Sellocharis

Taxonomy

Sellocharis P.H.W. Taubert Flora 72: 421. 1 Nov 1889.

Subfamily: Faboideae.
Phylogenetic Number: 3.30.07.
Tribe: Genisteae.
Species Studied - Species in Genus: 0 studied; 1 in genus.

Distribution

Southeastern Brazil.

New World; South America (southeastern Brazil); Brazil.

Generic Notes

We had no seed and fruit samples to study. The following data are from Polhill (1964), "pods subsessile, linear, with a persistent stylar beak, apparently more or less 8–20-seeded. Seed not seen." Other recorded fruit data include: fruits linear, compressed, 2-valved, densely tawny with silky, straight long hairs, 3 X 0.5 cm, and subsessile." The fruit images were prepared from Field Museum negative number 1915 made in Berlin by J. Francis Macbride. Polhill (1981q) and Van Wyk (1991) had this genus in Crotalarieae, but later transferred it to the beginning of the Genisteae (30; Polhill, 1994a, 1994b; Van Wyk and Schutte 1995a).

Tribal Notes

Tribe Genisteae

Traditionally this tribe has been called Genisteae. Reveal (1997) reported that the name Cytiseae was published before the name Genisteae. Following the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature (Greuter et al., 1994), the oldest name for a taxon must be used, so Reveal suggested that this tribe should be called Cytiseae. In 1999 Reveal (1999) reversed himself, so that this tribe remains the Genisteae. Bisby (1981) summarized tribe Genisteae, following the excellent study by Polhill (1976). Bisby correctly noted that "many species have been moved from one genus to another several times and the Cytisus-Genista complex has gained a reputation as a critical group." He continued with an indepth analysis of the tribe. Polhill (1994a, 1994b) and Van Wyk and Schutte (1995a), using chemical and morphological characters, transferred five genera from Crotalarieae (27) to Genisteae: Anarthrophyllum (30.06), Argyrolobium (30.03), Dichilus (30.02), Melolobium, and Sellocharis (30.07). Cristofolini (1997) carried out a cladistic study of the tribe's biogeography, and discussed its early evolutionary history. López et al. (2000) studied the species of this tribe occurring in southwestern Spain and presented detailed descriptions for and a key to them.