Cayaponia

Cayaponia is the largest genus in the gourd family Cucurbitaceae, with about 60 species. The plants are referred to as melonleaf. They are common from the southern United States to South America. Some species are also found in western Africa, Madagascar, and Fernando de Noronha, which is about 354km off the coast of Brazil. It is native the southern United States to central South America and the Caribbean islands. Most species are found in rainforests and have white or yellow-green flowers. The original Cayaponia were pollinated by bats, but at least two shifts to bee pollination have occurred among some of its species. This is apparently the first clade to shift from bat to bee pollination vice bee to bat pollination. A 2011 study based on genetics placed the genus Selysia under this genus.

Contents

• Taiui cayaponia tayuya cogniaux
• Tallo de cayaponia ct
• References

Brazilian botanist António Luiz Patricio da Silva Manso named this genus after the indigenous Cayapo people of Brazil.