Elytraria is a genus of flowering plants in the family Acanthaceae, within the order Lamiales, bearing the common name "scalystem." The genus name was published by André Michaux in Flora Boreali-Americana (1803), crediting Louis Claude Richard ("Rich. ex Michx."), and is treated as a nomen conservandum (a botanically conserved name). Recognized synonyms include Cymburus Raf. and Tubiflora J.F.Gmel.
Species in the genus tend to lack stems, giving rise to the low, rosette-like or scaly-based habit reflected in the common name. Wikipedia lists 22 currently accepted species, while GBIF's backbone taxonomy records 34 descendant taxa (including synonyms and infraspecific names) under the genus.
Elytraria has a pantropical distribution. Occurrence records span tropical Africa — including Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, and both Congos — as well as the tropical and subtropical Americas, from the southwestern United States (Arizona) and the Caribbean (Aruba, Cuba) through Central America (Belize, Costa Rica, Mexico) and into South America (Colombia, Bolivia, and several regions of Brazil and Argentina). Species in the genus include Elytraria bromoides, Elytraria imbricata, Elytraria macrophylla, and Elytraria serpens.
Distribution
Elytraria has a pantropical distribution, occurring across tropical Africa (e.g. Angola, Cameroon, the Congos, Botswana) and throughout the Americas, from the southwestern United States and the Caribbean through Central America into South America (Bolivia, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina).
Taxonomy Notes
The genus was published by André Michaux in Flora Boreali-Americana (1803), attributed to Richard ("Rich. ex Michx."), and is treated as a conserved name (nom. cons.). It belongs to family Acanthaceae, order Lamiales. Recognized synonyms include Cymburus Raf. and Tubiflora J.F.Gmel.
