PlantaeDB Logo
Login Sign-up

Genus Cypella in Family Iridaceae

In botanical taxonomy, a genus (plural genera) is a rank used to group closely related species within a family. In the hierarchy, genus sits below family and above species.

Genera are defined by shared morphological, anatomical, and genetic characteristics (for example, features of flowers, fruits, seeds, or leaves) that indicate a close evolutionary relationship among the species they contain.

Each genus can include one or more species. Examples include Rosa (roses) and Solanum (nightshades, including tomato and eggplant).

Do you wish to read more about plant taxonomy? Click here!

Genus Description

Suggest a correction!

Cypella (Herb.) is a genus of bulb‑bearing perennial herbs in the family Iridaceae, placed in the order Asparagales (APG IV, 2016). About fifty‑five to sixty species are currently accepted (POWO, 2024). The plants occur in temperate and subtropical South America, from the Argentine Pampas to the Brazilian Atlantic Forest and the Andes, occupying open grasslands, savannas and rocky slopes from sea level to 2 500 m. The type species recorded by IPNI and accepted by Kew is Cypella herbwinii (Herb.) (POWO, 2024).

Each plant has a tunicate bulb and linear leaf rosette. Leafless stems bear several showy flowers with spathes. The perianth has three large inner and three smaller outer tepals and a short tube. Stamens have basifixed anthers; the inferior ovary is trilocular with axile placentation, and the fruit is a loculicidal capsule with small, angular or winged seeds. These traits separate Cypella from Calydorea (Goldblatt et al., 2008).

Species richness peaks in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest and the pampas of Uruguay and Argentina, where endemics like C. uniflora occur (POWO, 2024). A secondary centre lies in the Andean foothills of Argentina and Bolivia, with high‑elevation specialists up to 2 500 m (WFO, 2024). Cypella occupies open habitats from seasonally water‑logged grasslands to dry rocky slopes, avoiding dense forest interiors.

Pollination is melittophilous; Andrena, Halictus and small hoverflies are regular visitors (Goldblatt et al., 2008). Seeds are wind‑dispersed, with limited water transport in floodplain species. Chromosome counts range 2n = 18–22, base x = 7 (Goldblatt et al., 2008).

Cypella belongs to tribe Cypelleae (Iridoideae), supported by nuclear and plastid phylogenies (Mabberley, 2020). No formal subgeneric sections are recognized; informal groups are noted. The circumscription is stable; earlier authors sometimes merged it with Calydorea, but recent molecular work confirms its monophyly and distinctness (Goldblatt et al., 2008; POWO, 2024). Checklists retain it as a separate accepted genus with only minor synonymisation of regional taxa (WFO, 2024).

Several species, including C. herbertii and C. catharinensis, are cultivated for ornamental purposes in rock gardens and as cut flowers. No Cypella species are used for timber, food or medicine, and none are recorded as invasive outside their native ranges.

Habitat loss, especially grassland conversion to agriculture, threatens many populations, and several taxa are listed as vulnerable on regional Red Lists. Field surveys and population‑genetic studies remain limited, hindering conservation planning (POWO, 2024). Ongoing taxonomic clarification and climate‑change modeling will be essential to anticipate future distribution shifts.

Pick a Species to see its components: