Pilostyles aethiopica Welw.

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Photo: Darrel Plowes
Christmas Pass, Mutare

Photo: Meg Coates Palgrave
By game fence, Mukuvisi Woodland

Photo: Mark Hyde
Botanic Gardens adjacent to Sandringham Drive

Photo: Shaun Lightfoot
c. 15 km E of Makuti

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Species details: Click on each item to see an explanation of that item (Note: opens a new window)

Synonyms:	Berlinianche aethiopica (Welw.) Vattimo-Gil
Common names:
Frequency:	Common
Status:	Native
Description:	Small internal parasites. The vegetative parts are very much reduced and the only visible parts are the flowers, which push through the bark of the smaller branches on the host tree. Flowers unisexual, small, c. 2-2.5 mm in diameter, usually in large clusters, deep red, short-lived and quickly turning brown, leaving only the crustaceous bracts. The male flowers have a shiny, white hair crown at the top of their central column, whereas female flowers do not, making it possible to sex flowers by eye. Fruit a small spherical berry.
Notes:	More specifically, most of the host species in Zimbabwe are either Brachystegia spiciformis or Julbernardia globiflora. We have one record (by Shaun Lightfoot near Makuti) of the species occurring on Brachystegia boehmii.
Derivation of specific name:	aethiopica: of Ethiopia, a historic name for large parts of Africa.
Habitat:	Mainly parasitic upon species of Brachystegia and Julbernardia.
Altitude range: (metres)	1000 - 1680 m
Flowering time:
Worldwide distribution:	Angola, DRC, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Zimbabwe distribution:	N,W,C,E,S
Growth form(s):
Endemic status:
Red data list status:
Insects associated with this species:
Spot characters:	Display spot characters for this species
Images last updated:	Sunday 7 May 2006
Literature:	Mapaura, A. & Timberlake, J. (eds) (2004). A checklist of Zimbabwean vascular plants Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 33 Sabonet, Pretoria and Harare Page 69. Robyns, W. & Boutique, R. (1948). Rafflesiaceae Flore du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi Volume I Page 391. Under Rafflesiaceae Stannard, B.L. (1997). Rafflesiaceae Flora Zambesiaca 9(2) Pages 14 - 16. (Includes a picture).

Other sources of information about Pilostyles aethiopica:

Our websites:

Flora of Burundi: Pilostyles aethiopica
Flora of the DRC: Pilostyles aethiopica
Flora of Malawi: Pilostyles aethiopica
Flora of Mozambique: Pilostyles aethiopica
Flora of Zambia: Pilostyles aethiopica

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Pilostyles aethiopica
African Plant Database: Pilostyles aethiopica
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Pilostyles aethiopica
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Pilostyles aethiopica
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Pilostyles aethiopica
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Pilostyles aethiopica
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Pilostyles aethiopica
JSTOR Plant Science: Pilostyles aethiopica
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Pilostyles aethiopica
Plants of the World Online: Pilostyles aethiopica
Tropicos: Pilostyles aethiopica
Wikipedia: Pilostyles aethiopica