Sideroxylon

Sideroxylon is a genus of trees in the family Sapotaceae described as a genus by Linnaeus in 1753.[3][5] They are collectively known as bully trees. The generic name is derived from the Greek words σιδηρος (sideros), meaning "iron", and ξύλον (xylon), meaning "wood."[6]

For other uses, see Sideroxylon (disambiguation).

Bully trees
Sideroxylon persimile
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Ericales
Family: Sapotaceae
Subfamily: Sapotoideae
Genus: Sideroxylon
L.[1]
Type species
Sideroxylon inerme
Synonyms[4]
  • Apterygia Baehni
  • Bumelia Sw.
  • Calvaria Comm. ex C.F.Gaertn.
  • Cryptogyne Hook.f.
  • Decateles Raf.
  • Dipholis A.DC.
  • Edgeworthia Falc. 1842, illegitimate homonym, not Meisn. 1841 (Thymelaeaceae)
  • Lyciodes Kuntze
  • Mastichodendron (Engl.) H.J.Lam
  • Monotheca A.DC.
  • Nesoluma Baill.
  • Reptonia A.DC.
  • Robertia Scop., rejected name
  • Robertsia Endl.
  • Rostellaria C.F.Gaertn.
  • Sclerocladus Raf.
  • Sinosideroxylon (Engl.) Aubrév.
  • Spiniluma (Baill.) Aubrév.
  • Spondogona Raf., rejected name
  • Tatina Raf.
Leaves of Sideroxylon mirmulano

Distribution

The genus is distributed mainly in North and South America, but also in Africa, Madagascar, southern Asia, and various oceanic islands.[4] Some species, such as gum bully (S. lanuginosum), S. tenax, and buckthorn bully (S. lycioides), are found in subtropical areas of North America. The only South African species, the white milkwood (S. inerme), is associated with three historical sites, and these individuals were declared national monuments due to their unusual longevity.[7][8]

Ecology

Several species have become rare due to logging and other forms of habitat destruction. The tambalacoque (S. grandiflorum) of Mauritius was affected by the extinction of the birds which dispersed its seed; it was suggested that the species entirely depended on the dodo (Raphus cucullatus) for that purpose and nearly became a victim of coextinction, but this is not correct.[9][10] Bully trees provide food for the larvae of certain Lepidoptera, such as the bumelia webworm moth (Urodus parvula) as well as several species of Coleoptera of the genus Plinthocoelium, commonly known as bumelia borers.

Species

83 species are currently accepted:[11]

Formerly placed here

References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sideroxylon.
Wikispecies has information related to Sideroxylon.
  1. "Genus: Sideroxylon L." Germplasm Resources Information Network. United States Department of Agriculture. 2009-09-30. Retrieved 2010-11-01.
  2. lectotype designated by Baillon, Bull. Mens. Soc. Linn. Paris 908 (1891)
  3. Tropicos, Sideroxylon L.
  4. Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
  5. Linnaeus, Carl von. 1753. Species Plantarum 1: 192-193 in Latin
  6. Gledhill, D. (2008). The Names of Plants (4 ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 352. ISBN 978-0-521-86645-3.
  7. Flora of North America, Vol. 8 Page 236, Bully, Sideroxylon Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 1: 192. 1753; Gen. Pl. ed. 5, 89. 1754.
  8. Flora of China, Vol. 15 Page 212, 铁榄属 tie lan shu Sinosideroxylon (Engler) Aubreville, Adansonia, n.s. 3: 32. 1963.
  9. Witmer, M. C.; A. S. Cheke (1991). "The dodo and the tambalacoque tree: an obligate mutualism reconsidered". Oikos. 61 (1): 133–137. doi:10.2307/3545415. JSTOR 3545415.
  10. Hershey, D. R. (2004). "The widespread misconception that the tambalacoque absolutely required the dodo for its seeds to germinate". Plant Science Bulletin. 50: 105–108.
  11. Sideroxylon L. Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
  12. Biota of North America Program 2013 county distribution map, Sideroxylon lanuginosum
  13. Biota of North America Program 2013 county distribution map, Sideroxylon lycioides
  14. Biota of North America Program 2013 county distribution map, Sideroxylon reclinatum
  15. Biota of North America Program 2013 county distribution map, Sideroxylon tenax
  16. Biota of North America Program 2013 county distribution map, Sideroxylon thornei
  17. "GRIN Species Records of Sideroxylon". Germplasm Resources Information Network. United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 2010-09-10.
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