Abstract
Abstract Theobroma (Malvaceae, Byttnerioideae), the cacao genus, has a taxonomic history spanning over two centuries. Currently, it comprises 23 species of trees from lowland forests from the Tropical Americas. Herrania , a closely related genus described later, includes 17 additional species commonly referred to as “wild cacaos.” Phylogenetic relationships and morphological circumscriptions between Theobroma and Herrania have been the subject of debate. While Herrania has traditionally been treated as a separate genus based on evident morphological differences in leaf and petal features, it shares similarities with Theobroma in terms of habit, inflorescence, and fruit types. Recent phylogenetic evidence, incorporating a broader taxonomic sampling and a total-evidence analysis, suggested that Theobroma is paraphyletic, with Herrania nested within it. This finding supports the restoration of a classical circumscription of Theobroma wherein Herrania is considered a section of the former genus. Here, we provide a detailed account of the taxonomic history at infrageneric levels and propose one new subsection, two names at new ranks (to better allocate the diversity within T. sect. Herrania ), and nine new combinations encompassing this expanded circumscription of Theobroma . In our study, we delimit Theobroma with forty species divided into six sections: T. sect. Glossopetalum (14 spp.), T. sect. Herrania (17 spp.), T. sect. Oreanthes (5 spp.), T. sect. Rhytidocarpus (1 sp.), T. sect. Telmatocarpus (2 spp.), and T. sect. Theobroma (1 sp.). Furthermore, we recognize three subsections within T. sect. Herrania . Alongside these newly proposed changes, we present a section-level identification key and provide diagnostic characters for each taxon.
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Claims 6
Claim · model-written summary
Theobroma was delimited as forty species in six sections.
TheobromaOrganisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“we delimit Theobroma with forty species divided into six sections: T. sect. Glossopetalum (14 spp.), T. sect. Herrania (17 spp.), T. sect. Oreanthes (5 spp.), T. sect. Rhytidocarpus (1 sp.), T. sect. Telmatocarpus (2 spp.), and T. sect. Theobroma (1 sp.)”
Claim · model-written summary
The revision proposes one new subsection.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“propose one new subsection, two names at new ranks (to better allocate the diversity within T. sect. Herrania ), and nine new combinations”
t0“Theobroma”
Claim · model-written summary
The revision proposes two names at new ranks.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“propose one new subsection, two names at new ranks (to better allocate the diversity within T. sect. Herrania ), and nine new combinations”
t0“Theobroma”
Claim · model-written summary
The revision proposes nine new combinations.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“propose one new subsection, two names at new ranks (to better allocate the diversity within T. sect. Herrania ), and nine new combinations”
t0“Theobroma”
Claim · model-written summary
Three subsections are recognized within T. sect. Herrania.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“we recognize three subsections within T. sect. Herrania”
t0“Theobroma”
Claim · model-written summary
A section-level identification key and diagnostic characters are provided.
- Outcome
- section-level identification key and provide diagnostic characterse0
- Value
- section-level identification keye0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“we present a section-level identification key and provide diagnostic characters for each taxon”
t0“Theobroma”