Ebenopsis

Taxonomy

Ebenopsis N.L. Britton & J.N. Rose N. Amer. Fl. 23: 33. 11 Feb 1928.

Subfamily: Mimosoideae.
Phylogenetic Number: 2.5.13A.
Tribe: Ingeae.
Species Studied - Species in Genus: 2 studied; 3 in genus.

Description

Fruit: A legume; unilocular; (4–)6–19 cm long (Barneby and Grimes, 1996); 1.6–4.5 cm wide (Barneby and Grimes, 1996); 0.9–1.2 cm thick (Barneby and Grimes, 1996); 2–9 times longer than wide; with deciduous androecial sheath; with deciduous corolla; with deciduous calyx; without orifice formed by curving of fruit or fruit segments; curved, or straight; not plicate; not twisted; asymmetrical, or symmetrical; falcate, or oblong; with both sutures parallelly curved; not inflated; flattened; without beak; rounded at apex; aligned with longitudinal axis of fruit (not centered, to one side); rounded at base, or tapered at base; aligned with longitudinal axis of fruit (not centered, to one side); with the apex and base uniform in texture; ligneous; seed chambers externally invisible; margin constricted, or not constricted; margin constricted along both margins (where ovules not fertilized, fruit not developing and consequently constricted); margin without sulcus; margin plain; wing(s) absent; stipitate; with the stipe 15–20 mm long; with all layers dehiscing (tardily); splitting along suture(s). Dehiscence of valves along both sutures; apical and down and basal and up; passive. Replum invisible. Epicarp dull; monochrome; dark brown; with surface texture uniform; glabrous, or pubescent but soon deciduous (E. ebano (J.L. Berlandier) R.C. Barneby & J.W. Grimes); with hairs erect; with 1 type of pubescence; puberulent; with pubescence brown; with pubescence uniformly distributed; with simple hairs (straight); pliable; with hair bases plain; eglandular; without spines; not smooth; with elevated features; not veined; not tuberculate; granulate; not exfoliating; with cracks; cracking transverse to fruit length and irregular, or irregular; without embedded tissue, much thicker than epicarp, running from base to apex. Mesocarp present; thick (1.5–3 mm thick); surface not veined; 1-layered; without balsamic vesicles; with fibers; without reniform canals; fibrous throughout; ligneous. Endocarp present; visible; dull; opaque; bichrome; brown and tan (septa lighter colored than the fruit wall); smooth; without adhering pieces of testa; septate; with septa thin (tissue paper-like), flexible; with septa eglandular; coriaceous; not exfoliating; remaining fused to mesocarp and epicarp; without wings; entire. Seed(s) 8–10 (Barneby and Grimes, 1996Barneby and Grimes, 1996:
Albizia, and allies. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 74(1): 1&-292. ); length transverse to fruit length, or oblique to fruit length; neither overlapping nor touching; in 1 series. Funiculus 2–4 mm long; of 1 length only; filiform; curved to S-curved, or straight. Aril absent.

Seed: 8–17 mm long; 6–12 mm wide; 4–8 mm thick; not overgrown; not angular; symmetrical; elliptic, or rhombic, or trapezoid, or irregular; quadrangular, or flattened, or mounded on 1 side and straight on other side; with surface smooth; without visible radicle and cotyledon lobes; without hilar sinus; without umbo on seed faces; without medial ridge on each face. Cuticle not exfoliating; not inflated; not wrinkled. Testa present; without pieces of adhering epicarp; not adhering to endocarp; free from endocarp; dull; not modified by a bloom; colored; monochrome; dark brown to black; glabrous; smooth; coriaceous. Pleurogram present (appearing to be on the side because the seed compressed at right angles to the cotyledons); 90 %. Pseudopleurogram absent. Fracture lines present (Ebenopsis ebano (J.L. Berlandier) R.C. Barneby & J.W. Grimes), or absent (Ebanopsis confinis (P.C. Standley) R.C. Barneby & J. W. Grimes); irregular. Rim absent. Wing(s) absent. Raphe not visible. Hilum present; fully concealed; concealed by funicular remnant; without faboid split (assumed); larger than punctiform; 0.3–0.4 mm long; with curved outline; elliptic; apical at apex of radicle tip; flush; within halo (Ebenopsis ebano (J.L. Berlandier) R.C. Barneby & J.W. Grimes), or not within corona, halo, or rim (Ebanopsis confinis (P.C. Standley) R.C. Barneby & J. W. Grimes); halo lighter than testa. Lens discernible; 0.4–0.5 mm long; with margins curved (Ebenopsis ebano (J.L. Berlandier) R.C. Barneby & J.W. Grimes), or straight (Ebanopsis confinis (P.C. Standley) R.C. Barneby & J. W. Grimes); linear (Ebanopsis confinis (P.C. Standley) R.C. Barneby & J. W. Grimes); ovate (Ebenopsis ebano (J.L. Berlandier) R.C. Barneby & J.W. Grimes); not in groove of raphe; adjacent to hilum; ca. 0.2 mm from hilum; mounded (Ebenopsis ebano (J.L. Berlandier) R.C. Barneby & J.W. Grimes), or flush (Ebanopsis confinis (P.C. Standley) R.C. Barneby & J. W. Grimes); dissimilar color from testa; lighter than testa; white; not within corona, halo, or rim. Endosperm present; thin; not pluglike and not resembling tip of radicle; covering entire embryo; adnate to testa. Cotyledons smooth; outer face of one cotyledon flat and other cotyledon convex, or both outer faces convex, or both outer faces flat; both the same thickness; both more or less of equal length; not folded; margin entire 180 degrees from base of radicle; similar at apex; completely concealing radicle; split over radicle; without lobes; with the interface division terminating at base of radicle; without margins recessed; brown, or tan; inner face flat; glabrous on inner face. Embryonic axis straight; parallel to length of seed; without a joint evident between the radicle and the cotyledons. Radicle differentiated from cotyledon; bulbose; lobe tip straight; straight with embryonic axis; centered between cotyledons; less than 1/2 length of cotyledons. Plumule rudimentary; glabrous.

Distribution

Tropical Mexico and southern Texas.

New World; tropical Mexico and United States (southern Texas).

Generic Notes

Barneby and Grimes (1996) resurrected this genus because "the massive, ligneous, internally septate pod and the obese reddish seeds are unique. Although the pod in many specimens seems indehiscent, the valves do tardily separate, at first at each end of the fruit but finally throughout its length, into two canoe-shaped halves." Their species count and distribution are used.