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Ancistrocladus family
Ancistrocladaceae Planch. ex Walp.
アンシストロクラダス科
A monogeneric family of woody lianas distributed at forest margins in tropical Asia and Africa, comprising about 20 species in Ancistrocladus. They cling to other plants using hook-shaped branches and are known for distinctive secondary metabolites including naphthalene derivatives. Not native to Japan.
Key Characteristics
- ●Branch tips are modified into hooks for climbing on other plants
- ●Leaves are simple and alternate, sometimes with glandular dots
- ●Flowers are small, pentamerous, white to pale pink
- ●Fruit is a winged nut, wind-dispersed
Morphological Traits
A family may include species with different trait values — multiple values indicate the range within the family.
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf type
Simple
Venation
Pinnate
Leaf margin
Entire
Growth form
Vine
Evergreen/Deciduous
Deciduous
Leaf dissection
Undivided
Stipules
Present
Flower symmetry
Actinomorphic / Zygomorphic
Petal count
Many
Ovary position
Half-inferior
Stamen count
5
Plant sex
Hermaphrodite
Phylogenetic Position
Angiosperms > Eudicots > Core Eudicots > Caryophyllales > Ancistrocladaceae
Divergence Era
Paleogene (ca. 50 million years ago)
Representative Genera
Related Evolution Events
- ・Acquisition of hook-shaped branch climbing habit
- ・Evolution of naphthalene-based secondary metabolites (ancistrocladines)
Plants in Ancistrocladus family on this site
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