Clades:
Violaceae.
Genus: ± 6 species.
Region: South America.
Habitat: tropical.
BotanyLianas or reclining shrubs.
Leaves: oblong-lanceolate to ovate.
Inflorescence: axillary racemoids or fascicles.
Flowers: unisexual or bisexual; white to orange corollas: strongly zygomorphic; long bottom petal weakly differentiated with a well exserted, projecting spur; stamens 5, filaments strongly connate, fused, with the two lowest anthers calcarate, spurred, possessing a small dorsal connective appendage that is entire and ovate; style is rostellate.
Fruit: very thin walled; membranaceous; inflated; bladder-like; capsule; many seeds per carpel; usually prematurely exposing the seeds to maturation.
Seeds: orbicular; strongly flattened and encircled; low interrupted ridge, or broad wing.
TaxonomyAnchietea was first described by Saint-Hilaire in 1824. Anchietea salutaris is considered the type species. Bentham and Hooker placed Anchietea within subfamily
Violoideae, tribe
Violeae, subtribe Violinae. Anchietea is lianescent, like 4 other species, distributed in the past among separate subtribes, Calyptrion and Hybanthopsis and Agatea in subtribe Hybanthinae. Molecular phylogenetic studies have now grouped these four genera together into a single lianescent clade.