Vatovaea

Taxonomy

Vatovaea E. Chiovenda In Chiarugi, Webbia 8: 231. 10 Aug 1951.

Subfamily: Faboideae.
Phylogenetic Number: 3.10.53.
Tribe: Phaseoleae.
Subtribe: Phaseolinae.
Species Studied - Species in Genus: 1 studied; 1 in genus.

Description

Fruit: A legumelegume:
usually dry, dehiscent fruit derived from a single carpel that opens along two longitudinal sutures
; unilocular; 3.7–5 cm long; 0.8–1 cm wide; 0.3–0.6 cm thick; 2–9 times longer than wide; with deciduous androecial sheath; without orifice formed by curving of fruit or fruit segments; straight; not plicate; not twisted; asymmetrical; falcate; with both sutures parallelly curved; not inflated; flattened to compressed; with beak (short); straight; with solid beak the same color and texture as fruit; short tapered at apex; oblique with longitudinal axis of fruit; rounded at base; oblique with longitudinal axis of fruit; with the apex and base uniform in texture; coriaceous; seed chambers externally visible (barely); seed chambers with the raised seed chambers not torulose; margin not constricted; margin without sulcus; margin embellished; margin with thickened sutural areas; wing(s) absent; nonstipitate; with all layers dehiscing; splitting along suture(s). Dehiscence of valves along both sutures; apical and down; active; with valves twisting. Replum invisible. Epicarp dull; multicolored; mottled; tan to brown; with green overlay; mottling color combination variable; with surface texture uniform; pubescent and indurate; with hairs appressed; with 1 type of pubescence; with pubescence white; with pubescence uniformly distributed; with simple hairs; pliable; with hair bases plain; eglandular; without spines; not smooth; with elevated features; not veined; not tuberculate; wrinkled; not exfoliating; without cracks; without embedded tissue, much thicker than epicarp, running from base to apex. Mesocarp present; thin; surface not veined; 1-layered; without balsamic vesicles; without reniform canals; solid; coriaceous to chartaceous. Endocarp present; visible; dull; opaque; monochrome; yellowish green; smooth; without adhering pieces of testa; nonseptate to septate; with septa thin (tissue paper-like), flexible; with septa eglandular; chartaceous; not exfoliating; remaining fused to mesocarp and epicarp to separating from mesocarp; without wings; entire. Seed(s) 3–5; length parallel with fruit length; neither overlapping nor touching; in 1 series. Funiculus 1–1.5 mm long; of 1 length only; flattened; triangular to anvil-shaped. Aril present; dry; when dry rim-aril and tongue-aril; entire; ivory.

Seed: 6–8 mm long; 5–7 mm wide; 3.3–4.6 mm thick; not overgrown; not angular; symmetrical; elliptic to oblong; compressed; 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; mottled; with frequent mottles; brown; with brown overlay (darker); glabrous; not smooth; with elevated features; wrinkled; chartaceous. Pleurogram absent. Pseudopleurogram absent. Fracture lines absent. Rim absent. Wing(s) absent. Raphe not visible. Hilum present; fully concealed; concealed by funicular remnant; larger than punctiform; 0.9–1.8 mm long; with curved outline; elliptic, or oval; apical according to radicle tip but marginal according to seed length; flush; within corona; corona color lighter than testa. Lens discernible; 1–2 mm long; with margins straight; linear; not in groove of raphe; confluent with hilum; flush; similar color as testa; darker than testa; brown; not within corona, halo, or rim. Endosperm absent. Cotyledons smooth; both outer faces convex; both the same thickness; both more or less of equal length; not folded; margin entire 180 degrees from base of radicle; similar at apex; partially concealing radicle; split over radicle; with lobes; with lobes touching (auriculate) (barely); with the interface division terminating at base of radicle; with margin(s) recessed; with 1 margin recessed; recessed on same side as radicle; yellow to tan; inner face flat; glabrous on inner face. Embryonic axis oblique; oblique to length of seed; without a joint evident between the radicle and the cotyledons. Radicle differentiated from cotyledon; linear; lobe tip straight; oblique to cotyledons; centered between cotyledons; less than 1/2 length of cotyledons. Plumule moderately developed; glabrous.

Distribution

Tropical and dry eastern Africa.

Old World; Africa and Southwest Asia.

Generic Notes

Verdcourt (1971) gave a more exact distribution for this genus.

Tribal Notes

Tribe Phaseoleae

Bruneau et al. (1995) carried out cladistic analyses of tribe Phaseoleae using chloroplast DNA restriction site data. Their results indicated that the tribe is not monophyletic and that the tribal delimitations between Phaseoleae and Desmodieae (11) and between Phaseoleae and Millettieae (7) are problematic.