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Taxonomy
Protomegabaria stapfiana (Beille) Hutch.
Nomenclature
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Family: PhyllanthaceaeGenus: Protomegabaria
SUMMARY
A tree about 15 high; branchlets stout, glabrous. Leaves elongate-oblong or elongate-obovate, rounded or very shortly and obtusely acuminate, more or less narrowed to the base, 15-38 cm long, 7-15 cm broad, thinly chartaceous or membranous, entire, glabrous above, pubescent on the midrib and lateral nerves beneath; lateral nerves 10–17 on each side, diverging from the midrib at an angle of 45°, looped and branched near the margin, prominent only on the lower surface; tertiary nerves parallel, rather slender; veins scarcely visible; petiole 3.5-5 cm long, swollen and wrinkled at the top, glabrous; stipules not seen, soon falling off. Male racemes about 6 cm long; axis sulcate, glabrous; outer bract ovate-rotundate, slightly ciliate; inner bract in the shape of a cup enclosing the three closely packed flowers whilst in bud, central flower overtopping the two others; bracteoles at the base of each pedicel ovate, ciliate and pubescent; pedicels short. Sepals 5, oblong, inflexed and fringed at the apex. Stamens 5; filaments about half as long as the sepals. Disk-glands 5, large and fleshy, glabrous. Rudimentary ovary bipartite, segments slightly papillose towards the apex. Female racemes about 3.8 cm long; axis sulcate or angular, glabrous; bracts ovate-lanceolate, obtuse, 2.5 mm long, 1mm broad, thinly coriaceous, glabrous. Sepals 5, one smaller than the rest, ovate-lanceolate, obtuse, 4 mm long, coriaceous, glabrous on both sides. Disk adnate to the base of the sepals, glabrous. Ovary slightly trilobed, glabrous; styles 3, free to the base, at first erect, at length recurved, bifid or bilobed, glabrous. Capsule subglobose or oblong-ellipsoid, 3–3.5cm in diam., septicidal, exocarp partially splitting from each end into six pieces, the cocci falling away and leaving the persistent central axis; exocarp crustaceous, thin; endocarp horny, nearly 1mm thick.