Miconia

Miconia
Velvet Tree (Miconia calvescens)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Division:	Magnoliophyta
Class:	Magnoliopsida
Order:	Myrtales
Family:	Melastomataceae
Genus:	Miconia Ruiz & Pavón
Species
Many, see text

Miconia is a genus of flowering plants in the glory bush family, Melastomataceae, native to warm temperate to tropical regions of the Americas. The species are mostly shrubs and small to medium-sized trees up to 15 m tall. The generic name honours Spanish physician and botanist Francisco Micón.^[1]

Many species are threatened by habitat destruction in their native range, and some are feared to be on the brink of extinction. On the other hand, M. calvescens is a contributing factor in the decline and maybe even extinction of other plants: it has become a highly invasive weed on a number of Pacific Islands where it was introduced, including Hawaii and Tahiti. It is often referred to as the "purple plague" or the "green cancer" in reference to its habit of overgrowing native ecosystems, and its leaves which are bright green above and bright purple below.

Miconia fruit are a favorite food of many birds (invasive M. calvescens spreads by this route). The leaves of some species are eaten by caterpillars of the interesting moth-butterflies (Hedylidae).

Selected species

M. albicans

M. fallax

Miconia salicifolia

Miconia abbreviata Miconia aequatorialis Miconia albicans (Sw.) Triana Miconia aligera Miconia alpina Miconia altissima Cogn. Miconia argyrea Cogn. Miconia ascendens Miconia asplundii Miconia aspratilis Miconia augustii Cogn. Miconia ayacuchensis Miconia bailloniana Miconia barbipilis Miconia barclayana Miconia beneolens Miconia benoistii Miconia bipatrialis Miconia bolivarensis Miconia brasiliensis (Spreng.) Triana Miconia brevistylis Miconia brevitheca Miconia brunnea DC. Miconia budlejoides Triana Miconia caelata Miconia caesariata Miconia cabucu Miconia cajanumana Miconia calignosa Miconia calophylla Miconia calvescens – Velvet Tree, Bush Currant Miconia campii Miconia candolleana Triana Miconia capitellata Miconia castillensis Miconia castrensis Miconia centrosperma Miconia cercophora Miconia chamissois Naud. Miconia chartacea Triana Miconia cinerascens Miq. Miconia cinnamomifolia (DC.) Naud. Miconia collayensis Miconia conformis Miconia corazonica Miconia cosangensis Miconia crebribullata Miconia cuprea Miconia cutucuensis Miconia dapsiliflora Miconia demissifolia Miconia depauperata Gardner Miconia dichroa Cogn. Miconia dielsii Miconia dissimulans Miconia divaricata Gardner Miconia dodsonii Miconia doriana Cogn. Miconia espinosae

Miconia explicita Miconia fallax DC. Miconia fasciculata Gardner Miconia floccosa Miconia formosa Cogn. Miconia fosbergii Miconia fuliginosa Miconia gibba Miconia gilva Cogn. Miconia glandulistyla Miconia glazioviana Cogn. Miconia glyptophylla Miconia gonioclada Miconia grayana Miconia griffisii Miconia guayaquilensis Miconia hexamera Miconia hirsutivena Miconia holosericea (L.) DC. Miconia huigrensis Miconia hylophila Miconia idiogena Miconia imitans Miconia inanis Miconia innata Miconia jorgensenii Miconia jucunda (DC.) Triana Miconia lachnoclada Miconia langsdorffii Cogn. Miconia latecrenata (DC.) Naud. Miconia laxa Miconia leandroides Miconia ledifolia Miconia ligustroides (DC.) Naud. Miconia littlei Miconia longicuspis Cogn. Miconia longisetosa Miconia lugonis Miconia macbrydeana Miconia macothyrsa Benth. Miconia mediocris Miconia medusa Miconia minutiflora DC. Miconia molesta Cogn. Miconia namandensis Miconia nasella Miconia nubicola Miconia ochroleuca Miconia octopetala Cogn. Miconia oellgaardii Miconia oligantha Miconia ombrophila Miconia onaensis Miconia organensis Gardner Miconia ovalifolia Cogn. Miconia pailasana Miconia paniculata (DC.) Naud. Miconia papillosa Miconia pastazana

Miconia paulensis Naud. Miconia pausana Miconia penduliflora Cogn. Miconia penningtonii Miconia pepericarpa DC. Miconia perelegans Miconia pernettifolia Miconia phaeochaeta Miconia pilaloensis Miconia pisinniflora Miconia poecilantha Miconia pohliana Cogn. Miconia poortmannii Miconia prasina (Sw.) DC. Miconia prietoi Miconia prominens Miconia protuberans Miconia pseudo-eichlerii Cogn. Miconia pseudorigida Miconia pusilliflora (DC.) Naud. Miconia rabenii Cogn. Miconia reburrosa Miconia renneri Miconia rimbachii Miconia rivetii Miconia rubiginosa (Bonpl.) DC. Miconia salicifolia (Bonpl. ex Naudin) Naudin (= M. rasmarinifolia) Miconia santaritensis Miconia scabra Miconia scutata Miconia saldanhaei Miconia saldanhaei var. grandiflora Cogn. Miconia sellowiana Naud. Miconia serrulata (DC.) Naudin Miconia seticaulis Miconia setulosa Miconia silicicola Miconia sintenisii – Camasey Miconia sodiroi Miconia sparrei Miconia staminea (Desr.) DC. Miconia stenophylla Miconia stenostachya DC. Miconia suborbicularis Miconia subvernicosa Cogn. Miconia superba Miconia tephrodes Miconia theaezans[verification needed] (Bonpl.) Cogn. Miconia tomentosa Miconia tristis Spring Miconia urophylla DC. Miconia vesca Miconia villonacensis Miconia willdenowii Klotzsch ex Naudin Miconia zamorensis

References

1. ^ Quattrocchi, Umberto (2000). CRC World Dictionary of Plant Names. III M-Q A-C. CRC Press. p. 1676. ISBN 9780849326776. http://books.google.com/books?id=kaN-hLL-3qEC&. 

External links

Media related to Miconia at Wikimedia Commons Data related to Miconia at Wikispecies