Axinaea

{{Short description|Genus of flowering plants}}

{{Automatic taxobox

|image = Axinaea macrophylla (14469910578).jpg

|image_caption = Axinaea macrophylla

|taxon = Axinaea

|authority = Ruiz & Pav.

|synonyms = {{genus list |Chastenaea|DC.}}

|synonyms_ref ={{cite web |url= https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:26188-1 |title= Axinaea Ruiz & Pav. |author= |date=n.d. |website=Plants of the World Online |publisher=The Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew |access-date=January 4, 2025}}

}}

Axinaea is a genus of flowering plants in the family Melastomataceae. As of 2012, there are at least 42 species.Bussmann, R. W., & Zambrana, N. P. (2012). [https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Rainer_Bussmann/publication/259292566_Axinaea_ninakurorum_(Melastomataceae)__a_new_species_from_the_northern_Peruvian_Merianeae_hotspot._Axinaea_ninakurorum_(Melastomataceae)__una_nueva_especie_del_hotspot_de_Merianeae_norperuano/links/02e7e52acc448e5abc000000.pdf Axinaea ninakurorum (Melastomataceae)− a new species from the northern Peruvian Merianeae hotspot.] Arnaldoa 19(1) 23-27. They are small trees and shrubs. They are native to the Americas; almost all are found in the Andes.Bussmann, R. W., Gruhn, J., & Glenn, A. (2010). [https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Rainer_Bussmann/publication/228108343_Axinaea_fernando-cabiesii_and_A._reginae_spp._nov._(Melastomataceae)_from_upper_Amazonia_of_Peru_with_notes_on_the_conservation_status_of_A._flava/links/0912f4ff421916db97000000.pdf Axinaea fernando-cabiesii and A. reginae spp. nov.(Melastomataceae) from upper Amazonia of Peru, with notes on the conservation status of A. flava.] Nordic Journal of Botany, 28(5), 518-522.

Plants of this genus are pollinated when birds, several species of fruit-eating tanagers, consume specialized appendages on the stamens. As they grasp the nutritious appendages, a cloud of pollen is released. This has been called "puff pollination".Edwards, J. (2014). [http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982214007362 Coevolution: puff pollination in tropical flowers.] Current Biology, 24(14), R649-R651.Dellinger, A. S., et al. (2014). [http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982214006344 A specialized bird pollination system with a bellows mechanism for pollen transfer and staminal food body rewards.] Current Biology, 24(14), 1615-19.

Species include:

{{species list |Axinaea affinis|Cogn.

|Axinaea alata|E.Cotton

|Axinaea campii|E.Cotton

|Axinaea carolina-telleziae|Bussmann & Paniagua

|Axinaea colombiana|Lozano & Alvear

|Axinaea confusa|E.Cotton

|Axinaea costaricensis|Cogn.

|Axinaea crassinoda|Triana

|Axinaea dentata|E.Cotton

|Axinaea dependens|Ruiz & Pav.

|Axinaea disrupta|E.Cotton

|Axinaea fallax|Gleason ex Cuatrec.

|Axinaea fernando-cabiesii|Bussmann, J.A.Gruhn & A.Glenn

|Axinaea flava|E.Cotton, Bussmann & P.Lozano

|Axinaea floribunda|Triana

|Axinaea glandulosa|Ruiz & Pav. ex D. Don

|Axinaea glauca|E.Cotton & P.Lozano

|Axinaea grandifolia|Triana

|Axinaea lanceolata|Ruiz & Pav.

|Axinaea lawessonii|E.Cotton

|Axinaea lehmannii|Cogn.

|Axinaea luteynii|E.Cotton

|Axinaea macrophylla|Triana

|Axinaea merianiae|Triana

|Axinaea mertensioides|Wurdack

|Axinaea minutiflora|E.Cotton

|Axinaea nitida|Cogn.

|Axinaea oblongifolia|(Cogn.) Wurdack

|Axinaea pauciflora|Cogn.

|Axinaea pendula|E.Cotton

|Axinaea pennellii|Gleason

|Axinaea quitensis|Benoist

|Axinaea reginae|Bussmann, Gruhn & A.Glenn

|Axinaea ruizteranii|Wurdack

|Axinaea sclerophylla|Triana

|Axinaea scutigera|Triana

|Axinaea sessilifolia|Triana

|Axinaea sodiroi|Wurdack

|Axinaea tomentosa|Cogn.

|Axinaea wurdackii|Sagást., S.J.Arroyo & E.Rodr.}}