Brachystephanus africanus S. Moore
var. africanus

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Brachystephanus africanus var. africanus

Photo: Bart Wursten
Lower forested slopes below Nhandore peak, Mt Gorongosa.

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Synonyms:	Brachystephanus bequaertii De Wild.
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Description:	Erect, perennial shrub-like herb, up to c. 2.5 m high. Leaves opposite, 11-18 cm long, elliptic to ovate, hairless above, more or less densely hairy beneath; margin entire or shallowly crenate; petiole 1-4 cm long. Inflorescences in erect terminal and axillary spikes, 9-19 cm long, flowers appearring from tightly overlapping bracts. Corolla 2-lipped, pink violet, mauve or white; tube 2.5-3.5 cm long; stamens and style long exserted.
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Derivation of specific name:	africanus: African
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Worldwide distribution:	DRC, Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.
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Spot characters:	Display spot characters for this species
Literature:	Champluvier, D. (1985). Acanthaceae Flore du Rwanda Spermatophytes Volume III Page 444. as Brachystegia africanus (Includes a picture). Champluvier, D. & Darbyshire, I. (2009). A revision of the genera Brachystephanus and Oreacanthus (Acanthaceae) in tropical Africa Systematics and Geography of Plants 79(2) Pages 157 - 161. (Includes a picture). Darbyshire, I., Vollesen, K. & Kelbessa, E. (2015). Acanthaceae (Part 2) Flora Zambesiaca 8(6) Pages 142 - 144. (Includes a picture). Dowsett-Lemaire, F. (1989). The flora and phytogeography of the evergreen forests of Malawi. I: Afromontane and mid-altitude forests; Bull. Jard. Bot. Nat. Belg. 59(1/2) Page 21. As Brachystephanus africanus Figueiredo, E. & Jury, S.L. (1996). Notes on Brachystephanus (Acanthaceae) Kew Bulletin 51(4) Pages 753 - 756. Zimbabwe and Mozambique not cited in the distribution Fischer, E. & Killmann, D. (2008). Illustrated Field guide to the Plants of Nyungwe National Park Rwanda. University of Koblenz-Landau. Pages 514 - 515. (Includes a picture). Golding, J.S. (ed.) (2002). Zimbabwe Plant Red Data List. Southern African Plant Red Data Lists. SABONET 14 Page 161. Harris, T., Darbyshire, I. & Polhill, R. (2011). New species and range extensions from Mt Namuli, Mt Mabu and Mt Chiperone in northern Mozambique Kew Bulletin 66(2) Page 248. Mapaura, A. & Timberlake, J. (eds) (2004). A checklist of Zimbabwean vascular plants Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 33 Sabonet, Pretoria and Harare Page 13. Strugnell, A.M. (2006). A Checklist of the Spermatophytes of Mount Mulanje, Malawi Scripta Botanica Belgica 34 National Botanic Garden of Belgium Page 33. Timberlake, J.R., Bayliss, J., Dowsett-Lemaire, F., Congdon, C., Branch, B., Collins, S., Curran, M., Dowsett, R,J., Fishpool, L., Francisco, J., Harris, Kopp, M. & de Sousa, C. (2012). Mt Mabu, Mozambique: Biodiversity and Conservation Report produced under the Darwin Initiative Award 15/036. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, London Page 72. White, F., Dowsett-Lemaire, F. & Chapman, J.D. (2001). Evergreen forest flora of Malawi Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Pages 113 - 115.

Other sources of information about Brachystephanus africanus var. africanus:

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Flora of the DRC: Brachystephanus africanus var. africanus
Flora of Malawi: Brachystephanus africanus var. africanus
Flora of Mozambique: Brachystephanus africanus var. africanus
Flora of Rwanda: Brachystephanus africanus var. africanus
Flora of Zimbabwe: Brachystephanus africanus var. africanus

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Brachystephanus africanus
African Plant Database: Brachystephanus africanus
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Brachystephanus africanus
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Brachystephanus africanus
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Brachystephanus africanus
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Brachystephanus africanus
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Brachystephanus africanus
JSTOR Plant Science: Brachystephanus africanus
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Brachystephanus africanus
Plants of the World Online: Brachystephanus africanus
Tropicos: Brachystephanus africanus
Wikipedia: Brachystephanus africanus