Cnestis is a genus of flowering plants in the family Connaraceae, within the order Oxalidales. The genus was described by Antoine Laurent de Jussieu in his Genera Plantarum (1789). Members of Cnestis are distributed across Tropical and Southern Africa through to Malesia (Southeast Asia). The genus includes approximately 13 recognized species, with notable members including Cnestis ferruginea (a West African shrub or small tree with ferruginous-hairy foliage), Cnestis palala (found in Southeast Asia), and Cnestis yangambiensis (native to Central Africa). Plants in this genus are typically woody climbers, shrubs, or small trees, characteristic of the Connaraceae family.
Distribution
Cnestis has a native range spanning Tropical and Southern Africa eastward through to Malesia (Southeast Asia). The genus is found across a broad palaeotropical belt, with species occurring in both continental Africa and the Indo-Malayan region.
