What is "cuphocarpus"

Cuphocarpus is an obsolete genus of flowering plants in the family Araliaceae. Mabberley (2008) treated it as a synonym of Polyscias, but other authors still recognized it at that time. In 2010, in a phylogenetic analysis of DNA sequences, it was shown that Cuphocarpus was biphyletic and embedded in the large genus Polyscias. In an accompanying paper, Polyscias was divided into 11 subgenera, with seven species left incertae sedis.

Since Cuphocarpus is no longer an accepted genus, its species will be referred to herein by their names in Polyscias. Polyscias aculeata is the type species for Cuphocarpus. It is now the sole species in Polyscias subgenus Cuphocarpus. Four other species, formerly in Cuphocarpus, are now in Polyscias subgenus Maralia. All species that have ever been placed in Cuphocarpus are endemic to Madagascar.

Polyscias inermis has been recognized by some authors, but others have regarded it as conspecific with Polyscias aculeata. Polyscias aculeata ( sensu lato) is indigenous to the coastal forest of eastern Madagascar. Polyscias briquetiana, Polyscias humbertiana, Polyscias leandriana, and Polyscias compacta (= Cuphocarpus commersonii) are montane species of the Madagascan interior. They were transferred from Cuphocarpus to Polyscias subgenus Maralia in 2010.

Recognizing six species, Frodin and Govaerts (2003) described Cuphocarpus as " shrubs or trees, closely related to Polyscias, but fruits 1- seeded; these latter are moreover surmounted by the persistent calyptroid corolla". René Viguier thought that they were sometimes parthenocarpous.