Tristerix

Tristerix
File:Tristerix corymbosus 2.JPG
Tristerix corymbosus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Core eudicots
Order:	Santalales
Family:	Loranthaceae
Genus:	Tristerix Mart.
Species
T. aphyllus T. chodatianus T. corymbosus T. grandiflorus T. longebracteatus T. penduliflorus T. peruvianus T. peytonii T. pubescens T. secundus T. tetrandrus T. verticillatus

Tristerix is a genus of mistletoe in the family Loranthaceae, native to the Andes from Colombia to Chile. They are a woody perennial usually occurring as an aerial parasite, often pollinated by hummingbirds. Recents phylogenetic studies of the 11 known Tristerix species divides the genus into 2 subgenera; Metastachys and Tristerix with 9 and 2 species, respectively (though this was not confirmed by ITS analysis).

The species T. aphyllus is a parasite of cacti in Chile. It is only known to grow on two species of columnar cacti: Echinopsis chilensis and Eulychnia acida. T. aphyllus is sometimes called the "cactus mistletoe." It should not be confused with the mistletoe cactus, which is an epiphytic cactus, and not a parasite.

File:Tristerix45.JPG

flower detail

References

• Guillermo C Amico and Daniel L Nickrent (2009). "Population structure and phylogeography of the mistletoes Tristerix corymbosus and T. aphyllus (Loranthaceae) using chloroplast DNA sequence variation", American Journal of Botany 96:1571-1580. doi:10.3732/ajb.0800302
• Romina Vidal-Russell and Daniel L. Nickrent (2007). "The biogeographic history of Loranthaceae", DARWINIANA 45(suplemento) 34-54.