Flore du Cameroun 45: Annonaceae

Description:

Text English. Annonaceae is a diverse pantropical plant family with 113 genera and about 2550 species. Cameroon is one of the most biodiverse countries in Africa but its flora remains incompletely known. The Flora of Cameroon 45 – Annonaceae represents the first hybrid online open access and printed volume of the series, co-published by the Ministère de la Recherche Scientifique et de l’Innovation (MINRESI, Yaoundé Cameroon), The National Herbarium of Cameroon and PhytoKeys (Pensoft Publishers). Flora treatments such as this one need to be accessible to researchers from both the global north and south, students, para-taxonomists and the general public with an interest in biodiversity. This is even more relevant in tropical countries such as Cameroon which contain the highest levels of biodiversity, and where access to subscription-based or printed books can be difficult. In this volume of the Flora of Cameroon, we describe 166 native taxa representing 163 species in 28 native genera within the family. A total of 22 species (about 13%) are endemic to the country. We provide dichotomique keys to all genera, species, and infraspecific taxa. For each species a detailed morphological description and a map of its distribution in Cameroon are provided. Line drawings and/or photographs accompany most species.

Distribution maps and diversity analyses are based on a taxonomically verified database of 2073 collections. Across Africa, Cameroon is a center of diversity for Annonaceae harboring one of the highest numbers of species and genera.