Gerrardinaceae: a new family of African flowering plants unresolved among Brassicales, Huerteales, Malvales, and Sapindales

A new family of flowering plants, Gerrardinaceae M. H. Alford, is created for Gerrardina Oliver, an African genus of two species formerly allied to tribe Homalieae of Flacourtiaceae. Unlike Homalieae, now placed in Salicaceae s.l. (Malpighiales), Gerrardina has cunonioid leaf teeth, a cupular receptacular disk, introrse anther dehiscence, and apical placentation. Phylogenetic analyses of DNA sequence data from plastid rbcL and atpB indicate that Gerrardina is not closely allied with any family. It is unresolved among the “eurosids II” (“malvids”), a clade that includes Brassicales, Huerteales, Malvales, and Sapindales.