Leaves sessile or petiolate, entire or palmately or pinnately lobed
Flowers axillary, solitary or in variously branched or cymose inflorescences
Calyx of 5 equal sepals, sometimes accrescent
Corolla funnel-shaped or campanulate; usually obscurely 5-lobed
Stamens arising nearly at base of corolla tube, included; filaments linear, often unequal, slightly broadening below; anthers oblong, lobed at base, or sometimes contorted
Disc saucer-shaped
Ovary 2(4)-locular, with 2(1) ovules in each locule; style included; stigma biglobose or somewhat 2-lobed
Fruit a membranous, 4-valved capsule
Seeds somewhat flattened, elliptic or subquadrate in outline, sometimes somewhat tubercled
x = 15 (14) (aneuploids)
Nomenclature:
Merremia Dennst. ex Endl.
Endlicher: 1403 (1841)
Hallier: 581 (1893)
Meeuse: 700 (1957)
Meeuse & Welman: 55 (2000)
Distribution & Notes:
Global: Species ± 80, cosmopolitan in warm regions
Southern Africa: Species 9, widespread in all regions but absent from Western Cape
References:
ENDLICHER, S.L. 1841. Genera plantarum. Beck, Vienna
HALLIER, H. 1893. Versuch einer natürlichen Gliederung der Convolvulaceen auf morphologischer und anatomischer Grundlage. Botanische Jahrbücher 16
MEEUSE, A.D.J. 1957. The South African Convolvulaceae. Bothalia 6
MEEUSE, A.D.J. & WELMAN, W.G. 2000. Convolvulaceae. Flora of southern Africa 28,1
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Welcome to Biodiversity Advisor 2.0!
Biodiversity Advisor, developed by the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) and its Data Partners, is a system that will provide integrated biodiversity information to a wide range of users who will have access to geospatial data, plant and animal species distribution data, ecosystem-level data, literature, images and metadata.
The integrated information comes from our much-loved Botanical Database of Southern Africa (BODATSA) also known as Plants of Southern Africa (POSA), Zoological Database of Southern Africa (ZODATSA), Biodiversity Geographic Information System (BGIS), SANBI's institutional repository (Opus) and others.
The system is still under development, so you may find a few bugs/issues. If you do, please report it via the error reporting button available in various sections of the website or provide us with any useful feedback you may have via the ‘Give us feedback’ option available in the sidebar menu. You can create a free account for yourself by clicking on the user profile icon which will take you through to the login page. Here you can choose the ‘Create an account’ option or simply fill in your details if you have an account already. Having an account on Biodiversity Advisor will provide users with free access to biodiversity resources.
In future, Team SANBI will be able to log in using their day-to-day login details, BGIS users will be able to use their existing accounts and details, and general users will be able to log in using their LinkedIn profile, but for now you will need to create an account.