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Genus Moquilea in Family Chrysobalanaceae

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).

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Genus Description

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Moquilea (Aubl.) belongs to Chrysobalanaceae and comprises approximately 20 tree species in the Neotropics, ranging from lowland rainforest to restinga, gallery forests, and drier woodlands in the Guianas, Amazonia, and eastern Brazil; the type species is Moquilea oleifera Aubl. The genus is characterized by small, 5‑merous, generally bisexual flowers, a calyx with conspicuous accrescent lobes that later become reflexed, usually three fertile stamens inserted opposite the sepals, and a superior ovary with two anatropous ovules that develop into a single stigmatic branch—an arrangement diagnostically distinct from the common Chrysobalanaceae condition with one fertile ovule; fruits are drupes with a fleshy mesocarp and hard endocarp, contrasting with the more frequent capsular fruits in related genera (Prance & Sothers, 2003; Endress & Stenzel, 2003).

Centers of diversity are the Guiana Shield, northern Brazil (Amapá, Pará, Amazonas), and parts of eastern Brazil (Bahia, Espírito Santo, Minas Gerais), with several taxa narrowly endemic to montane and coastal restinga habitats; elevation typically spans sea level to c. 1000 m in granite inselbergs and lowland terra firme forests (Prance & Sothers, 2003; WFO, 2024). Flowers are nectariferous, attractive to insects, and most species appear to be entomophilous, with nectaries developed as a disc or staminodal ring; the base chromosome number is n=12, well supported by Oberprieler & Greuter (2001). Dispersal is chiefly endozoochorous via birds and mammals consuming the fleshy drupes.

Recent taxonomic work shows Moquilea as reinstated, closely allied to Licania sensu stricto, and part of a well‑defined clade within Chrysobalanaceae; Prance & Sothers (2003) recognized around 20 species and keyed them to sections (Moquilea sect. Moquilea, sect. Kuhlmannia, and sect. Chrysocastanopsis), while Sothers et al. (2016) provided an updated molecular phylogeny confirming Moquilea’s monophyly and further clarifying sectional relationships; alternative treatments still merge Moquilea with Licania in some regional floras, creating circumscription uncertainty (POWO, 2024; WFO, 2024).

Several species, notably M. oleifera, yield valuable, often locally marketed timber known commercially as “muirajuba” or “oiti,” and the nectariferous trees are of local apicultural importance; none are major crops. Deforestation, habitat fragmentation, and the loss of narrow endemics pose threats to several taxa, and several species remain unassessed for IUCN status. Continued integration of phylogenomics with revised taxonomy and targeted field surveys is needed to resolve remaining uncertainties and inform conservation decisions (Sothers et al., 2016; Prance & Sothers, 2003; GBIF, 2024).

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