Teramnus

Taxonomy

Teramnus P. Browne Civ. Nat. Hist. Jamaica 290. 10 Mar 1756.

Subfamily: Faboideae.
Phylogenetic Number: 3.10.36.
Tribe: Phaseoleae.
Subtribe: Glycininae.
Species Studied - Species in Genus: 7 studied; 8 in genus.

Description

Fruit: A legumelegume:
usually dry, dehiscent fruit derived from a single carpel that opens along two longitudinal sutures
; unilocular; 2.5–5 cm long; 0.2–0.4 cm wide; 0.1–0.3 cm thick; 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; not plicate; not twisted; symmetrical; linear; not inflated; compressed; with beak; straight; with solid beak the same color and texture as fruit; tapered at apex; oblique with longitudinal axis of fruit to right-angled with longitudinal axis of fruit; tapered at base; aligned with longitudinal axis of fruit; with the apex and base uniform in texture; chartaceous; seed chambers externally visible (slightly), or invisible; seed chambers with the raised seed chambers not torulose; margin not constricted; margin without sulcus; margin plain, or embellished; margin with thickened sutural areas; wing(s) absent; nonstipitate; with all layers dehiscing; splitting along suture(s). Dehiscence of valves along both sutures; apical and down; active; with valves twisting. Replum invisible. Epicarp dull; monochrome, or multicolored; mottled; brown, or tan; with brown overlay; mottling color combination constant; with mottling over seed chambers; with surface texture uniform; pubescent and indurate; with hairs erect, or appressed; with 1 type of pubescence; velutinous; 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; papillose and rugose; 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; chartaceous. Endocarp present; visible; dull; opaque; monochrome; brown to tan; smooth; without adhering pieces of testa; septate, or subseptate; with septa thin (tissue paper-like), flexible; with septa eglandular; chartaceous; not exfoliating; remaining fused to mesocarp and epicarp; without wings; entire. Seed(s) 6–11; length parallel with fruit length; neither overlapping nor touching; in 1 series. Funiculus of 1 length only; flattened; triangular. Aril present; slightly fleshy, or dry; when fleshy 2-lipped rim-aril; entire; covering less than 1/2 of seed; when dry 2-lipped rim-aril; entire; covering less than 1/2 of seed; without tongue (or flap) on lips of 2-lipped rim-aril, or with tongues (or flap) on lips of 2-lipped rim-aril; with 1 tongue or flap on 1 lip of 2-lipped rim-aril; cream.

Seed: 2.8–5.5 mm long; 1.6–3.3 mm wide; 1.2–3.3 mm thick; not overgrown; not angular; symmetrical; oblong to reniform; terete to compressed; with surface smooth; without visible radicle and cotyledon lobes; without hilar sinus; with 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 to dull, or glaucous; not modified by a bloom, or modified by a bloom; colored; monochrome; brown; glabrous; smooth; chartaceous. Pleurogram absent. Pseudopleurogram absent. Fracture lines present, or absent; transverse. Rim absent. Wing(s) absent. Raphe barely visible, or not visible; from hilum through lens and base of seed to point opposite hilum; not bifurcating; lighter than testa; brown; flush. Hilum present; partially concealed; concealed by aril; with faboid split; with the lips of the faboid split the same color as the rest of the hilum; larger than punctiform; 0.6–1.4 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 darker than testa. Lens discernible; with margins curved; circular; not in groove of raphe; adjacent to hilum; flush; similar color as testa; darker than testa; brown; within corona, or not within corona, halo, or rim; corona color darker than testa. Endosperm present; thick; not pluglike and not resembling tip of radicle; covering entire embryo; adnate to testa, or embryo. Cotyledons not smooth; 1–3 grooves on each face; 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; partially concealing radicle, or not concealing radicle; notched at radicle; without lobes; with the interface division terminating at base of radicle; without margins recessed, or with margin(s) recessed; with 1 margin recessed; recessed on same side as radicle; white to 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; with 90 degree turn; centered between cotyledons; less than 1/2 length of cotyledons. Plumule rudimentary to moderately developed; glabrous.

Distribution

Pantropics.

New World and Old World; pantropical; Mexico, West Indies, Central America, and South America; Peru, Brazil, Ecuador, and the Guianas; Africa, Madagascar, Southwest Asia, India, Indochina, China, Indonesia and the Philippines, and Macaronesia.

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.