Dipteronia

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Dipteronia
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Sapindales
Family: Sapindaceae (Aceraceae)
Genus: Dipteronia
Oliv.
Species
  • Dipteronia sinensis
  • Dipteronia dyeriana

Dipteronia is a genus of two species in the soapberry family Sapindaceae, related to the maples and like them in the part of Sapindaceae often separated as Aceraceae. They are deciduous flowering shrubs or small trees, reaching 10-15 m tall.

The leaf arrangement is opposite and pinnate. The inflorescences are paniculate, terminal or axillary. The flowers have five sepals and petals; staminate flowers have eight stamens, and bisexual flowers have a two-celled ovary. The fruit is a rounded samara containing two compressed nutlets, flat, encircled by a broad wing which turns from light green to red with ripening.

There are only two species, Dipteronia sinensis and Dipteronia dyeriana; both are endemic to mainland China. Dipteronia dyeriana is listed by the IUCN as being a "Red List" threatened species.

The name Dipteronia stems from the Greek "di-" (two, both) & "pteron" (wings), from the winged fruits with wings on both sides of the seed.

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