Bombacaceae

The bombacaceae (Bombacaceae) are a family of the order Malvales according to the traditional circumscriptions of the aforementioned order. Currently, it is treated as a subfamily (Bombacoideae) within the Malvaceae. The name of this family (or subfamily) comes from the genus Bombax.

Recent phylogenetic studies show that the Bombacaceae as they were traditionally circumscribed are not a monophyletic group, having proposed the exclusion of a part of its members, especially those of the Durioneae tribe, which would be included in the Sterculiaceae family (as a subfamily Durionoideae) or would receive the category of family (Durionaceae); after these exclusions the nucleus of the family would be treated according to some as a subfamily, Bombacoideae, subordinate to the family Malvaceae. The Bombacaceae are not recognized by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group APG with family rank, they are treated as subfamily Bombacoideae under the family Malvaceae sensu lato (see Sterculiaceae and Tiliaceae). There is a close relationship between Bombacaceae and Malvaceae but until recently the families have been separated in many classification systems, and they continue to be separated in many references.

In its traditional sense, the Bombacaceae family includes about 30 genera with 250 species of tropical trees, some with considerably thick trunks, called "bottles". Many species grow into large trees, with Ceiba pentandra the tallest, up to 70 m. Many of these genera are commercially important, producing wood, edible fruits, fibers. Some species in this family have one of the lightest woods, especially Balsa, Ochroma lagopus. The fruit of Durio zibethinus is famous, more for its taste than its smell. The fiber of the kapok, Ceiba pentandra, was widely used to make pillows and cushions. The baobab (Adansonia spp.) is iconic in parts of Africa, Australia, Madagascar, notable for its immense tree structure, a mechanism for storing water.

Lower part of the trunk of a ceiba in Plaza Bolívar de El Hatillo (Venezuela), showing its abombamiento to store water and nutrients, characteristic of some species of Bombacaceae.

Ceiba pentandra.

Description

Alternate leaves, commonly palmate-shaped, with small, deciduous stipules. Hermaphroditic, actinomorphic flowers; calyx with 5 sepals united at the base, frequently accompanied by an epicalix or caliculus; corolla with 5 free petals; androecium of numerous stamens, typically with the filaments welded together in a staminal tube (column) surrounding the styles; smooth pollen; super pluricarpelar gynoecium. Schizocarpic or capsular fruits.

Genres