Barbieria

Taxonomy

Barbieria A.P. de Candolle Prodr. 2: 239. Nov (med.) 1825.

Subfamily: Faboideae.
Phylogenetic Number: 3.10.16A.
Tribe: Phaseoleae.
Subtribe: Clitoriinae.
Species Studied - Species in Genus: 1 studied; 1 in genus.

Description

Fruit: A legume; unilocular; 5.5–10 cm long; 0.5–0.6 cm wide; 0.4 cm thick; 2–9 times longer than wide to more than 9 times longer than wide; with deciduous androecial sheath; with deciduous corolla; with persistent calyx; with calyx shorter than fruit; without orifice formed by curving of fruit or fruit segments; straight; not plicate; not twisted; symmetrical; linear to moniliform (slightly); not inflated; compressed; without beak; short tapered at apex; aligned with longitudinal axis of fruit to oblique with longitudinal axis of fruit; tapered at base; aligned with longitudinal axis of fruit; with the apex and base uniform in texture; coriaceous; seed chambers externally visible; seed chambers with the raised seed chambers not torulose; margin not constricted; margin without sulcus; margin plain; wing(s) absent; substipitate; with the stipe 0.5–1 mm long; with all layers dehiscing; splitting along suture(s). Dehiscence of valves along both sutures; assumed apical and down; active; with valves twisting. Replum invisible. Epicarp dull; monochrome; brown; with surface texture uniform; pubescent and indurate; with hairs erect; with 1 type of pubescence; puberulent; with pubescence golden; with pubescence uniformly distributed; with simple hairs; pliable; with hair bases plain; eglandular; without spines; not smooth; with elevated features; not veined; not tuberculate; dotted; not exfoliating; without cracks; without embedded tissue, much thicker than epicarp, running from base to apex. Mesocarp present; thin; surface not veined; 2-layered; without balsamic vesicles; without fibers; without reniform canals; with solid layer over spongy layer; coriaceous. Endocarp present; visible; glossy; opaque; monochrome; yellow; smooth and spongy; without adhering pieces of testa; septate; with septa thin (tissue paper-like), flexible; with septa eglandular; coriaceous; not exfoliating; remaining fused to mesocarp and epicarp; without wings; entire. Seed(s) 3–7; length parallel with fruit length; neither overlapping nor touching; in 1 series. Funiculus 0.7 mm long; of 1 length only; flattened; triangular. Aril present; dry; when dry 2-lipped rim-aril; entire; covering less than 1/2 of seed; with tongues (or flap) on lips of 2-lipped rim-aril; with 1 tongue or flap on 1 lip of 2-lipped rim-aril; tan.

Seed: 5–5.2 mm long; 3.1–3.8 mm wide; 1.4 mm thick; not overgrown; angular, or not angular; asymmetrical; reniform to rectangular (nearly); compressed; with surface smooth; without visible radicle and cotyledon lobes; without hilar sinus; without umbo on seed faces; without medial ridge on each face. Cuticle not exfoliating; not inflated; not wrinkled. Testa present; without pieces of adhering epicarp; not adhering to endocarp; free from endocarp; glossy; not modified by a bloom; colored; monochrome; black to brown; glabrous; smooth; coriaceous. Pleurogram absent. Pseudopleurogram absent. Fracture lines absent. Rim absent. Wing(s) absent. Raphe not visible. Hilum present; partially concealed; concealed by aril; with faboid split; with the lips of the faboid split lighter colored than the rest of the hilum and therefore conspicuous; larger than punctiform; 1.4–1.5 mm long; with curved outline; elliptic; apical according to radicle tip but marginal according to seed length; recessed; within rim; rim color of testa, or lighter than testa. Lens discernible; 0.1–0.5 mm long; with margins straight; linear; not in groove of raphe; confluent with hilum; mounded; same color as testa; lighter than testa; brown; not within corona, halo, or rim. Endosperm present; thin; not pluglike and not resembling tip of radicle; covering at least 1/2 of embryo, but not entire embryo; adnate to testa. Cotyledons smooth; both outer faces convex; both the same thickness; both more or less of equal length; not folded; margin not entire 180 degrees from base of radicle; similar at apex; partially concealing radicle; notched at radicle; without lobes; with the interface division terminating at base of radicle; without margins recessed; yellow; inner face flat; glabrous on inner face. Embryonic axis oblique; oblique to length of seed; without a joint evident between the radicle and the cotyledons. Radicle differentiated from cotyledon; bulbose; lobe tip curved; deflexed and parallel to cotyledon width, or oblique to cotyledons; centered between cotyledons; less than 1/2 length of cotyledons. Plumule rudimentary; glabrous.

Distribution

Southern Mexico to Peru, Venezuela, Brazil, and the Caribbean.

New World; West Indies to Mexico to Central America to South America; Peru, Brazil, and the Guianas.
 

Generic Notes

Smith and Lewis (1991) and Lackey (1981) included the genus Barbieria in Clitoria (10.16), but Fantz (1996) maintained it as a genus. We are following the latter author. Barbieria has sticky seeds, as does Clitoria polstachya G. Bentham (10.16) (Delgado Salinas, pers. comm., 1997).

Tribal Notes

Tribe Phaseoleae

Bruneau et al. (1995) carried out cladistic analyses of tribe Phaseoleae using chloroplast DNA restriction site data. Their results indicated that the tribe is not monophyletic and that the tribal delimitations between Phaseoleae and Desmodieae (11) and between Phaseoleae and Millettieae (7) are problematic.