Dianthera is a genus of flowering plants in the family Acanthaceae, within the order Lamiales. It was published by Linnaeus in the first edition of Species Plantarum (1753). GBIF's accepted circumscription lists 62 taxonomic descendants (species, infraspecific taxa, and synonymous names together), while Wikipedia describes the genus as encompassing 41 accepted species. Nine other generic names have historically been subsumed into Dianthera as synonyms, including Amphiscopia, Centrilla, Diplanthera, Jungia, Plagiacanthus, Psacadocalymma, Rhacodiscus, Rodatia, and Stethoma, reflecting a complex taxonomic history within Acanthaceae.
The genus is native to the Americas, with a range stretching from eastern Canada (Ontario and Québec) south through much of the eastern and central United States, into Mexico and Central America, across the Caribbean, and on into South America as far as northern Argentina and Paraguay. It has also been recorded as introduced outside this native range in a few scattered locations. Acanthaceae, the family to which Dianthera belongs, is a large, mostly tropical and subtropical family of herbs, shrubs, and a few vines and trees, and Dianthera's close taxonomic relationship to the genus Justicia is reflected in specimens historically labeled under both names.
Distribution
Native to the Americas, Dianthera's range extends from eastern Canada (Ontario and Québec) through the eastern and central United States, Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean, south to northern Argentina and Paraguay. It has also turned up as an introduced plant in a few areas outside this native range.
Taxonomy Notes
Dianthera L. was published by Linnaeus in 1753 and is placed in family Acanthaceae, order Lamiales. GBIF's accepted concept for the genus subsumes nine other generic names as synonyms (Amphiscopia, Centrilla, Diplanthera, Jungia, Plagiacanthus, Psacadocalymma, Rhacodiscus, Rodatia, Stethoma), and Wikipedia counts 41 accepted species versus GBIF's combined figure of 62 descendant taxa (species, infraspecifics, and synonyms together) — the two numbers are not directly comparable since they count different things.
