Acanthaceae
Thunbergia

Thunbergia erecta (Benth.) T.Anderson

First published in J. Proc. Linn. Soc., Bot. 7: 18 (1863)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is W. Tropical Africa to NW. Tanzania. It is a shrub and grows primarily in the wet tropical biome. It is has environmental uses and as a medicine.

Descriptions

Acanthaceae (part 1), Kaj Vollesen, Flora of Tropical East Africa, 2008

Morphology General Habit
Scandent shrub to 3 m tall; young branches quadrangular, with pale yellow glossy bark, narrowly winged with the wings forming small “ears” at nodes, glabrous but for thin lines of hairs at youngest nodes.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves with petiole 2–6 mm long, glabrous or with a few hairs; lamina elliptic, largest 4–12.5 × 2–4.5 cm, apex acuminate to cuspidate, base cuneate to rounded (rarely attenuate), margin on some or all with a single large triangular tooth near or above middle, usually undulate towards base, glabrous or with a few hairs on midrib.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers solitary; pedicels (3.5–)4–8 cm long, glabrous, basal part not clasped by leaf; bracteoles pale green, ovate to elliptic, 2–3.5 × 0.8–1.6 cm, acute to acuminate (rarely obtuse), glabrous.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx rim to 3 mm high, segments to 3 mm long (to 1 cm in fruit), with sessile glands.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Corolla limb blue to deep bluish purple, tube whitish, throat yellow; tube 3–5 cm long; lobes 2–2.5 cm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Androecium Stamens Filaments
Filaments 10–12 and 12–14 mm long, with scattered glands along whole length; anthers 4–5 mm long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Capsule 2–3 × 1–1.3 cm, glabrous.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Seeds
Seed dark brown, ± 8 mm in diameter.
Distribution
Range: Bukoba District: Minziro Forest Reserve, Bulembe Hill, 17. Range: Tanzania. Range: Senegal, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, Central African Republic, Congo-Kinshasa, Sudan, Rwanda Range: Uganda. Range: Senegal, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, Central African Republic, Congo-Kinshasa, Sudan, Rwanda Flora districts: U1 U2 U4 T1
Ecology
Wet evergreen forest, swamp forest; 800–1150 m
Note
Gabon this species is very closely related to the Angolan T. affinis which has entire leaves and shorter pedicels. As pointed out by Heine in Fl.
[FTEA]

Acanthaceae, H. Heine. Flora of West Tropical Africa 2. 1963

Morphology General Habit
A branching shrub, up to 15 ft. or more high;
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers 2-3 in. long, pale or dark violet-purple white tube
Note
Often cultivated as an ornamental.
[FWTA]

Bernal, R., G. Galeano, A. Rodríguez, H. Sarmiento y M. Gutiérrez. 2017. Nombres Comunes de las Plantas de Colombia. http://www.biovirtual.unal.edu.co/nombrescomunes/

Vernacular
campanitas
[UNAL]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: not threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

Distribution
Biogeografic region: Andean. Elevation range: 750–1000 m a.s.l. Cultivated in Colombia. Colombian departments: Cundinamarca, Santander.
Habit
Shrub.
Ecology
Habitat according IUCN Habitats Classification: forest and woodland, savanna, shrubland, artificial - terrestrial.
[UPFC]

Bernal, R., Gradstein, S.R. & Celis, M. (eds.). 2015. Catálogo de plantas y líquenes de Colombia. Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá. http://catalogoplantasdecolombia.unal.edu.co

Distribution
Cultivada en Colombia; Alt. 750 - 1000 m.; Andes.
Morphology General Habit
Arbusto
[CPLC]

Uses

Use Environmental
Environmental uses.
Use Medicines
Medical uses.
[UPFC]

Common Names

English
King's Mantle

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

  • Catálogo de Plantas y Líquenes de Colombia

    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Colombian resources for Plants made Accessible

    • ColPlantA 2021. Published on the Internet at http://colplanta.org
    • https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

  • Flora of Tropical East Africa

    • Flora of Tropical East Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Flora of West Tropical Africa

    • Flora of West Tropical Africa
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Living Collection Database

    • Common Names from Plants and People Africa http://www.plantsandpeopleafrica.com/

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Science Photographs

    • Copyright applied to individual images

  • Universidad Nacional de Colombia

    • ColPlantA database
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Useful Plants and Fungi of Colombia

    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0