Cercocarpus

Cercocarpus
Alderleaf Mountain-mahogany
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Rosales
Family:	Rosaceae
Subfamily:	Dryadoideae
Genus:	Cercocarpus Kunth
Species
Several, see text

Cercocarpus, commonly known as mountain mahogany, is a small genus of five or six species of deciduous shrubs or small trees in the rose family (Rosaceae), native to the western United States and northern Mexico, where they grow in chaparral and semi-desert habitats and climates, often at high altitudes. Mountain mahogany typically reaches 3 to 6 meters (9–18 feet) tall, but exceptionally, up to 13 meters (40 feet) high.

Curlleaf Mountain Mahogany grove, Toiyabe Range, central Nevada

The classification of Cercocarpus within the Rosaceae has been unclear.^[1][2] The genus has been placed in the subfamily Rosoideae, but is now placed in subfamily Dryadoideae.^[3]

The Alderleaf variety is prominent in the foothills of Colorado and Utah but usually remains under 1 meter (3 feet) high because of incessant browsing by elk and deer. This variety of mountain mahogany is generally located on the south- or west-facing slopes because it cannot thrive in the shade on the north-facing slopes^{[citation needed]}. Several are found in the California chaparral and woodlands ecoregion.

Species include:

• Cercocarpus betuloides - Birchleaf mountain mahogany
• Cercocarpus breviflorus - Hairy mountain mahogany
• Cercocarpus intricatus - Littleleaf mountain mahogany
• Cercocarpus ledifolius - Curlleaf mountain mahogany
• Cercocarpus montanus - Alderleaf mountain mahogany
• Cercocarpus traskiae - Catalina Island Mountain mahogany

Notes

1. ^ Morgan, D.R., et al. (1994). Systematic and evolutionary implications of rbcL sequence variation in Rosaceae. American Journal of Botany. 81(7): 890–903.
2. ^ Eriksson, T., et al. (2003). The phylogeny of Rosoideae (Rosaceae) based on sequences of the internal transcribed spacers (ITS) of nuclear ribosomal DNA and the trnL/F region of chloroplast DNA. International Journal of Plant Sciences. 164: 197–211.
3. ^ Potter, D., et al. (2007). Phylogeny and classification of Rosaceae. Plant Systematics and Evolution. 266(1–2): 5–43.

External links

• Jepson Manual Treatment - Cercocarpus
• USDA Plants Profile: Cercocarpus