22. Acalypha communis Müll.Arg. nom. cons.

Linnaea 34 (1): 23 (Müller Argoviensis 1865).

≡ Ricinocarpus communis (Müll.Arg.) Kuntze; = Acalypha hirsuta Mart. ex Colla nom. rej.; = A. communis var. tomentosa Müll.Arg.; = A. cuprea Herzog.

Habit

Subshrub or shrub. Native.

Habitat

Central Andes: Yungas; Amazonian-Orinocan Lowland: Amazon Irregular Plains and Piedmont; Eastern Highlands: Cerrados; Gran Chaco: Western Dry Chaco and Humid Chaco; Pampas: Northern Rolling Pampas, alt. 100‒1200(‒2000) m.

Distribution

Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay.

References

Cardiel et al. (2013a, 2022b).

Provisional conservation status

LC.

Remarks

Acalypha communis is a morphologically complex species that includes numerous infraspecific taxa; five subspecies are currently recognised (Cardiel et al. 2013). Some specimens of A. communis present mixed characters that make it difficult to assign them to the accepted subspecies. Probably these subspecies can hybridise in areas where they coexist, but further study is required.