Cuviera
Cuviera is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae native to tropical Africa. It was originally described by Augustin Pyramus de Candolle in 1807 and is named after the French naturalist Georges Cuvier.
Description
The species form a homogeneous group that is well characterized by their striped petals, many-flowered inflorescences and usually ant holes in the twigs. The bracts are recaulescent, which means that the first node of the inflorescence is bare and the lowest bracts are inserted at the second node.Distribution and habitat
The genus is found in the Guineo-Congolian rainforest zone. The centre of diversity is the Lower Guinean forests; two species occur in the Upper Guinean forests, and only C. angolensis extends into the Congolian forests.Most species are relatively light demanding, favouring secondary or riverine forest, but some are found in the understory as well. They often grow in clusters.
Taxonomy
At one time, the genus Globulostylis was considered as a subgenus of Cuviera, but it has been re-established as an accepted genus.Species
Accepted species according to the latest revision.Cuviera acutiflora DC. - from Liberia to Equatorial GuineaCuviera angolensis Welw. ex K.Schum. - Zaïre, Cabinda, AngolaCuviera le-testui Pellegr. - Congo-Brazzaville, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Zaïre Cuviera longiflora Hiern - Nigeria, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Congo-Brazzaville, Gabon, Bioko Cuviera macroura K.Schum. - Benin, Ghana, Guinea, Côte d'Ivoire, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Cameroon Cuviera physinodes K.Schum. - Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, GabonCuviera pierrei N.Hallé - Equatorial Guinea, GabonCuviera subuliflora Benth. - Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Zaïre, Congo-Brazzaville, Nigeria, Gulf of Guinea Islands Cuviera trilocularis Hiern - Nigeria, CameroonCuviera truncata Hutch. & Dalziel - Nigeria, Cameroon;formerly included
The following species are excluded from Cuviera based on morphological and molecular data, some of which have not yet been formally transferred to other genera.Cuviera australis K.Schum. = Vangueria lasiantha Sond. - Mozambique, South AfricaCuviera bolo Aubrèv. & Pellegr. = Robynsia glabrata Hutch. - Ivory Coast, Ghana, NigeriaCuviera calycosa Wernham - Nigeria, Cameroon, Zaïre, Congo-BrazzavilleCuviera migeodii Verdc. - TanzaniaCuviera nigrescens Wernham - from Liberia to Zaïre Cuviera schliebenii Verdc. - Tanzania, MozambiqueCuviera semseii Verdc. - Tanzania, Malawi, MozambiqueCuviera tomentosa Verdc. - Tanzania, Mozambique