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  1. Family: Euphorbiaceae Juss.
    1. Genus: Hura L.

      1. Hura crepitans L.

        This species is accepted, and its native range is Tropical America.

    [FTEA]

    Euphorbiaceae, A. R.-Smith. Flora of Tropical East Africa. 1987

    Habit
    A much-branched tree up to 24 m. high, but more often 6–12 m. high, with a spreading crown.
    Bark
    Bark light grey, covered with sharp spines.
    Bole
    Bole up to 2 m. diameter.
    Twigs
    Twigs sparingly lenticellate.
    Shoots
    Young shoots glabrous or sparingly pubescent.
    Leaves
    Petioles up to 15 cm. long, glabrous; glands turbinate, truncate; leaf-blades broadly ovate to orbicular-ovate, (5–)10–15(–18) cm. long, (3–)6–12 cm. wide, obtusely or subacutely cuspidate-acuminate, truncate to shallowly or deeply cordate, entire, subentire or shallowly and rather remotely serrate-denticulate, occasionally somewhat repand, thinly to firmly chartaceous, lateral nerves 8–15 pairs, not or scarcely prominent above, slightly so beneath, tertiary nerves ± parallel, glabrous above, patent-pilose along the midrib and main nerves at least towards the base and otherwise glabrous beneath, or else ± completely glabrous above and beneath, bright green and shiny above, somewhat paler and duller beneath.
    Stipules
    Stipules linear-lanceolate, (1–)1.5–2 cm. long, ± entire, densely pubescent abaxially, glabrous adaxially, or else ± glabrous on both surfaces, minutely ciliolate, readily deciduous.
    Inflorescences
    Inflorescences extending to 15 cm. long at maturity, with the peduncle up to 11 cm. long, and the ♂ portion cylindric-conic, 4–6 cm. long and 2 cm. wide when fully expanded, dull red, viscid; bracts rhombic, 1.5 mm. long, evenly to sparingly pubescent.
    Male
    Male flowers:calyx minute, scarcely visible; staminal column 5–7 mm. long, glabrous, anthers (1–)2–3-verticillate, 0.5 mm. long.
    Flowers
    Female flowers:peduncle 1–2 cm. long, 2–4 mm. thick; calyx-tube up to 7 mm. long and 8 mm. diameter, completely enclosing the ovary, purple; ovary subglobose, pale green; style 2–4 cm. long, stigma 1–2 cm. across, dark red. Male flowers:calyx minute, scarcely visible; staminal column 5–7 mm. long, glabrous, anthers (1–)2–3-verticillate, 0.5 mm. long.
    Female
    Female flowers:peduncle 1–2 cm. long, 2–4 mm. thick; calyx-tube up to 7 mm. long and 8 mm. diameter, completely enclosing the ovary, purple; ovary subglobose, pale green; style 2–4 cm. long, stigma 1–2 cm. across, dark red.
    Fruits
    Fruit deeply 5–20-lobed, concave at the apex and base, 4 cm. long, 8 cm. diameter, the lobes ± smooth, greenish.
    Seeds
    Seeds ± lenticular, 2.2 cm. long, 2 cm. deep, 4 mm. thick, smooth, dull brownish.
    Habitat
    Cultivated; sea-level to 1220 m.
    Distribution
    native of tropical America from the Greater Antilles and Costa Rica to N. Brazil and Bolivia, and widely cultivated in Africa and elsewhere as an ornamental, and often as a street treethe ‘Sand Box Tree’ K3 T3 T6 U4

    Images

    Distribution

    Native to:

    Bahamas, Bolivia, Brazil North, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Leeward Is., Nicaragua, Panamá, Peru, Puerto Rico, Southwest Caribbean, Suriname, Trinidad-Tobago, Venezuela, Venezuelan Antilles, Windward Is.

    Introduced into:

    Benin, Central African Repu, Florida, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau

    Hura crepitans L. appears in other Kew resources:

    Date Reference Identified As Barcode Type Status
    Jan 1, 2012 Hendelot, D. [846] K000846146 isotype
    Philcox, D. [7930], Trinidad & Tobago K000716109
    Philcox, D. [7230], Trinidad & Tobago K000716110
    Philcox, D. [7247], Trinidad & Tobago K000716111

    First published in Sp. Pl.: 1008 (1753)

    Accepted by

    • Flora of North America Editorial Committee (2016). Flora of North America North of Mexico 12: 1-603. Oxford University Press, New York, Oxford.
    • de Oliveira, L. dos S.D., da Silva, M.J. & de Sales, M.F. (2013). Synopsis of the tribe Hureae (Euphorbioideae, Euphorbiaceae) Brittonia 65: 310-329.
    • Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & Strong, M.T. (2012). Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies Smithsonian Contributions to Botany 98: 1-1192.
    • Idárraga-Piedrahita, A., Ortiz, R.D.C., Callejas Posada, R. & Merello, M. (eds.) (2011). Flora de Antioquia: Catálogo de las Plantas Vasculares 2: 1-939. Universidad de Antioquia, Medellín.
    • Lejoy, J., Ndjele, M.-B. & Geerinck, D. (2010). Catalogue-flore des plantes vasculaires des districts de Kisangani et de la Tshopo (RD Congo) Taxonomania. Revue de Taxonomie et de Nomenclature Botaniques 30: 1-307.
    • Lisowski, S. (2009). Flore (Angiospermes) de la République de Guinée Scripta Botanica Belgica 41: 1-517.
    • Hokche, O., Berry, P.E. & Huber, O. (eds.) (2008). Nuevo Catálogo de la Flora Vascular de Venezuela: 1-859. Fundación Instituto Botánico de Venezuela.
    • Nelson Sutherland, C.H. (2008). Catálogo de las plantes vasculares de Honduras. Espermatofitas: 1-1576. SERNA/Guaymuras, Tegucigalpa, Honduras.
    • van Welzen, P.C. & Chayamarit, K. (2007). Flora of Thailand 8(2): 305-592. The Forest Herbarium, National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation Department, Bangkok.
    • Balakrishnan, N.P. & Chakrabarty, T. (2007). The family Euphorbiaceae in India. A synopsis of its profile, taxonomy and bibliography: 1-500. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh, Dehra Dun.
    • Akoègninou, A., van der Burg, W.J. & van der Maesen, L.J.G. (eds.) (2006). Flore Analytique du Bénin: 1-1034. Backhuys Publishers.
    • Catarino, L., Sampaio Martins, E., Pinto-Basto, M.F. & Diniz, M.A. (2006). Plantas Vasculares e Briófitos da Guiné-Bissau: 1-298. Instituto de investigação científica tropical, Instituto Português de apoio ao desenvolvimento.
    • Harris, D.J. (2002). The vascular plants of the Dzanga-Sangha Reserve, Central African Republic: 1-274. National Botanic Garden (Belgium), Meise.
    • Stevens, W.D., Ulloa U., C., Pool, A. & Montiel, O.M. (2001). Flora de Nicaragua Monographs in Systematic Botany from the Missouri Botanical Garden 85: i-xlii, 1-2666.
    • Govaerts, R., Frodin, D.G. & Radcliffe-Smith, A. (2000). World Checklist and Bibliography of Euphorbiaceae (and Pandaceae) 1-4: 1-1622. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

    Literature

    Kew Backbone Distributions
    • Flora of North America Editorial Committee (2016). Flora of North America North of Mexico 12: 1-603. Oxford University Press, New York, Oxford.
    • Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & Strong, M.T. (2012). Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies Smithsonian Contributions to Botany 98: 1-1192.
    • Lisowski, S. (2009). Flore (Angiospermes) de la République de Guinée Scripta Botanica Belgica 41: 1-517.
    • Hokche, O., Berry, P.E. & Huber, O. (eds.) (2008). Nuevo Catálogo de la Flora Vascular de Venezuela: 1-859. Fundación Instituto Botánico de Venezuela.
    • Nelson Sutherland, C.H. (2008). Catálogo de las plantes vasculares de Honduras. Espermatofitas: 1-1576. SERNA/Guaymuras, Tegucigalpa, Honduras.
    • Akoègninou, A., van der Burg, W.J. & van der Maesen, L.J.G. (eds.) (2006). Flore Analytique du Bénin: 1-1034. Backhuys Publishers.
    • Catarino, L., Sampaio Martins, E., Pinto-Basto, M.F. & Diniz, M.A. (2006). Plantas Vasculares e Briófitos da Guiné-Bissau: 1-298. Instituto de investigação científica tropical, Instituto Português de apoio ao desenvolvimento.
    • Harris, D.J. (2002). The vascular plants of the Dzanga-Sangha Reserve, Central African Republic: 1-274. National Botanic Garden (Belgium), Meise.
    • Gonzalez, F., Nelson Diaz, J. & Lowry, P. (1995). Flora Illustrada de San Andrés y Providencia: 1-281. Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Colombia.
    Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • Keay, Flora of West Tropical Africa, ed. 2, 1: 368 (1958), in adnot.
    • J.P.M. Brenan, Check-lists of the Forest Trees and Shrubs of the British Empire no. 5, part II, Tanganyika Territory p. 216 (1949).
    • A. Engler & O. Drude, Die Vegetation Der Erde, IX, Pflanzenwelt Afrikas 3(2): 144 (1921).
    • Prain in Flora of Tropical Africa 6(1): 1019 (1913).
    • Pax in A. Engler, Das Pflanzenreich IV. 147(5): 272 (1912).
    • Muell. Arg. in DC., Prodr. 15(2): 1229 (1866).
    • L., Sp. Pl.: 1008 (1753).

    Sources

    Flora of Tropical East Africa
    Flora of Tropical East Africa
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

    Herbarium Catalogue Specimens
    'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.
    Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

    Kew Backbone Distributions
    The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2019. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
    © Copyright 2017 World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

    Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone
    The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2019. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
    © Copyright 2017 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0