Dorycnopsis

Taxonomy

Dorycnopsis P.E. Boissier Voyage Bot. 2: 163. 1839.

Subfamily: Faboideae.
Phylogenetic Number: 3.13.05.
Tribe: Loteae.
Species Studied - Species in Genus: 1 studied; 1 in genus.

Description

Fruit: A legume; unilocular; 0.2–0.23 cm long; 0.15 cm wide; 0.1 cm thick; length less than twice as long as width; with deciduous androecial sheath; with deciduous corolla; with deciduous calyx (if fruits in a head then longer than calyx); without orifice formed by curving of fruit or fruit segments; straight; not plicate; not twisted; asymmetrical; elliptic; with both sutures parallelly curved; not inflated; terete; without beak; rounded at apex; aligned with longitudinal axis of fruit; rounded at base; aligned with longitudinal axis of fruit; with the apex and base uniform in texture; coriaceous; seed chambers externally invisible; margin not constricted; margin without sulcus; margin embellished; margin with wing(s); wing(s) present; wing(s) 1; wing(s) 0.3 mm wide; wing(s) sutural; wing(s) on 1 suture; nonstipitate; indehiscent (difficult to remove seed from fruit even though fruit coat thin). Replum invisible. Epicarp dull; monochrome; brown; with surface texture uniform; glabrous; eglandular; without spines; not smooth; with elevated features; veined; reticulately veined; not tuberculate; not exfoliating; without cracks; without embedded tissue, much thicker than epicarp, running from base to apex. Mesocarp present; thin; surface not veined; 1-layered; without balsamic vesicles; without fibers; without reniform canals; solid; coriaceous. Endocarp present; visible; glossy; opaque; monochrome; reddish brown; smooth; without adhering pieces of testa; nonseptate; chartaceous; not exfoliating; remaining fused to mesocarp and epicarp; with wing(s) extending into epicarp; entire. Seed(s) 1(–2) (though 2-seeded fruits not seen); length parallel with fruit length; neither overlapping nor touching; in 1 series. Funiculus of 1 length only; filiform; straight. Aril absent.

Seed: 1.5 mm long; 1 mm wide; 0.8 mm thick; not overgrown; not angular; symmetrical (except hilum); elliptic; terete; with surface smooth; without visible radicle and cotyledon lobes; 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; dull; not modified by a bloom; colored; monochrome; brown; glabrous; smooth; coriaceous. Pleurogram absent. Pseudopleurogram absent. Fracture lines absent. Rim absent. Wing(s) absent. Raphe not visible. Hilum present; fully concealed; concealed by funicular remnant; with faboid split; with the lips of the faboid split the same color as the rest of the hilum; punctiform; marginal according to radicle tip; flush; within rim; rim color darker than testa. Lens discernible; with margins straight, or curved; oblong; oblong; not in groove of raphe; adjacent to hilum; 0.1 mm from hilum; mounded; dissimilar color from testa; darker than testa; reddish brown; not within corona, halo, or rim. Endosperm present; thin; not pluglike and not resembling tip of radicle; covering 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 entire 180 degrees from base of radicle; similar at apex; not concealing radicle; entire over 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 deflexed; oblique to length of seed; without a joint evident between the radicle and the cotyledons. Radicle differentiated from cotyledon; linear; deflexed and parallel to cotyledon length; centered between cotyledons; less than 1/2 length of cotyledons. Plumule rudimentary; glabrous.

Distribution

Spain and southwestern Europe.

Old World; Spain and southwestern Europe, Mediterranean, and Africa.

Generic Notes

This genus was part of Anthyllis (13.02) in the report of Polhill (1981k), but Dorycnopis now is recognized as a separate genus (Polhill, 1994a, 1994b).). Tikhomirov and Sokoloff (1997) examined the taxonomic status of Vermifrux (1310) abyssinica (A. Richard) J.B. Gillett, and they concluded that Vermifrux and Dorycnopsis are synonymous. Therefore they made the new combination D. abyssinica (A. Richard) V.N. Tikhomirov & D.D. Sokoloff for the only species of Vermifrux. Pending further evaluation, we are accepting Vermifrux.

Tribal Notes

Tribe Loteae

In 1981, Polhill (1981k) accepted much broader generic circumscriptions in tribe Loteae, and only accepted four genera in the tribe: Cytisopsis, Anthyllis (13.02), Hymenocarpus (13.04), and Lotus (13.07). In his most recent classification of Fabaceae (Polhill, 1994a, 1994b), he combined tribes Loteae and Coronilleae and accepted six segregate genera in Loteae, s.s.: Tripodion (13.03), Dorycnopsis (13.05), Dorycnium (13.06), Podolotus J.F. Royle (13.08), Pseudolotus K.H. Rechinger (13.09), and Vermifrux (13.10).