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''Capparis spinosa'', the caper bush, also called Flinders rose, is a perennial plant that bears rounded, fleshy leaves and large white to pinkish-white flowers.〔(Altervista Flora Italiana, Cappero, Kapernstrauch, ''Capparis spinosa'' L. ) includes photos and European distribution map〕〔(Flora of China, 山柑 shan gan, ''Capparis spinosa'' Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 1: 503. 1753. )〕〔(Atlas of Living Australia )〕 The plant is best known for the edible flower buds (capers), often used as a seasoning, and the fruit (caper berries), both of which are usually consumed pickled. Other species of ''Capparis'' are also picked along with ''C. spinosa'' for their buds or fruits. Other parts of ''Capparis'' plants are used in the manufacture of medicines and cosmetics. ''Capparis spinosa'' is found in the wild in Mediterranean, East Africa, Madagascar, south-western and Central Asia, Himalayas, the Pacific Islands, Indomalaya, Australia.〔Fici, S. 2001 “Intraspecific variation and evolutionary trends in ''Capparis spinosa'' L (Capparaceae)” Plant Syst. Evol. 228〕 It is present in almost all the circum-Mediterranean countries, and is included in the flora of most of them, but whether it is indigenous to this region is uncertain. Although the flora of the Mediterranean region has considerable endemism, the caper bush could have originated in the tropics, and later been naturalized to the Mediterranean basin. The taxonomic status of the species is controversial and unsettled. Species within the genus ''Capparis'' are highly variable, and interspecific hybrids have been common throughout the evolutionary history of the genus. As a result, some authors have considered ''C. spinosa'' to be composed of multiple distinct species,〔Zohary, M., 1960. The species of ''Capparis'' in the Mediterranean and the Near Eastern Countries. " Bul. Res. Coun. Israel, 8: 49–64〕 others that the taxon is a single species with multiple varieties or subspecies,〔Jacobs, M. 1965 ''The genus ''Capparis'' (Capparaceae) from the Indus to the Pacific. Blumea, 12, 385-541.〕〔Heywood VH. 1993 "Flowering plants of the world. " Oxford University Press, New York〕 or that the taxon ''C. spinosa'' is a hybrid between ''C. orientalis'' and ''C. sicula''.〔D. Rivera, C. Inocencio, C. Obón, E. Carreño, A. Reales, F. Alcaraz. 2002 "Archaeobotany of capers (''Capparis'') (Capparaceae)" Vegetation History and Archaeobotany, 11:4.〕 == Plant == The shrubby plant is many-branched, with alternate leaves, thick and shiny, round to ovate. The flowers are complete, sweetly fragrant, and showy, with four sepals and four white to pinkish-white petals, and many long violet-colored stamens, and a single stigma usually rising well above the stamens. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Caper」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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