Jatropha rivae is a species of flowering plant in the family Euphorbiaceae native to the deserts and dry shrublands of Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, and Tanzania.[1][2][3]

Jatropha rivae
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Malpighiales
Family: Euphorbiaceae
Genus: Jatropha
Species:
J. rivae
Binomial name
Jatropha rivae

Description

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Jatropha rivae is a deciduous shrub, growing up to 2.5 metres (8 ft) tall, with purple-brown young twigs.[1][2] The leaves are 5–35 mm long, 5–15 mm wide and oblanceolate to obovate in shape, with a wedge-shaped (cuneate) base and 0–2 mm long petiole. The leaf margin is entire to dentate or sinuately lobed, and the apex is rounded to emarginate.[2]

Taxonomy

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Jatropha rivae is in the genus Jatropha. It has the subspecies parvifolia, quercifolia, and rivae. It was named in Annuario Reale Ist. Bot. Roma 6: 185 in 1896 by Ferdinand Albin Pax.[2][3]

 
Jatropha rivae diagram

Distribution and habitat

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It is found in Acacia-Commiphora bushland, growing in deep sands and alluvial soils left behind by flowing water. It also grows in gypsaceous soils and on limestone, and it is distributed across a wide range of altitudes, from sea level up to 1150 m high.[1][2]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Jatropha rivae Pax | African Plant Database". African Plant Database. Retrieved 2024-05-27.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Jatropha rivae Pax". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
  3. ^ a b "Jatropha rivae | Catalogue of Life | 2014 Annual Checklist". Catalogue of Life. Retrieved 2024-05-27.