Sciaphila

Sciaphila is a genus of mycoheterotrophic plants in the family Triuridaceae. These plants receive nutrition from fungi and neighboring trees and have less need for photosynthesis. It is widespread in tropical and subtropical regions, found in Africa, China, Japan, the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, Latin America (from southern Mexico to Brazil) and on various islands Pacific Islands. The most noteworthy feature of the genus is the number of the various flower parts (sepals, petals. stamens etc.) 99.9 percent of Monocots are trimerous (parts in threes or multiples of three), but Sciaphila spp. can have eight or even ten parts in a whorl.

==Species== Many species names have been proposed, including some for taxa now transferred to other genera. The following are accepted as member of Sciaphila: Sciaphila africana A.Chev. - Ghana, Ivory Coast, Congo-Brazzaville, Sciaphila albescens Benth. - Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, Panama, the Guianas Sciaphila aneitensis Hemsl. - Vanuatu, Futuna, Niue Sciaphila arcuata Aver. - Vietnam Sciaphila arfakiana Becc. - Taiwan, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, New Guinea, Micronesia, Fiji, Bismarck Archipelago, Solomon Islands Sciaphila consimilis Blume - Taiwan, Philippines Sciaphila corallophyton K.Schum. & Schltr. in K.M.Schumann & C.A.G.Lauterbach - Pohnpei, New Caledonia, New Guinea, Bismarck Archipelago Sciaphila corniculata Becc. - Maluku, New Guinea, New Caledonia, Solomon Islands Sciaphila corymbosa Benth. - Brazil, Colombia Sciaphila densiflora Schltr. - Borneo, Lesser Sunda Islands, Philippines, New Guinea, New Caledonia, Maluku Sciaphila janthina (Champ.) Thwaites - Sri Lanka, southern India Sciaphila japonica Makino - Japan Sciaphila jianfenglingensis Han Xu, Y.D.Li & H.Q.Chen - Hainan Sciaphila khasiana Benth. & Hook.f. - Assam Sciaphila lambirensis Suetsugu - Sarawak Sciaphila ledermannii Engl. - Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, São Tomé and Príncipe Sciaphila micranthera Giesen in H.G.A.Engler - Borneo Sciaphila multiflora Giesen in H.G.A.Engler - Ryukyu Islands, Caroline Islands, Mindanao, New Guinea Sciaphila nana Blume - Jeju-do Island, Ryukyu Islands, Volcano Islands, Japan, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Java, Sumatra Sciaphila oligantha Maas - State of Amazonas in Brazil Sciaphila papillosa Becc - New Guinea Sciaphila picta Miers - Yucatán Peninsula, Central America, Colombia, Venezuela Sciaphila polygyna Maas - Colombia, French Guiana Sciaphila purpurea Benth. - Brazil, Venezuela, Guyana, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru Sciaphila quadribullifera J.J.Sm. - New Guinea Sciaphila ramosa Fukuy. & T.Suzuki - Hong Kong, Taiwan, Bonin Islands Sciaphila rubra Maas - Brazil, Venezuela Sciaphila schwackeana Johow - Brazil Sciaphila secundiflora Thwaites ex Benth. - China, Japan, Bonin Islands, Philippines, Malaysia, Borneo, Sumatra, New Guinea, Bismarck Archipelago, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka Sciaphila stellata Aver. - Guangxi, Vietnam Sciaphila sugimotoi Suetsugu & T.Nishioka - Japan Sciaphila tenella Blume - Sri Lanka, Kyushu, southern China, Thailand, Borneo, Sumatra, Malaysia, Java, Sulawesi, Maluku, New Guinea, Bismarck Archipelago, Solomon Islands Sciaphila thaidanica K.Larsen - Thailand Sciaphila wariana (Schltr.) Meerend - Papua New Guinea Sciaphila winkleri Schltr. - Borneo, New Guinea Sciaphila yakushimensis Suetsugu - Yakushima