Cadia (plant)
Cadia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae which belongs to the subfamily Faboideae. It includes 8 species native to northeastern Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and Madagascar.
Unlike most plants in the Faboideae, it has radially symmetrical flowers. In related species with bilateral symmetry, such as those of Lupinus, the dorsal part of the flower expresses one or more genes in the Cycloidea /Dichotoma family. In Cadia, these genes are expressed throughout the flower. Thus, from a molecular point of view, Cadia is not reversing the ancestral evolution from radial symmetry to bilateral symmetry but obtaining radial symmetry from a new mechanism.
Eight species are accepted:Cadia commersoniana Baill. – southwestern MadagascarCadia ellisiana Baker – east-central and eastern MadagascarCadia emarginatior M.Peltier – western Madagascar Cadia multifoliolata – MadagascarCadia pedicellata Baker – central MadagascarCadia pubescens Bojer ex Baker – central and east-central MadagascarCadia purpurea Aiton – Horn of Africa, Kenya, and Arabian Peninsula Cadia rubra R.Vig. – western Madagascar