Adansonia
Adansonia is a genus made up of eight species of medium to large deciduous trees known as baobabs (/ˈbeɪoʊˌbæb/). Previously classified within the family Bombacaceae, they are now placed in the Malvaceae. They are native to Madagascar, mainland Africa[2] and Australia.[3] Trees have also been introduced to other regions such as Asia.[2][4][5] The generic name honours Michel Adanson, the French naturalist and explorer who described Adansonia digitata.[6] The baobab is also known as the "upside down tree", a name that originates from several myths.[7] They are among the most long-lived of vascular plants[8] and have large flowers that are reproductive for a maximum of 15 hours.[9] The flowers open around dusk; opening so quickly that movement can be detected by the naked eye and are faded by the next morning.[9] The fruits are large, oval to round and berry-like and hold kidney-shaped seeds in a dry, pulpy matrix.
In the early 21st century, baobabs in southern Africa began to die off rapidly from a cause yet to be determined. Scientists believe it is unlikely that disease or pests were able to kill many trees so rapidly, and some speculated that the die-off was a result of dehydration.[10][11]
Baobabs are long-lived deciduous, small to large trees with broad trunks and compact crowns. Young trees usually have slender, tapering trunks, often with a swollen base. The trunk is made of fibrous wood arranged in concentric rings, although rings are not always formed annually and so cannot be used to determine the age of individual trees.[12] Tree diameter fluctuates with rainfall so it is thought that water may be stored in the trunk.[9] Baobab trees have two types of shoots—long, green vegetative ones, and stout, woody reproductive ones. Adansonia gregorii is generally the smallest of the baobabs, rarely getting to over 10 m (33 ft) tall and often with multiple trunks.[9] Both A. rubrostipa and A. madagascariensis are small to large trees, from 5 to 20 m (16 to 66 ft) tall.[9] The other baobabs grow from 25 to 30 m (80 to 100 ft) tall, with 2 to 3 m (7 to 10 ft) diameter trunks. A. digitata however often have massive single or multiple trunks of up to 10 m (33 ft) diameter.[9]
Leaves are palmately compound in mature trees, but seedlings and regenerating shoots may have simple leaves. The transition to compound leaves comes with age and may be gradual. Leaflets may have toothed or smooth edges and may be hairless or have simple to clumped hairs. Baobabs have stipules at the base of the leaves, but the stipules are soon shed in most species.[9]
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