Hillia (plant)
| Hillia | |
|---|---|
| Hillia parasitica | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Gentianales |
| Family: | Rubiaceae |
| Subfamily: | Cinchonoideae |
| Genus: | Hillia Jacquin |
| Type species | |
| Hillia parasitica Jacquin | |
| Species | |
|
24 species, see text. | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Ravnia Oersted | |
Hillia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. It has 24 species. All are indigenous to tropical America.
Most of the species are slightly succulent epiphytes or small trees. A few are subshrubs or lianas. Hillia rivalis is a rheophyte. The tissues of all the species contain raphides. The capsules have a beak-like appendage.
Hillia triflora is cultivated as an ornamental plant.
Hillia was named by Nicolaus Jacquin in 1760. It was named for the English botanist John Hill (1716-1775). Jacquin named only one species, Hillia parasitica. It has been suggested that the specific epithet as well as the generic name might well be a reference to John Hill.
Some authors have placed five of the species in a separate genus, Ravnia. A cladistic analysis of morphological characters found Ravnia to be embedded within Hillia. This hypothesis has not been tested with molecular data.
The genera Hillia, Balmea, and Cosmibuena form a monophyletic group. Some authors have designated this group as the tribe Hillieae, but it might be embedded within another tribe, Hamelieae.