Chaetachme

Chaetachme is a monotypic genus of flowering plants native to eastern and western Africa, including Madagascar,[2] containing the single species Chaetachme aristata. Its English common name is thorny elm,[3] and it is known as muyuyu in Kikuyu.[4] Traditionally placed in the Elm family, it is more recently placed in the family Cannabaceae, thought to be possibly closely related to Celtis.

Chaetachme
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Rosales
Family: Cannabaceae
Genus: Chaetachme
Planch.
Species:
C. aristata
Binomial name
Chaetachme aristata
Synonyms[1]
  • Celtis appendiculata E.Mey. ex Planch.
  • Celtis subdentata E.Mey. ex Planch.
  • Chaetachme madagascariensis Baker
  • Chaetachme meyeri Harv.
  • Chaetachme microcarpa Rendle
  • Chaetachme nitida Planch. & Harv.
  • Chaetachme serrata Engl.

Chaetachme aristata is a shrub or small tree growing up to 10 meters tall. It has drooping, angular branches covered with spines up to 3.5 centimeters in length. The lance-shaped leaves are up to 11 centimeters long by 5 centimeters wide, pointed at the tip and smooth or serrated on the edges. The shrub is dioecious and sexually dimorphic, with male and female flower types borne on separate individuals,[2][5] although it may also be monoecious.[6]

This shrub is host to the mirid bug Volumnus chaetacme.[7]

The spiny branches of the shrub are used as fences in African villages.[4][8]

References
  1. "Chaetachme aristata Planch". The Plant List (2013). Version 1.1. Retrieved 5 March 2014.
  2. "JSTOR Global Plants: Search Results". plants.jstor.org. Retrieved 2017-08-01.
  3. Trees & Shrubs of East Africa. Archived 2018-04-08 at the Wayback Machine Safari Patrol
  4. "Glossary". www.fao.org. Retrieved 2017-08-01.
  5. Arusha Region. Archived 2011-08-13 at the Wayback Machine The management and ecology of Tanzanian forests
  6. Yang, Mei-Qing; Van Velzen, Robin; Bakker, Freek T.; Sattarian, Ali; Li, De-Zhu; Yi, Ting-Shuang (2013). "Molecular phylogenetics and character evolution of Cannabaceae". Taxon. 62 (3): 473–485. doi:10.12705/623.9.
  7. Linnavuori, R. (1996). Taxonomic studies of the Miridae (Heteroptera) of Africa and the Middle East. Acta Universitatis Carolinae Biologica 40 321-50.
  8. Bussmann, R. W., et al. (2006). Plant use of the Maasai of Sekenani Valley, Maasai Mara, Kenya. J Ethnobiol Ethnomed 2 22.
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