You are here
Monocotyledons / Monocotiledóneas
Dracaena Vandelli ex Linnaeus, 1767
EOL Text
Trees (in ours), shrubs or herbs. Leaves spirally arranged, crowded (in ours) in apical rosettes. Inflorescence a terminal panicle. Flowers whitish, fragrant, nocturnal. Perianth tubular; lobes, 6, recurved. Fruit a spherical or lobed, orange-scarlet berry. Seeds 1-3, rounded, bony.
License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/ |
Rights holder/Author | Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings, Flora of Zimbabwe |
Source | http://www.zimbabweflora.co.zw/speciesdata/genus.php?genus_id=357 |
In Great Britain and/or Ireland:
Foodplant / feeds on
scattered, minute, black pycnidium of Ascochyta coelomycetous anamorph of Ascochyta dracaenicola feeds on leaf of Dracaena
Foodplant / sap sucker
hypophyllous, colonial Aspidioterus nerii sucks sap of live leaf of Dracaena
Foodplant / feeds on
immersed pycnidium of Macrophoma coelomycetous anamorph of Macrophoma draconis feeds on leaf of Dracaena
Foodplant / spot causer
concentrically arranged pycnidium of Conothyrium coelomycetous anamorph of Microsphaeropsis concentrica causes spots on dead leaf of Dracaena
Foodplant / spot causer
concentrically arranged colony of Pseudocercospora dematiaceous anamorph of Mycosphaerella deightonii causes spots on dead leaf of Dracaena
Foodplant / feeds on
Myxospoorium coelomycetous anamorph of Myxosporium dracaenicola feeds on leaf of Dracaena
Foodplant / spot causer
minute, pale pycnidium of Phyllosticta coelomycetous anamorph of Phoma draconis causes spots on live leaf of Dracaena
Plant / associate
fruitbody of Pluteus thomsonii is associated with dead Dracaena
Other: unusual host/prey
Foodplant / sap sucker
Pseudococcus sucks sap of live green part of Dracaena
Foodplant / sap sucker
Rhizoecus sucks sap of live stem base of Dracaena
Other: major host/prey
License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ |
Rights holder/Author | BioImages, BioImages - the Virtual Fieldguide (UK) |
Source | http://www.bioimages.org.uk/html/Dracaena.htm |
Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLD) Stats
Specimen Records:92
Specimens with Sequences:90
Specimens with Barcodes:87
Species:29
Species With Barcodes:26
Public Records:31
Public Species:12
Public BINs:0
This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (December 2009) |
The genus Dracaena (romanized form of the Ancient Greek δράκαινα - drakaina, "female dragon"[1]), also called Caiman Lizards or water tegu, is in the teiid family, along with tegus and ameivas. Caiman lizards are found in South America in Ecuador, Colombia, Peru and Brazil. These lizards spend a lot of time in the water and they inhabit marshes, streams and flooded forests. Caiman lizards often bask on branches overhanging the water.
Classification[edit]
Listed alphabetically.[2]
- Dracaena guianensis Daudin, 1802 - Northern Caiman Lizard or Guyana Caiman Lizard
- Dracaena paraguayensis Amaral, 1950 - Paraguay Caiman Lizard
Description[edit]
The Caiman Lizard is built similarly to its cousin the tegu, with a large heavy set body and short but powerful limbs. Its head is bulky and often a red or orange color. Their jaws are heavily muscular to help aid in eating its normal prey of snails, crawfish and fresh water clams. It also has a few adaptations that help it in its watery habitat. It has a long, laterally flattened tail, similar to its name sake, the Yacare Caiman. The long tail helps the Caiman Lizard to successfully swim and dive. It also has a clear third eyelid which is thought to act like a pair of goggles underwater. The coloration of the Northern caiman lizard (Dracaena guianensis) is very similar to that of a crocodile. It is typically a bright green with slight dark green banding. The Paraguayan caiman lizards (Dracaena paraguayensis) are typically much more drab, with gray bodies and heads. There are tough raised scutes along the dorsal portion of the back. These give the caiman lizard a crocodilian appearance, and help to provide some protection against predators. These lizards can become up to 4 feet long and weigh up to 10 lbs.
References[edit]
This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (February 2015) |
Captivity[edit]
Caiman Lizards are bred at the Madras Crocodile Bank in Tamil Nadu, India. They are kept in private collections, but they are not yet kept in large numbers due to their tendency to only accept snails, and their high price. Additionally, caiman lizards are arboreal, aquatic, and burrowing, so suitable enclosures are usually only made by zoos. Caiman lizards born in captivity have been known to take a variety of food items, including snails, fish, cat food, and crustaceans. Their temperament is comparable to that of a tegu, but keepers have reported that caiman lizards are much easier to clicker train, and therefore are possibly more intelligent.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dracaena guianensis. |
For the plants (Dragon trees) of the same genus name, see Dracaena (plant)
This lizard article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ |
Rights holder/Author | Wikipedia |
Source | http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dracaena_(lizard)&oldid=648765980 |
Dracaena (pronounced /drəˈsiːnə/[2] or /drəˈkiːnə/, derived from the romanized form of the Ancient Greek δράκαινα - drakaina, "female dragon") is a genus of about 40 species of trees and succulent shrubs. In the APG III classification system, it is placed in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Nolinoideae (formerly the family Ruscaceae).[3] It has also formerly been separated (sometimes with Cordyline) into the family Dracaenaceae or placed in the Agavaceae (now Agavoideae). The majority of the species are native in Africa, with a few in southern Asia and one in tropical Central America. The segregate genus Pleomele is now generally included in Dracaena. The genus Sanseviera is closely related, and has recently been synonymized under Dracaena in the Kubitzki system.
Contents |
Description
Species of Dracaena have a secondary thickening meristem in their trunk. This monocotyledonous secondary thickening meristem is quite different from the thickening meristem found in dicotyledonous plants and is termed dracaenoid thickening by some authors. This character is shared with members of the Agavoideae and Xanthorrhoeoideae among other members of the Asparagales.
D. americana, D. arborea, D. cinnabari, D. draco, D. ombet, and D. tamaranae are commonly known as dragon trees and grow in arid semi-desert areas. They are tree-sized with stout trunks and stiff, broad-based leaves. The remaining species are known collectively as shrubby dracaenas. They are smaller and shrub-like, with slender stems and flexible strap-shaped leaves, and grow as understorey plants in rainforests.
Species
- Dracaena americana – Central America Dragon Tree
- Dracaena aletriformis (Haw.) Bos)
- Dracaena arborea – Tree Dracaena
- Dracaena aubryana Brongn. ex E.Morren (=D. thalioides)
- Dracaena bicolor Hook.
- Dracaena cincta
- Dracaena cinnabari Balf.f. – Socotra Dragon Tree
- Dracaena concinna Kunth
- Dracaena draco (L.) L. – Canary Islands Dragon Tree
- Dracaena elliptica
- Dracaena fragrans (L.) Ker Gawl. (=D. deremensis) – Striped Dracaena, Compact Dracaena, corn plant, Cornstalk Dracaena
- Dracaena goldieana W.Bull
- Dracaena hookeriana
- Dracaena mannii
- Dracaena marginata Lam. – Red-edged Dracaena or Madagascar Dragon Tree: see Dracaena reflexa var. angustifolia
- Dracaena marmorata
- Dracaena ombet – Gabal Elba Dragon Tree
- Dracaena phrynioides
- Dracaena reflexa Lam. – Pleomele Dracaena or "Song of India"
- Dracaena sanderiana Sander ex Mast. – Ribbon Dracaena, marketed as "Lucky Bamboo"
- Dracaena serrulata Yemen Dragon Tree
- Dracaena surculosa Lindl. – Spotted Dracaena or Gold Dust Dracaena
- Dracaena tamaranae – Gran Canaria Dragon Tree
- Dracaena umbraculifera Jacq.[4]
Formerly placed here
- Asparagus asparagoides (L.) Druce (as D. medeoloides L.f.)
- Cordyline australis (G.Forst.) Endl. (as D. australis G.Forst.)
- Cordyline fruticosa (L.) A.Chev. (as D. terminalis Lam.)
- Cordyline indivisa (G.Forst.) Steud. (as D. indivisa G.Forst.)
- Cordyline obtecta (Graham) Baker (as D. obtecta Graham)
- Cordyline stricta (Sims) Endl. (as D. stricta Sims)
- Dianella ensifolia (L.) DC. (as D. ensifolia L.)
- Liriope graminifolia (L.) Baker (as D. graminifolia L.)
- Lomandra filiformis (Thunb.) Britten (as D. filiformis Thunb.)[4][5]
Uses
Ornamental
Some shrubby species, such as D. deremensis, D. fragrans, D. godseffiana, D. marginata, and D. sanderiana, are popular as houseplants. Many of these are toxic to pets, though not humans, according to the ASPCA among others. Rooted stem cuttings of D. sanderiana are widely marketed in the U.S.A. as "Lucky Bamboo", although only superficially resembling true bamboos.
Medicinal
A bright red resin, dragon's blood, is produced from D. draco and, in ancient times, from D. cinnabari. It was used in the past as medicine.[6] Modern dragon's blood is however more likely to be from the unrelated Daemonorops rattan palms.
References
Notes
- ^ a b "Genus: Dracaena Vand. ex L.". Germplasm Resources Information Network. United States Department of Agriculture. 2010-01-19. http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/genus.pl?3962. Retrieved 2011-02-07.
- ^ Sunset Western Garden Book. 1995. pp. 606–607. ISBN 0376038519.
- ^ Chase, M.W.; Reveal, J.L. & Fay, M.F. (2009), "A subfamilial classification for the expanded asparagalean families Amaryllidaceae, Asparagaceae and Xanthorrhoeaceae", Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society 161 (2): 132–136, doi:10.1111/j.1095-8339.2009.00999.x
- ^ a b "GRIN Species Records of Dracaena". Germplasm Resources Information Network. United States Department of Agriculture. http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/splist.pl?3962. Retrieved 2011-02-07.
- ^ Dracaena names. Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database.
- ^ Yronwode, C. (2002). Hoodoo Herb & Root Magic. Forestville, CA: The Lucky Mojo Curio Co.. ISBN 0-9719612-0-4.
General references
- Waterhouse, J. T. (1987). "The Phylogenetic Significance of Dracaena-type growth". Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S.W. 109: 129–128.
License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ |
Rights holder/Author | Wikipedia |
Source | http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dracaena_(plant)&oldid=430310737 |