Bauhinia monandra
COMMON NAME | Butterfly Flower, Mariposa,
Napoleon's Plume |
TYPE | Tree |
FAMILY | Fabaceae |
NOTES | Small tree, usually
reaching about 3 - 7 m tall, sometimes up to 15 m. Butterfly-shaped (sub-cordate) leaves, simple and
alternate arrangement. The tree is
widely grown as an ornamental in the tropics, valued especially for its often
continuous flowering display. Bauhinias
were named in honor of the brothers Bauhin, Swiss botanists of the 16th-17th
century. Their characteristic twin lobed leaves give them a definite tropical
look. The species name 'monandra' refers to the fact that they have only one
stamen. |
GEOGRAPHIC REGION | Native to Madagascar. It has been
widely cultivated as an ornamental and is now naturalized in Africa, Asia,
Australia, North, Central and South America, the West Indies and on islands
in the Pacific Ocean. |
NATIVE HABITAT | From evergreen
lowland rain forest to mountain forest and savanna, scrub and dry deciduous
forest to swamp forest on various soils. |
WEB SOURCES |
