Dichrostachys | |
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Dichrostachys cinerea | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Fabales |
Family: | Fabaceae |
Subfamily: | Caesalpinioideae |
Clade: | Mimosoid clade |
Genus: | Dichrostachys (DC.) Wight & Arn. (1834) |
Species | |
16; see text | |
Synonyms[1] | |
Cailliea Guill. & Perr. (1833) |
Dichrostachys is an Old World genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. Their Acacia-like leaves are bi-pinnately compound. Unlike Acacia their thorns are hardened branchlets rather than modified stipules. They are native from Africa to Australasia, but a centre of diversity is present in Madagascar.[2]
Their name is derived from the Greek words dis (two), chroos (colour) and stachys (grain ear or spike), which in combination suggests their bi-colored inflorescences.[2]