Gasteranthus

Life-forms

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Eudicots
Cladus: Core eudicots
Cladus: Asterids
Cladus: Lamiids
Ordo: Lamiales

Familia: Gesneriaceae
Subfamilia: Gesnerioideae
Tribus: Beslerieae
Subtribus: Besleriinae
Genus: Gasteranthus
Species: G. acropodus – G. acuticarinatus – G. adenocalyx – G. anomalus – G. atratus – G. atrolimbus – G. aurantiacus – G. bilsaensis – G. calcaratus – G. carinatus – G. columbianus – G. corallinus – G. crispus – G. delphinioides – G. diverticularis – G. dressleri – G. epedunculatus – G. extinctus – G. glaber – G. herbaceus – G. imbaburensis – G. imbricans – G. lateralis – G. leopardus – G. macrocalyx – G. mutabilis – G. orientandinus – G. osaensis – G. otongensis – G. pansamalanus – G. perennis – G. quitensis – G. recurvatus – G. tenellus – G. ternatus – G. timidus – G. trifoliatus – G. villosus – G. wendlandianus
Source(s) of checklist:

Govaerts, R. et al. 2021. Gasteranthus in Kew Science Plants of the World online. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2021 Aug 31. Reference page.

Name

Gasteranthus Benth., Pl. Hartw. 233. 1846.
Type species: Gasteranthus quitensis Benth.

Synonyms

Homotypic
Besleria sect. Gasteranthus (Benth.) Benth. & Hook.f., Gen. Pl. 2(2): 1015. 1876.
Besleria subg. Gasteranthus (Benth.) Hanst., Linnaea 34: 334. 1865.
Halphophyllum Mansf., Fedde, Repert. 41: 145 (1936)

Distribution
Native distribution areas:

Continental:Mexico & Southern America
Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico Southeast, Panama, Peru

References: Brummitt, R.K. 2001. TDWG – World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions, 2nd Edition

References
Primary references

Bentham, G. 1839–1857. Plantas Hartwegianas imprimis mexicanas adjectis nonnullis Grahamianis enumerat novasque describit Georgius Bentham. 393 pp. Londini [London]. BHL Reference page. : 233.

Additional references

Govaerts, R.H.A. 2003. World Checklist of Selected Plant Families Database in ACCESS: 1-216203. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. [unavailable for the public] Reference page.

Links

Govaerts, R. et al. 2021. Gasteranthus in Kew Science Plants of the World online. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2021 Aug 31. Reference page.
International Plant Names Index. 2021. Gasteranthus. Published online. Accessed: Aug 31 2021.
Tropicos.org 2021. Gasteranthus. Missouri Botanical Garden. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2021 Aug 31.
Hassler, M. 2021. Gasteranthus. World Plants: Synonymic Checklists of the Vascular Plants of the World In: Roskovh, Y., Abucay, L., Orrell, T., Nicolson, D., Bailly, N., Kirk, P., Bourgoin, T., DeWalt, R.E., Decock, W., De Wever, A., Nieukerken, E. van, Zarucchi, J. & Penev, L., eds. 2021. Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2021 Aug 31. Reference page.
Hassler, M. 2021. World Plants. Synonymic Checklist and Distribution of the World Flora. . Gasteranthus. Accessed: 31 Aug 2021.

Vernacular names
русский: Гастерантус

Gasteranthus is a genus of 35 species of herbs and soft-stemmed subshrubs in the flowering plant family Gesneriaceae. The species occur in Central America and South America, from southernmost Mexico to Bolivia.[1] Numerous species are threatened with extinction, mainly due to deforestation. This is due to two reasons: For one thing, Gasteranthus species are native to countries in which destruction of primary forest runs rampant; also, these plants do not distribute well and therefore endemism is very frequent, for example on isolated mountain ranges.[2]

These plants inhabit tropical forest and cloud forest. They grow in humid, shaded locations at altitudes of up to 1,800 m ASL. The flowers are usually colored in orange hues and often spotted, but background colors also include shades white, yellow and red. They are born in axillary cymes without bracteoles.[1]

Gasteranthus was previously included in the closely related genus Besleria. The two genera have been separated on the basis of differences in their stomata (aggregated in Gasteranthus, scattered in Besleria) and fruits (fleshy capsule in Gasteranthus, berry in Besleria). Characteristic are the whitish dots on the leaf undersides caused by aggregations of stomata in Gasteranthus.[3]

Two main groups can be distinguished in this genus: one group of species, with white to yellow, bell- or tube-shaped flowers, is probably pollinated mainly by euglossine bees. The other group has bright orange or red hypocyrtoid (inflated corolla tube with very small opening) flowers and are apparently pollinated mainly by hummingbirds.
Selected species

Gasteranthus atratus
Gasteranthus bilsaensis
Gasteranthus carinatus
Gasteranthus corallinus
Gasteranthus crispus
Gasteranthus delphinioides
Gasteranthus extinctus
Gasteranthus imbaburensis
Gasteranthus lateralis
Gasteranthus macrocalyx
Gasteranthus mutabilis
Gasteranthus orientandinus
Gasteranthus otongensis
Gasteranthus perennis
Gasteranthus quitensis
Gasteranthus tenellus
Gasteranthus ternatus
Gasteranthus timidus
Gasteranthus trifoliatus
Gasteranthus wendlandianus

Footnotes

Weber & Skog (2007)
Dodson & Gentry (1991)

Wiehler (1975), Skog & Kvist (2000), Weber & Skog (2007)

References
Dodson, C.H. & Gentry, A.H. (1991): Biological extinction in western Ecuador. Ann. MO Bot. Gard. 78(2): 273-295.
Skog, L.E. & Kvist, L.P. (2000): Revision of Gasteranthus (Gesneriaceae). Systematic Botany Monographs 59: 1-118.
Weber, A. & Skog, L.E. (2007): Gasteranthus. In: The genera of Gesneriaceae. Basic information with illustration of selected species (2nd ed.). Version of 2007-JAN-05. Retrieved 2007-SEP-20.
Wiehler, H. (1975): Besleria L. and the re-establishment of Gasteranthus Benth. (Gesneriaceae). Selbyana 1(2): 150-156.