The genus Canavalia in the large legume family (Fabaceae), comprises approximately 70-75 species of tropical origin. These vines have usually bright pea-flowers which are pollinated by insects such as solitary bees and carpenter bees (e.g. Xylocopa confusa).
They are commonly known as jack-beans. The endemic Canavalia species in the Hawaiian Islands have been named ʻāwikiwiki by the Native Hawaiians. That name means essentially "the very quick one"[1] and comes from the Hawaiian word for "fast" that has also been appropriated into the name "Wikipedia".
Uses and ecology
Several species are valued legume crops, including Common Jack-bean (C. ensiformis), Sword Bean (C. gladiata) and Canavalia cathartica. At least the first makes a beneficial weed- and pathogen-suppressing living mulch[2]. The Common Jack-bean is also known as the plant from which Concanavalin A was described. This lectin is of major commercial importance as a reagent in glycoprotein biochemistry and immunology.
Bay Bean (Canavalia rosea) supposedly can act as a mild psychoactive when smoked; it is used in tobacco substitutes.
Some animals have adaptation to the defensive chemicals of jack-beans. Caterpillars for example of the Two-barred Flasher (Astraptes fulgerator) are sometimes found on Canavalia. The plant pathogenic ascomycete fungus Mycosphaerella canavaliae was described from a jack-bean. Introduced herbivores have wreaked havoc on Canavalia on the Hawaiian Islands and made some nearly extinct; it may be that these lost their chemical defenses as no herbivorous mammals existed in their range until introduced by humans.
Species[3]
See also
Footnotes
- ^ Pukui et al. (1992)
- ^ Caamal-Maldonado et al. (2001)
- ^ ILDIS (2005)
References
- Caamal-Maldonado, Jesús Arturo; Jiménez-Osornioa, Juan José ; Torres-Barragán, Andrea & Anaya, Ana Luisa (2001): The Use of Allelopathic Legume Cover and Mulch Species for Weed Control in Cropping Systems. Agronomy Journal 93(1): 27-36. PDF fulltext
- International Legume Database & Information Service (ILDIS) (2005): Genus Canavalia. Version 10.01, November 2005. Retrieved 2007-DEC-17.
- Pukui, Mary Kawena; Elbert, Samuel Hoyt; Mookini, Esther T. & Nishizawa, Yu Mapuana (1992): New Pocket Hawaiian Dictionary with a Concise Grammars and Given Names in Hawaiian. University of Hawaii PRess, Honolulu. ISBN 0-8248-1392-8
External links
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