Compilation
Amaranthus dubius

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Name

Identification
Amaranthus dubius Mart. ex Thell. [family AMARANTHACEAE ] Verified by Killip,E. P., Amaranthus dubius Mart. ex Thell. [family AMARANTHACEAE ] (stored under name); Verified by Agudelo,C. A., 1993
Related name
  • Amaranthus hybridus
  • Amaranthus caracasanus
  • Amaranthus tristis
  • `
  • Amaranthus dubius
Common name
  • olorungbin (CWvE) tẹ́tẹ́ the Dahomey form (N&E; CWvE) (NIGERIA, YORUBA), Burkill, H.M. 1985. The useful plants of west tropical Africa, Vol. 1
  • hσndì (FCD) (SIERRA LEONE, MENDE), Burkill, H.M. 1985. The useful plants of west tropical Africa, Vol. 1
  • Spleen amaranth, Flora of North America Vol. 4
  • okpu-utere (N&E) (NIGERIA, EFIK), Burkill, H.M. 1985. The useful plants of west tropical Africa, Vol. 1
  • a-bonthila (FCD) (SIERRA LEONE, TEMNE), Burkill, H.M. 1985. The useful plants of west tropical Africa, Vol. 1
  • red green (FCD) (SIERRA LEONE, KRIO), Burkill, H.M. 1985. The useful plants of west tropical Africa, Vol. 1

Flora

Entry for AMARANTHUS dubius Mart. ex Thell. [family AMARANTHACEAE]
Herbarium
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (K)
Collection
Flora Somalia
Resource Type
Reference Sources
Entry From
Flora Somalia, Vol 1, (1993) Author: by C. C. Townsend [updated by M. Thulin 2008]
Names
AMARANTHUS dubius Mart. ex Thell. [family AMARANTHACEAE], (1912).
AMARANTHUS spinosus Lauterb. & K. Schum. forma inermis [family AMARANTHACEAE], (1901).
AMARANTHUS caudatus [family AMARANTHACEAE], sensu Chiov., Fl. Somala 2: 374 (1932).
AMARANTHUS spinosus [family AMARANTHACEAE], sensu Kuchar, Plants of Somalia: 85 (1988).
Information
Erect annual, mostly up to 90(–150) cm, similar in habit to A. spinosus and with similar leaf-size and shape, but often less coarse. Paired axillary spines absent. Lower flower clusters axillary, female, 4–10 mm in diam.; upper clusters leafless, forming simple or (the terminal at least) branched spikes 3–15(–25) cm long and 6–8(–10) cm wide, the spikes male for up to c. the apical 1 cm. Tepals of female flowers (4–)5, 1.5–2.75 mm, oblong or spathulate-oblong, obtuse or sometimes (especially towards the male flowers) acute, mucronulate, usually with a greenish dorsal vitta above. Stigmas 3. Capsule ovoid-urceolate, c. 1.5–1.75 mm, with a short inflated beak below the style-base, circumscissile, the lid strongly rugulose. Seeds faintly reticulate, lenticular.
Range
S1, 2 of tropical American origin, now widespread in the tropics of both Old and New Worlds.
Altitude range
no altitude.
Distribution
SOMALIA Confalone 6; Puccioni & Stefanini 351; Paoli & Stefanini 421.
Notes
A. dubius is the only known polyploid Amaranthus, but its origin remains uncertain. Hybrids are said to be frequent where it occurs in association with A. spinosus; the two species are very similar apart from the axillary spines of the latter. Srivasta, Pal & Nair in Rev. Palaeobot. Palynol. 23: 287–291 (1977) claim that the pollen of A. dubius has larger pores than that of A. spinosus, and that the hybrids are distinguishable by the presence of micrograins among the pollen.

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