Couepia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Chrysobalanaceae, within the order Malpighiales, first described in 1775 by the French botanist Jean Baptiste Christophore Fusée Aublet. The genus is native to the tropical Americas, with a range extending from western and southern Mexico through Central America and tropical South America as far as Bolivia, Paraguay, and southern Brazil.
Taxonomic treatment of Couepia has shifted over time: recent work by Sothers & Prance moved a number of species formerly classified in Couepia into segregate genera, including Acioa, Cordillera, and Gaulettia. As currently circumscribed, GBIF's backbone taxonomy recognizes roughly 63–80 species and infraspecific taxa within Couepia, making it one of the larger genera in the Chrysobalanaceae, a mostly tropical family of trees and shrubs.
Like other members of Chrysobalanaceae, Couepia species are typically woody trees or shrubs found in tropical forest habitats. The genus name is commemorated in species such as Couepia grandiflora, a Brazilian cerrado species used to illustrate the genus.
Distribution
Couepia is native to the tropical Americas, ranging from western and southern Mexico through Central America and tropical South America to Bolivia, Paraguay, and southern Brazil.
Taxonomy Notes
Couepia was described as a genus by Aublet in 1775 and belongs to the family Chrysobalanaceae (order Malpighiales). Roughly 63 species are currently accepted, though several species once placed in Couepia have since been transferred to the segregate genera Acioa, Cordillera, and Gaulettia following taxonomic revision by Sothers & Prance.
