Shrubs or trees, dioecious, glabrous or with simple hairs. Leaves alternate, entire or
sometimes sinuate-denticulate and glandular-notched along margins, often sprinkled with minute
coloured dots, penninerved; petioles frequently pulvinate-geniculate, usually with a pair of
circular sessile glands at the apex on the upper surface; stipules caducous or sometimes enlarged
and persistent. Male inflorescences axillary, arising singly or few-together, spicate, denseflowered,
catkin-like; bracts broad, ciliate. Flowers: minute; sepals 3 or 4 (- 6), shortly connate
at base, imbricate; petals absent; disc absent; stamens 2 or 3, free, exserted; anthers didymous,
suborbicular, basifixed, longitudinally dehiscent; connectives narrow; pistillode minute or
obsolete. Female inflorescences axillary, few-flowered, more or less fasciculate or spicate (mostly
up to 3 cm long), in the latter case sometimes only one flower at the apex of the rachis developing
into a fruit. Flowers: minute, sessile or occasionally pedicellate; sepals as in male, deciduous;
petals absent; disc absent; ovary glabrous or pubescent, (1 -) 2 or 3 locular; locules biovulate;
stylar column absent or up to 2 mm long; stigmas lacerate-papillose. Fruits capsular, unlobed,
2 or 3 locular, globose to ovoid or ellipsoid or fusiform, thin or thick-walled and fleshy, 2- or 3-
valved, often tardily dehiscent; seeds 1 - 2 per fruit, ecarunculate, on a central core with fleshy
jacket, ellipsoid or suborbicular in outline, often plano-convex; albumen fleshy; cotyledon
broad, flat.
Indo-Malesia, extending to Solomon Islands, about 90 species; 7 species in India.
Literature.
CHAKRABARTY, T & M. GANGOPADHYAY (1993). A revision of Aporusa
Bl. (Euphorbiaceae) for Indian subcontinent. J. Econ. Taxon. Bot. 17: 155 - 171. SCHOT, A. M.
(1995). A synopsis of taxonomic changes in Aporosa Blume (Euphorbiaceae). Blumea 40: 449 -
460.
Notes.
The original spelling of the generic name Aporosa (Blume 1825: 514) is adopted
here, following Schot (Blumea 40: 449. 1995), replacing Aporusa (Blume 1826: 6).
The haploid chromosome number (n) in A. octandra is 26 (Mehra & Hans, Taxon 18: 310
- 315. 1969).
According to Punt (Wentia 7: 1 - 116. 1962) the pollen grains are tricolporate, prolate
spheroidal, ca 17.5 μm in diameter at equatorial axis, tectate and psilate. The colpi transversalis
are small with parallel edges. The grains are similar to those of Baccaurea Lour.
KEY TO THE SPECIES
1 a. Ovary and fruits with numerous long linear-subulate soft processes
b. Capsules fusiform or ellipsoid, larger (15 – 20 x 8 – 10 mm); leaves broadly obovate to widely
elliptic or suborbicular, not acuminate at apex, brown or coppery when dry
b. Leaves becoming yellowish, greyish or brown on both sides when drying; petioles usually 5
- 15 mm long, rarely up to 30 mm long (A. octandra)
9
9 a. Branchlets slender (up to 3 mm thick); leaves chartaceous; petioles slender (up to 1 mm
thick); male inflorescences up to 1 cm long; fruits 8 – 10 (- 16) mm long
b. Branchlets robust (up to 7 mm thick); leaves coriaceous; petioles stout (1 – 3 mm thick); male
inflorescences 1 - 7 cm long; fruits 10 – 20 mm long 10a. Male inflorescences 1 – 3 cm long;
hairs on ovary caducous; fruits glabrous, fusi form or ellipsoid
b. Male inflorescences 2 – 7 cm long; hairs on ovary persistent; fruits brownish tomentellous to
villous, sometimes subglabrous, ovoid, obovoid or subglobose
