Biology:Passiflora affinis
| Passiflora affinis | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Malpighiales |
| Family: | Passifloraceae |
| Genus: | Passiflora |
| Species: | P. affinis
|
| Binomial name | |
| Passiflora affinis | |
Passiflora affinis, the bracted passionflower, is a species of flowering perennial vine of Texas and northeast Mexico.[2][3] The vine has three-lobed leaves and a small yellow-green bloom with delicate filaments arranged in a starburst. It is a larval host plant for several butterfly species.
Description
Passiflora affinis is a perennial climbing vine that can reach up to 4.5 m (15 ft) in length.[3] Leaves have two to three rounded lobes and are broader than they are long, typically measuring 6–10 cm (2.4–3.9 in) wide and 3–7 cm (1.2–2.8 in) long with a petiole of 3 cm (1.2 in).[4]
Flowers grow singly or in pairs from the connection between petiole and stem.[4] The flower is yellow-green overall and consists of 5 longer sepals alternating with 5 shorter petals underneath a disc of delicate filaments. P. affinis blooms July through August.[3] The fruit is a purple-black berry.[3]
Range
Passiflora affinis is distributed across the Edwards Plateau geographic region of central Texas. It occurs in the following counties: Bandera, Bell, Bexar, Comal, Edwards, Fayette, Gillespie, Hays, Kerr, Kimble, Kinney, Llano, Sutton, Travis, Uvalde, and Val Verde.[5] It is also found in northeast Mexico.[2][6]
Habitat
Passiflora affinis grows in the limestone soils common to the Edward's Plateau and prefers sun or partial shade.[3]
Ecology
Like other central Texas passionflower vines, Passiflora affinis is a larval host plant for the Gulf Fritillary[7] and the Zebra Longwing.[8] The caterpillars may completely defoliate the vine but if a plant is well established it is capable of growing back.[3]
References
- ↑ NatureServe (27 February 2026). "Passiflora affinis Bracted Passion-flower" (in en). Arlington, Virginia. https://explorer.natureserve.org/Taxon/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.161496/.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Passiflora affinis Engelm.". Species. GBIF. http://www.gbif.org/species/2874178.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 "Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - The University of Texas at Austin". https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=paaf.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center - The University of Texas at Austin". https://www.wildflower.org/herbaria/show.php?id=145.
- ↑ "USDA Plants Database". https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile/paaf.
- ↑ "Passiflora affinis Engelm." (in en). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. http://www.plantsoftheworldonline.org/taxon/674759-1.
- ↑ "Gulf Fritillary Agraulis vanillae (Linnaeus, 1758) | Butterflies and Moths of North America". https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species/Agraulis-vanillae.
- ↑ "Zebra Heliconian Heliconius charithonia (Linnaeus, 1767) | Butterflies and Moths of North America". https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species/Heliconius-charithonia.
Wikidata ☰ Q17558250 entry
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