Phyllanthus rotundifolius, epetakou, פילנתוס עגול-עלים

 

Phyllanthus rotundifolius Klein ex Willd.
Family: Phyllanthaceae

Synonyms: Diasperus rotundifolius (Klein ex Willd.) Kuntze, Phyllanthus aspericaulis Pax, Phyllanthus rotundifolius var. striolatus Müll.Arg., Phyllanthus scabrifolius Hook.f.

• Arabic: خشب صغير , الطيب
• Hebrew: פילנתוס עגול-עלים
• Kenya: epetakou

Description: Woody herbs; stems prostrate or slightly ascending, 5-15 cm long; branches hispid, leaf like. Foliage-leaves alternate; orbicular, 0.8-1cm across, glaucous beneath, asperulous on veins, thick, coriaceous; stipules 1mm, lanceolate. Male and female flowers occurring together in same axils or in different axils. Male flowers 3-4mm across. Perianth lobes 6, greenish with narrow scarious margin, obtuse. Stamens 3, connate into a tube; anthers orbicular. Female flowers green, 3mm across, perianth accrescent, fruiting pedicel thickened; disc annular, or entire. Capsule globose, and the seeds darker brown in colour.

Habitat & location: Rare. Found in rock crevices in forest under growth.

Published articles of  Phyllanthus rotundifolius
1. Rediscovery of Phyllanthus rotundifolius Klein ex Willd., Euphorbiaceae, after 101 years (1899-2000) in Kanchipuram district, Tamil Nadu, South India.
By: Augustine, K. T.
Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society  Volume: 99   Issue: 3   Pages: 562-564   Published: December 2002

2. Phyllanthus rotundifolius Klein. ex Willd. (Euphorbiaceae): A new record for Kerala
By: Kumar, E. S. Santhosh; Thulasidas, G.; Gopal, Seema G.
Journal of Economic and Taxonomic Botany  Volume: 26   Issue: 2   Pages: 486-488   Published: August 20, 2002

3. EMBRYOLOGY OF PHYLLANTHUS-ROTUNDIFOLIUS
By: RAO P N; RAO D S
Indian Science Congress Association Proceedings  Volume: 62   Pages: 75   Published: 1975