Pomaria

Taxonomy

Pomaria J.A. Cavanilles Icon. 5: 1. Jun-Sep 1799.

Subfamily: Caesalpinioideae.
Phylogenetic Number: 1.1.24A.
Tribe: Caesalpinieae.
Group: Caesalpinia.
Species Studied - Species in Genus: 1 studied; 15–18 in genus.

Description

Fruit: A legumelegume:
usually dry, dehiscent fruit derived from a single carpel that opens along two longitudinal sutures
; unilocular; 1.5–4.3 cm long; 0.5–1.5 cm wide; 0.3 cm thick (estimated); 2–9 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 to curved; not plicate; not twisted; symmetrical, or asymmetrical (slightly); falcate, or oblong, or oblong to lanceolate; with both sutures nearly straight, or both sutures parallelly curved; not inflated; flattened (estimated); with beak (short); straight; with solid beak the same color and texture as fruit; tapered at apex; aligned with longitudinal axis of fruit; tapered at base; oblique with longitudinal axis of fruit, or aligned with longitudinal axis of fruit; with the apex and base uniform in texture; chartaceous; seed chambers externally invisible; margin not constricted; margin without sulcus; margin plain; wing(s) absent; stipitate, or substipitate; with the stipe 2–8 mm long; with all layers dehiscing; splitting along suture(s). Dehiscence of valves along both sutures; active; with valves probably twisting. Replum invisible. Epicarp dull; monochrome; tan, or brown; with surface texture uniform; pubescent and indurate; with hairs erect, or appressed; with 1 type of pubescence, or 2 types of pubescence; puberulent; with pubescence brown; with pubescence uniformly distributed; with simple hairs, or glandular hairs, or complex hairs; with plumose hairs, or stellate hairs (straight or antrorse); pliable; with hair bases plain, or swollen; glandular; with glandular hairs, or papillae, or setae; distributed over entire fruit, or limited to a portion of fruit; upper 1/4 glandular and lower 3/4 eglandular to 1/2 glandular and lower 1/2 eglandular to 2/3 glandular and lower 1/3 eglandular; without spines; not smooth; with elevated features; not veined; not tuberculate; tuberculate (with hairs on tubercules: simple, plumose, or stellate); not exfoliating; without cracks; without embedded tissue, much thicker than epicarp, running from base to apex. Mesocarp absent. Endocarp present; visible; glossy; opaque; monochrome; tan; smooth; without adhering pieces of testa; nonseptate; chartaceous; not exfoliating; remaining fused to epicarp; without wings; entire. Seed(s) 1–4; length parallel with fruit length; neither overlapping nor touching; in 1 series. Funiculus 1 mm long; of 1 length only; flattened; triangular. Aril absent.

Seed: 3–7 mm long; 2–5.5 mm wide; 1 mm thick (P. jamesii); not overgrown; not angular; symmetrical; circular to pyriform, or ovate to pyriform, or cordate, or obovate; 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; dull; not modified by a bloom; colored; monochrome; dark brown; glabrous; smooth; chartaceous. Pleurogram absent. Pseudopleurogram absent. Fracture lines absent. Rim absent. Wing(s) absent. Raphe visible; from hilum through lens and terminating before base of seed; not bifurcating; darker than testa; black; flush. Hilum present; fully concealed; concealed by funicular remnant; larger than punctiform; 0.5 mm long (P. jamesii); with curved outline; circular; recessed; not within corona, halo, or rim. Lens discernible; 0.6 mm long (P. jamesii); with margins curved; elliptic; not in groove of raphe; adjacent to hilum; 0.3 mm from hilum (P. jamesii); recessed; same color as testa; brown; not within corona, halo, or rim. Endosperm present; thin; not pluglike and not resembling tip of radicle; adnate to testa. Cotyledons smooth; both outer faces flat; 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; notched at radicle; with lobes; with lobes not touching; without basal groin formed by lobes; with the interface division terminating at base of radicle; without margins recessed; tan; inner face flat; glabrous on inner face. Embryonic axis parallel; parallel to length of seed; without a joint evident between the radicle and the cotyledons. Radicle differentiated from cotyledon; bulbose; lobe tip straight; straight with embryonic axis; centered between cotyledons; less than 1/2 length of cotyledons. Plumule rudimentary; glabrous.

Distribution

southwestern United States, Northern Mexico, South America, South Africa.

New World and Old World; southwestern United States, Mexico, West Indies, and South America (northern Mexico and South American extent unknown at this time); Africa (South Africa, extent unknown at this time).

Generic Notes

Lewis and Schrire (1995) suggested that Pomaria be reconsidered for reinstatement at generic rank. Simpson and Miao (1997) carried out extensive cladistic analyses of Hoffmannseggia (1.1.24) using both morhological and cpDNA restriction site data, and concluded that Pomaria is a good genus. Simpson (1998) revised the nine North American species of Pomaria, and Rzedowski and Calderón de Rzedowski (1997) floristically treated two species, P. glanulosa J.A. Cavanilles and P. melanosticha H.E.O. Schauer. Lewis and Simpson (Lewis, pers. comm. 1998) are working on the South American and South African species of Pomaria, including the African species which were formerly referred to Hoffmannseggia (1.1.34).