Degeneriaceae

plant family

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June 25, 2026

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Degeneriaceae is a small plant family with only two species: Degeneria vitiensis and D. roseiflora. Both are large trees found in Fiji. These trees are characterized by primitive vessels, single pollen grains with a unique aperture, and sterile stamens surrounding a single carpel. Their distinctive kidney-shaped fruits split open to reveal seeds embedded in pulp, which are dispersed by birds. An unusual feature of Degeneriaceae is that their embryos possess three or four cotyledons. This family is part of the Magnoliales order, which is considered a basal group of angiosperms.12

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Magnoliales
Degeneriaceae
The two species in Degeneriaceae (Degeneria vitiensis and D. roseiflora) are large trees and have primitive vessels, single pollen grains with an elongated aperture and a homogenous (structureless) exine, and sterile stamens (staminodes) between the fertile stamens and the central single carpel. The unusual kidney-shaped fruits of Degeneria measure…
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The two species in Degeneriaceae (Degeneria vitiensis and D. roseiflora) are large trees and have primitive vessels, single pollen grains with an elongated aperture and a homogenous (structureless) exine, and sterile stamens (staminodes) between the fertile stamens and the central single carpel. The unusual kidney-shaped fruits of Degeneria measure…
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Magnoliales
Distribution and abundance
Degeneriaceae consists of one genus in Fiji. Degeneria vitiensis, as the species name indicates, was found on Viti Levu, the largest island of the Fijian archipelago. It is a relatively common tree that occurs mostly in upland forests on steep slopes, and it has been…
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Degeneriaceae consists of one genus in Fiji. Degeneria vitiensis, as the species name indicates, was found on Viti Levu, the largest island of the Fijian archipelago. It is a relatively common tree that occurs mostly in upland forests on steep slopes, and it has been…
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magnoliid clade
Reproduction and life cycles
…angiosperm, such as Winteraceae and Degeneriaceae (Magnoliales), contains a minute, relatively undifferentiated embryo, which occupies only a small part of the seed at maturity. Such plants are at a disadvantage. Because the embryos are so extremely small at the time that the seeds are shed, considerable time is lost while…
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…angiosperm, such as Winteraceae and Degeneriaceae (Magnoliales), contains a minute, relatively undifferentiated embryo, which occupies only a small part of the seed at maturity. Such plants are at a disadvantage. Because the embryos are so extremely small at the time that the seeds are shed, considerable time is lost while…
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