Abyssinian-gooseberry

Names and Synonyms

Common Names

• Abyssinian-gooseberry
• African-gooseberry
• koshum

Scientific Names

Accepted name

Synonyms

• Hydnocarpus obtusus
• Flacourtia obtusata
• Dovyalis engleri
• Flacourtia obtusa
• Aberia abyssinica
• Rumea abyssinica

Sources: Wikidata, Catalogue of Life

Taxonomical Classification

This plant, Dovyalis abyssinica, belongs to the kingdom Plantae and the phylum Streptophyta. Within the class Equisetopsida and subclass Magnoliidae, it is classified under the order Malpighiales and the family Salicaceae. It is further identified by the genus Dovyalis.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Distribution

This plant exhibits a specific distribution pattern primarily concentrated within the Northeast Tropical Africa region. Its range extends across several key territories, including Ethiopia and Somalia. Furthermore, it can be found in the areas of Sudan and South Sudan. The species also inhabits the island of Socotra within the Northeast Tropical zone. Finally, its presence reaches into East Tropical Africa, specifically within Kenya.

Sources: The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP)

Botanical Identification

Life history

The life history of Dovyalis abyssinica is characterized by its status as a perennial organism, allowing it to persist through multiple growing seasons rather than completing its cycle in a single year. Throughout its existence, the plant maintains a consistent vegetative presence due to its evergreen nature, ensuring that its foliage remains functional and active without the seasonal shedding typical of deciduous species. This combination of a long-term life cycle and constant greenness enables the plant to maintain a stable ecological presence within its habitat.

Deciduousness :

evergreen

Lifecycle :

perennial

Morphology

The morphology of Dovyalis abyssinica is characterized by a robust, woody structure that allows it to reach a significant plant height, with a mean height of approximately 6 m. This species exhibits a complex growth form, manifesting as both a shrub and a tree, and functions as a self-supporting organism rather than an obligatory or facultative climber. As a terrestrial plant, it is neither aquatic nor an epiphyte, maintaining an independent existence without parasitic tendencies.

Aquatic :

terrestrial

Climber :

self-supporting

Epiphyte :

terrestrial

Growth form :

shrub

Growth form :

tree

Parasite :

independent

Plant height mean:

6 m

Woodiness :

woody

Physiology

The physiology of Dovyalis abyssinica is characterized by a standard C3 photosynthetic pathway, meaning it utilizes the Calvin cycle to fix carbon dioxide through the enzyme RuBisCO without the specialized carbon-concentrating mechanisms found in C4 or CAM plants. This metabolic strategy typically requires consistent moisture and moderate temperatures to maintain optimal gas exchange and photosynthetic efficiency. Furthermore, the species is not a nitrogen fixer, lacking the symbiotic relationship with diazotrophic bacteria, such as those found in Rhizobia, required to convert atmospheric nitrogen into bioavailable forms; consequently, it relies on the uptake of nitrates and ammonium present in the soil substrate to fulfill its nitrogen requirements for protein synthesis and metabolic function.

Nitrogen fixer :

no

Photosynthetic pathway :

C3

Reproduction

The reproduction of Dovyalis abyssinicica is characterized by specific reproductive strategies and seed morphological properties. In terms of its pollination and breeding system, the species exhibits a lack of self-fertilization, as the trait for self-fertilization is documented as absent, suggesting a reliance on cross-pollination mechanisms to ensure genetic diversity. The resulting progeny are dispersed via seeds that demonstrate high uniformity in mass; the seed mass is recorded at a consistent value of 0.02821 g, with the mean, maximum, and minimum values all being identical at 0.02821 g. This lack of variance in seed mass indicates a highly standardized reproductive output per seed produced by the plant.

Seed mass mean:

0.02821 g

Self fertilization :

absent

Sources: Global Inventory of Floras and Traits (GIFT)

Chemicals

Dovyalis abyssinica has 10 reported phytochemicals identified across 0 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported chemicals include 4-hydroxytremulacin, CH2Cl2, Dovyalicin A, Dovyalicin B, Dovyalicin C.

4-hydroxytremulacin

1. Journal of natural products

CH2Cl2

1. Zeitschrift fur Naturforschung. C, Journal of biosciences

Dovyalicin A

1. Journal of natural products

Dovyalicin B

1. Journal of natural products

Dovyalicin C

1. Journal of natural products

Dovyalicin E

1. Journal of natural products

Dovyalicin F

1. Journal of natural products

MeOH

1. Zeitschrift fur Naturforschung. C, Journal of biosciences

Tremulacin

1. Journal of natural products

methyl 1-hydroxy-6-oxocyclohex-2-enecarboxylate

1. Journal of natural products

Conditions

Dovyalis abyssinica has 1 reported investigations on conditions identified across 0 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported conditions include trypanosomiasis.

Trypanosomiasis

1. Zeitschrift fur Naturforschung. C, Journal of biosciences

Preparations

Dovyalis abyssinica has 2 reported preparations identified across 0 scientific publications and several other databases. The most consistently reported preparations include CH2Cl2 extract, MeOH extract.

Ch2cl2 extract

1. Zeitschrift fur Naturforschung. C, Journal of biosciences

Meoh extract

1. Zeitschrift fur Naturforschung. C, Journal of biosciences