.
spiral, all well developed;
stipules not auriculate, reddish purple to pale brown;
blade elliptic to narrowly oblong-elliptic or nearly linear, (15–)20–40(–45) × (1.8–)2.5–8(–9) mm, base cuneate-attenuate, apex acute to mucronate, both surfaces glabrous.
cymules or flowers solitary, proximal bisexual with 1–2 pistillate flowers and 2–3 staminate flowers, distal with 1 pistillate flower.
cymules, borne on lateral branches only, bisexual, with 1 pistillate flower and 4–6 staminate flowers.
staminate 0.5–1.5 mm, pistillate flexuous, capillary, and pendent in fruit, (2.5–)3–8 mm.
staminate 1.5–2.5 mm, pistillate spreading to sharply recurved, (2.5–)3.2–6.5(–8.7) mm.
sepals 5, white except green midrib, flat, 0.4–0.7 mm;
nectary extrastaminal, 5 glands;
stamens 5, filaments distinct.
sepals 4, dark reddish purple, central portion sometimes paler, medially incurved and distally spreading (calyx appearing urceolate), 1.5–2.5 mm;
nectary intrastaminal, annular, 4-lobed;
stamens 2, filaments distinct.
sepals 5, white except green midrib, flat, 0.6–0.8 mm, 1-veined;
nectary annular, unlobed.
sepals (5–)6, dark reddish purple, central portion sometimes paler and greenish purple, proximally flat to incurved and distally spreading, (1.3–)1.5–2.5(–2.9) mm, 1-veined;
nectary annular, entire or 6-angled.
1.7–1.9 mm diam., smooth.
7–9.8 mm diam., smooth.
uniformly brown, 0.8–0.9 mm, evenly papillate.
mottled light and dark brown, (4.4–)4.7–6.2(–6.6) mm, 2 surfaces minutely papillate, 1 surface smooth.
= 26.
= 16.
Phyllanthus tenellus
Phyllanthus warnockii
Phyllanthus tenellus is easily recognized by its long, capillary pistillate pedicels that are flexuous and pendent in fruit; it is native to the Mascarene Islands and perhaps to eastern Africa, other western Indian Ocean Islands, and the Arabian Peninsula, and is widely naturalized in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide. It appears to have been introduced into Florida in the 1920s and is continuing to spread. Phyllanthus tenellus has been reported from Arkansas (E. Sundell et al. 1999) and California as a nursery weed (G. F. Hrusa, pers. comm.), and from Oklahoma in flower beds (B. W. Hoagland, pers. comm.), and may be expected to become naturalized in those states.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Phyllanthus warnockii is endemic to quartz sand dunes. Although always recognized as close to Phyllanthus, it generally has been segregated as the monospecific Reverchonia because of its unique habit (leafy main stems and flowers restricted to lateral branches), calyx shape and color, staminate nectary, and embryo with linear cotyledons. Phylogenetic analysis of DNA sequence data shows that P. warnockii not only is embedded within Phyllanthus, but also that it is most closely related to P. abnormis, which also is restricted to sandy soil (H. Kathriarachchi et al. 2006). These results suggest that the peculiar habit of P. warnockii reflects partial loss of the phyllanthoid branching syndrome.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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