Gymnosporia is an Old World genus of plants, that comprise suffrutices, shrubs and trees. It was formerly considered congeneric with Maytenus, but more recent investigations separated it based on the presence of achyblasts (truncated branchlets) and spines, alternate leaves or fascicles of leaves, an inflorescence that forms a dichasium, mostly unisexual flowers, and fruit forming a dehiscent capsule, with an aril on the seed. It is dioecious, with male and female flowers on separate plants.
Range The genus occurs in all of Africa, Madagascar and adjacent islands, southern Spain, the Middle East, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, southern China, Taiwan, the Ryukyu Islands, Malesia, Micronesia, and in Queensland, Australia. In the Afrotropical realm the two main centers of diversity are in the south and the northeast.
Species The genus includes some 117 species:
Gymnosporia acuminata Hook.f. ex M.A.Lawson Gymnosporia addat Loes. – Ethiopia Gymnosporia alaternifolia (Tul.) Loes. Gymnosporia andongensis Gymnosporia annobonensis Loes. & Mildbr. Gymnosporia arbutifolia (Hochst. ex A.Rich.) Loes. Gymnosporia arenicola Jordaan Gymnosporia austroyunnanensis (S.J.Pei & Y.H.Li) M.P.Simmons Gymnosporia bachmannii Loes. Gymnosporia bailadillana V.Naray. & Mooney Gymnosporia baumii Loes. Gymnosporia benguelensis Loes. Gymnosporia beniensis Robyns & Lawalrée Gymnosporia berberoides W.W.Sm. Gymnosporia bonii Pit. Gymnosporia brevipetala Loes. Gymnosporia buchananii Loes. Gymnosporia buxifolia (L.) Szyszyl. Gymnosporia buxifolioides Loes. Gymnosporia capitata (E.Mey. ex Sond.) Loes. Gymnosporia cassinoides (L'Hér.) Masf. – Canary Islands Gymnosporia chevalieri Tardieu Gymnosporia commiphoroides H.Perrier Gymnosporia confertiflora (J.Y.Luo & X.X.Chen) M.P.Simmons Gymnosporia cortii Pic.Serm. Gymnosporia crataegina Baker Gymnosporia crenata (G.Forst.) Seem. Gymnosporia cryptopetala Reyes-Bet. & A.Santos Gymnosporia devenishii Jordaan Gymnosporia dhofarensis (Sebsebe) Jordaan – Oman and Yemen Gymnosporia divaricata Baker Gymnosporia diversifolia Maxim. Gymnosporia dongfangensis (F.W.Xing & X.S.Qin) M.P.Simmons Gymnosporia drummondii (N.Robson & Sebsebe) Jordaan Gymnosporia elliptica (Thunb.) Schönland Gymnosporia emarginata (Willd.) Thwaites Gymnosporia engleriana Loes. Gymnosporia esquirolii (H.Lév.) H.Lév. Gymnosporia falconeri M.A.Lawson Gymnosporia forsskaoliana (Sebsebe) Jordaan Gymnosporia fruticosa (Thwaites) Thwaites Gymnosporia gariepensis Jordaan Gymnosporia glaucophylla Jordaan Gymnosporia gracilipes (Welw. ex Oliv.) Loes. Gymnosporia gracilis Loes. Gymnosporia grandifolia (Davison) Jordaan Gymnosporia grossulariae (Tul.) Loes. Gymnosporia guangxiensis (C.Y.Cheng & W.L.Sha) M.P.Simmons Gymnosporia gurueensis (N.Robson) Jordaan Gymnosporia hainanensis Merr. & Chun Gymnosporia harenensis (Sebsebe) Jordaan – Ethiopia Gymnosporia harlandii Hance Gymnosporia harveyana Loes. Gymnosporia hemipterocarpa Jordaan Gymnosporia heterophylla (Eckl. & Zeyh.) Loes. Gymnosporia heyneana (Roth) M.A.Lawson Gymnosporia inermis Gymnosporia integrifolia (L.f.) Glover Gymnosporia intermedia Chiov. Gymnosporia jinyangensis (C.Y.Chang) Q.R.Liu & Funston Gymnosporia keniensis (Loes.) Jordaan Gymnosporia leptopus (Tul.) Baker Gymnosporia linearis (L.f.) Loes. Gymnosporia listeri Gymnosporia littoralis (Backer) Jordaan Gymnosporia livingstonei Jordaan Gymnosporia macrocarpa Jordaan Gymnosporia maranguensis (Loes.) Loes. Gymnosporia marcanii Craib Gymnosporia markwardii Jordaan Gymnosporia masindei (Gereau) Jordaan Gymnosporia matoboensis Jordaan Gymnosporia montana (Roth) Benth. Gymnosporia mossambicensis (Klotzsch) Loes. Gymnosporia nemorosa (Eckl. & Zeyh.) Szyszyl. Gymnosporia nguruensis (N.Robson & Sebsebe) Jordaan Gymnosporia nitida Merr. Gymnosporia obbiadensis Chiov. Gymnosporia obscura (A.Rich.) Loes. Gymnosporia orbiculata (C.Y.Wu ex S.J.Pei & Y.H.Li) Q.R.Liu & Gymnosporia ovalifolia Gymnosporia oxycarpa (N.Robson) Jordaan Gymnosporia pallida Collett & Hemsl. Gymnosporia parviflora (Vahl) Chiov. Gymnosporia pertinax (N.Hallé & J.Florence) M.P.Simmons – Rapa Iti Gymnosporia polyacanthus Szyszyl. Gymnosporia puberula M.A.Lawson Gymnosporia pubescens (N.Robson) Jordaan Gymnosporia punctata (Sebsebe) Jordaan Gymnosporia putterlickioides Loes. Gymnosporia pyria (Willemet) Jordaan Gymnosporia richardsiae (N.Robson & Sebsebe) Jordaan Gymnosporia rothiana (Walp.) M.A.Lawson Gymnosporia royleana Wall. ex M.A.Lawson Gymnosporia rubra (Harv.) Loes. Gymnosporia rufa (Wall.) Hook.f. Gymnosporia salicifolia M.A.Lawson Gymnosporia schliebenii Jordaan Gymnosporia sekhukhuniensis Gymnosporia senegalensis (Lam.) Loes. Gymnosporia serrata (Hochst. ex A.Rich.) Loes. Gymnosporia sikkimensis Prain Gymnosporia somalensis Loes. Gymnosporia spinosa (Blanco) Merr. & Rolfe Gymnosporia stylosa Pierre – Indochina and Peninsular Malaysia Gymnosporia swazica Jordaan Gymnosporia tenuispina (Sond.) Szyszyl. Gymnosporia thompsonii Merr. – Mariana & Caroline Islands Gymnosporia thomsonii Kurz Gymnosporia thyrsiflora (S.J.Pei & Y.H.Li) W.B.Yu & D.Z.Li Gymnosporia tiaoloshanensis Chun & F.C.How Gymnosporia trilocularis Hayata Gymnosporia uniflora Davison Gymnosporia vanwykii (R.H.Archer) Jordaan Gymnosporia variabilis (Hemsl.) Loes. Gymnosporia wallichiana (Spreng.) M.A.Lawson Gymnosporia woodii Szyszyl.
Formerly placed here Maytenus umbellata (as Gymnosporia dryandri Masf.)
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