Paropsia perrieri (PROTA)

Plant Resources of Tropical Africa Introduction

List of species

General importance
Geographic coverage Africa
Geographic coverage World
Fibre
Conservation status

Paropsia perrieri Claverie

Protologue: Ann. Mus. Colon. Marseille 7: 59 (1909).

Family: Passifloraceae

Paropsia perrieri is endemic to the northern-most part of Madagascar.

Fibres from Paropsia perrieri are used in textile fabrics, although they are not very durable.

Shrub or small tree up to 15 m tall; bole up to 25 cm in diameter; branches ferruginous-tomentose, lateral ones always longer than terminal one, hairy when young. Leaves alternate, distichous, short-lived; petiole thin, 5–8 mm long; blade broadly oblong, (3.5–)5–10 cm × (2–)2.5–4(–6) cm, base rounded, apex tapering, margin entire or somewhat toothed, papery to thin-leathery, both surfaces shortly ferruginous-tomentose, lateral veins in 8–10 pairs. Inflorescence an axillary cyme 2–10 mm long, on specialized branches bearing leaves, long-pedunculate, (1–)2–4-flowered; bracts linear, 4–5 mm long; flowers bisexual, fragrant; pedicel 10–25 mm long; sepals 5, oblong, 10–12 mm × 4–5 mm, shortly connate at base, apex obtuse, reddish tomentose outside, white to greyish velvety inside; petals 5, narrowly oblong, 8–10 mm × 3.5–4.5 mm, thinner than sepals, white, velvety on both surfaces; corona laciniate, 2.5 mm long, in bundles in front of the petals; stamens 5, filaments 5–6 mm long, anthers c. 2.5 mm long; ovary on a 12 mm long reddish hairy gynophore, obovoid, 1-celled, styles c. 3, 1.5–2 mm long, free, with thick stigmas. Fruit a nearly globose 3-valved capsule 12–15 mm in diameter, tomentose. Seed compressed ovoid, 5–7 mm × 1–2 mm, with thin, entire, fleshy aril. Seedling with epigeal germination.

Paropsia perrieri flowers in October–November.

Paropsia comprises 12 species, of which 5 occur in mainland tropical Africa, 6 in Madagascar and 1 in South-East Asia.

Paropsia perrieri is rather rare in dry deciduous forest, at low altitudes.

Paropsia perrieri only occurs wild.

Paropsia perrieri occurs only in a small part of Madagascar. It is also rare and therefore at risk of genetic erosion.

It is unlikely that Paropsia perrieri will become an important source of fibre.

• Decary, R., 1946. Plantes et animaux utiles de Madagascar. Annales du Musée Colonial de Marseille, 54e année, 6e série, 4e volume, 1er et dernier fascicule. 234 pp.

• Perrier de la Bâthie, H., 1945. Passifloracées (Passifloraceae). Flore de Madagascar et des Comores (plantes vasculaires), famille 143. Imprimerie Officielle, Tananarive, Madagascar. 50 pp.

• Sleumer, H., 1970. Le genre Paropsia Noronha ex Thouars (Passifloraceae). Bulletin du Jardin Botanique National de Belgique 40(1): 49–75.

• Medina, J.C., 1959. Plantas fibrosas da flora mundial. Instituto Agronômico Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil. 913 pp.

• Missouri Botanical Garden, undated. VAST (VAScular Tropicos) nomenclatural database. [Internet] http://mobot.mobot.org/ W3T/Search/ vast.html. February 2010.

• L.P.A. Oyen, PROTA Network Office Europe, Wageningen University, P.O. Box 341, 6700 AH Wageningen, Netherlands

Oyen, L.P.A., 2010. Paropsia perrieri Claverie. [Internet] Record from PROTA4U. Brink, M. & Achigan-Dako, E.G. (Editors). PROTA (Plant Resources of Tropical Africa / Ressources végétales de l’Afrique tropicale), Wageningen, Netherlands. <http://www.prota4u.org/search.asp>.

Accessed 31 May 2025.

• See the Prota4U database.