Anredera vesicaria (Lam.) C.F.Gaertn.
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Authority
Acevedo-Rodríguez, Pedro & collaborators. 1996. Flora of St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 78: 1-581.
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Family
Basellaceae
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Scientific Name
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Description
Species Description - Succulent, slender, glabrous, twining vine to 10 m long; young stems and petioles pinkish. Leaf blades 3-11 X 2-6.5 cm, ovate to lanceolate, succulent, chartaceous when dried, venation inconspicuous, the apex acute or acuminate, the base obtuse, rounded or cordate, attenuate, seldom oblique, the margins entire, sometimes wavy; petioles 0.4-2 cm long. Racemes usually terminal; bracteoles boat-shaped, longer than the corolla. Flowers functionally unisexual; calyx 0.4 mm long, whitish, the sepals elliptic, boat-shaped; petals white, 1.5-2.2 mm long; stamens 3-4 mm long, lanceolate; ovary glabrous, shorter than the petals. Fruit obovoid, slightly triangular, 1.1-1.3 mm long, crowned by the enlarged fleshy beaked style (not seen in St. John populations).
Distribution and Ecology - In open, disturbed areas, such as roadsides or along secondary coastal scrubs. Cruz Bay (A2512), trail to Brown Bay (A1870), Mary Point (A4228). Also on St. Croix, St. Thomas, and Tortola; southern United States (Texas and Florida) to northern South America, including the West Indies.
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Discussion
Boussingaultia leptostachys Moq. in A. DC, Prodr. 13(2): 229. 1849. Anredera leptostachys (Moq.) Steenis, Fl. Males. 5: 303. 1957.
Note: This treatment follows C. R. Sperling (1987), who considered A. leptostachys to be a synonym of A. vesicaria