Phaleria

This article covers the genus of plants. For the genus of beetles, see Phaleria (beetle).

Phaleria is flowering plant genus of about 25^[3] species in the family Thymelaeaceae,^[1] which range from Sri Lanka to Malesia, Papuasia, northern and eastern Australia, and the tropical Pacific Islands.^[2]

Phaleria
Phaleria capitata
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Malvales
Family:	Thymelaeaceae
Subfamily:	Thymelaeoideae
Genus:	Phaleria Jack (1822)[1]
Synonyms[2]
Drimyspermum Reinw. (1825) Leucosmia Benth. (1843) Oreodendron C.T.White (1933) Plutonia Noronha (1790), nom. nud. Pseudais Decne. (1843)

Uses

Some species, like the mahkota dewa are known to produce agarwood.^[4] Many others have long histories of use in traditional medicine like delal a kar (which translates to "the mother of medicines") which is used as a panacea by Palauans.^[5]

Species

25 species are accepted.^[2]

• Phaleria acuminata (A. Gray) Gilg — Fiji, American Samoa, Tonga, Western Samoa
• Phaleria angustifolia A. C. Sm. — Fiji
• Phaleria biflora (C.T.White) Herber – Qld, Australia endemic
• Phaleria capitata Jack – salagong-gubat (Sri Lanka, Palau, Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo, Java, Philippines, Sulawesi, Moluccas, New Guinea)
• Phaleria chermsideana (F.M.Bailey) C.T.White – Qld, NSW, Australia
• Phaleria clerodendron (F.Muell.) Benth. – scented daphne (Qld, Australia)
• Phaleria coccinea (Gaudich.) F.Muell. – New Guinea, New Britain, Moluccas, Philippines
• Phaleria disperma (G.Forst) Baill. – Fiji, Niue, Samoa, Tonga, Wallis and Futuna
• Phaleria elegans L.M.Perry – New Guinea endemic
• Phaleria glabra (Turrill) Domke — Fiji, Tonga
• Phaleria ixoroides Fosberg — Fiji
• Phaleria lanceolata (A. Gray) Gilg — Fiji
• Phaleria longituba P. F. Stevens — New Guinea
• Phaleria macrocarpa (Scheff.) Boerl. (Syn.: P. papuana) – mahkota dewa (New Guinea, NT, Australia)
• Phaleria montana (Seem.) Gilg — Fiji
• Phaleria nisidae Kanehira — delal a kar (Palau, New Britain, New Guinea)
• Phaleria octandra (L.) Baill. – dwarf phaleria (New Guinea, Moluccas, Lesser Sunda Islands (Timor, Flores, Lombok, Bali, etc.), Java, NT, Qld, Australia)
• Phaleria okapensis P. F. Stevens — New Guinea (Papua)
• Phaleria pentecostalis Leandri — Vanuatu
• Phaleria perrottetiana (Decne.) Fern.-Vill. – New Guinea, Moluccas, Borneo, Philippines
• Phaleria pilistyla P. F. Stevens — New Guinea (Papua)
• Phaleria pubiflora (A. Gray) Gilg — Fiji
• Phaleria pulchra Gillespie — Fiji
• Phaleria sogerensis S.Moore – New Guinea
• Phaleria stevensiana Z. S. Rogers — Sulawesi

Taxonomy and phylogeny

Phylogenetic analysis shows that Phaleria's closest related genus is Dais, both of which are members of the Thymelaeoideae subfamily of the Thymelaeaceae family which contains 941 species in 48 different genera according to the Catalogue of Life.^[3] The next closest related genera is a clade containing Gnidia, Stephanodaphne, Dirca, Ovidia, Peddiea, Pimelea, Struthiola, Lachnaea, Passerina, and Passerina.