Cyrillaceae

Cyrillaceae is a small family of shrubs and trees belonging to the order Sapindales. This family is characterized by entire, leathery leaves, small white flowers arranged in racemes, and capsular fruit.1

The Cyrillaceae family includes two genera and is found in the Caribbean region, extending from the southeastern United States to northern South America and the West Indies. Plants in this family have spirally arranged, toothless leaves with short petioles. Their flowers typically have separate petals, arrow-shaped anthers, and a three-lobed stigma, with the fruit having three compartments. Some botanists recognize a single species within the genus Cyrilla, C. racemiflora, while the genus Cliftonia is also monotypic.2