Eugenia rhombea (O.Berg) Krug & Urb.

  • Family

    Myrtaceae (Magnoliophyta)

  • Scientific Name

    Eugenia rhombea (O.Berg) Krug & Urb.

  • Description

    Author: Maria Lúcia Kawasaki

    Description: Shrubs or small trees to 4 m tall. Leaves: petioles 3-5 mm long; blades ovate or elliptic, 3-5 × 1.5-2.5 cm, drying brownish-green, paler below, coriaceous, glabrous, indistinctly punctate above, densely pellucid-punctate below, the base cuneate to obtuse, the apex acute to bluntly acuminate; midvein impressed on the upper surface; lateral veins 5-8 pairs, indistinct above, salient below; marginal vein 1, the innermost 1-2 mm from the cartilaginous margin. Inflorescences axillary, racemose, appearing fasciculate, with 2-4 flowers; peduncles inconspicuous; pedicels 10-15 mm long, the bracteoles lanceolate, to 1 mm long, persistent. Flowers: buds obovoid, 2-3 mm long; hypanthium smooth, glabrous; calyx lobes ovate, 1-2 mm long; petals ca. 4 mm long, glabrous; stamens ca. 5 mm long; style ca. 5 mm long. Fruits globose, ca. 8 mm diam., glabrous; seeds ca. 5 mm long.

    Common names: None recorded

    Distribution: Southern Florida (USA), Mexico, Central America, and West Indies (McVaugh, 1989).

    Ecology: Dry scrub on steep slopes.

    Phenology: Fr in Mar.

    Pollination: No observations recorded.

    Dispersal: No observations recorded but the fruits are most likely eaten by animals, especially birds, and the seeds dispersed by them.

    Uses: None recorded

    Taxonomic notes: This species description was prepared for the Plants and Lichens of Saba project and most accurately describes it as it occurs on this island.

    Etymology: The epithet most likely refers to the shape of the leaves of this species.

  • Floras and Monographs

    Eugenia rhombea (O.Berg) Krug & Urb.: [Book] Britton, Nathaniel L. & Millspaugh, Charles F. 1920. The Bahama Flora.