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''Smilax'' is a genus of about 300–350 species, found in temperate zones, tropics and subtropics worldwide.〔(Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families )〕 In China for example about 80 are found (39 of which are endemic),〔(Flora of China Vol. 24 Page 96, 菝葜属 ba qia shu, ''Smilax'' Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 2: 1028. 1753. )〕 while there are 20 in North America north of Mexico.〔(Flora of North America Vol. 26 Page 468, Catbrier, greenbrier, sarsaparilla, ''Smilax'' Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 2: 1028. 1753; Gen. Pl. ed. 5, 455. 1754. )〕〔Raven & Zhengyi (2000), FNAEC (2002)〕 They are climbing flowering plants, many of which are woody and/or thorny, in the monocotyledon family Smilacaceae, native throughout the tropical and warm temperate regions of the world. Common names include catbriers, greenbriers, prickly-ivys and smilaxes. "Sarsaparilla" (also zarzaparrilla, sarsparilla) is a name used specifically for the Jamaican ''S. regelii'' as well as a catch-all term in particular for American species. Occasionally, the non-woody species such as the smooth herbaceous greenbrier (''S. herbacea'') are separated as genus ''Nemexia''; they are commonly known by the rather ambiguous name "carrion flowers". Greenbriers get their scientific name from the Greek myth of Crocus and the nymph Smilax.〔Mifsud (2002)〕 Though this myth has numerous forms, it always centers around the unfulfilled and tragic love of a mortal man who is turned into a flower, and a woodland nymph who is transformed into a brambly vine. == Description and ecology == On their own, ''Smilax'' plants will grow as shrubs, forming dense impenetrable thickets. They will also grow over trees and other plants up to 10 m high, their hooked thorns allowing them to hang onto and scramble over branches. The genus includes both deciduous and evergreen species. The leaves are heart-shaped and vary from 4–30 cm long in different species. Greenbrier is dioecious. However, only about one in three colonies have plants of both sexes. Plants flower in May and June with white/green clustered flowers. If pollination occurs, the plant will produce a bright red to blue-black spherical berry fruit about 5–10 mm in diameter that matures in the fall. The berry is rubbery in texture and has a large, spherical seed in the center. The fruit stays intact through winter, when birds and other animals eat them to survive. The seeds are passed unharmed in the animal's droppings. Since many ''Smilax'' colonies are single clones that have spread by rhizomes, both sexes may not be present at a site, in which case no fruit is formed. ''Smilax'' is a very damage-tolerant plant capable of growing back from its rhizomes after being cut down or burned down by fire. This, coupled with the fact that birds and other small animals spread the seeds over large areas, makes the plants very hard to get rid of. It grows best in moist woodlands with a soil pH between 5 and 6. The seeds have the greatest chance of germinating after being exposed to a freeze. Besides their berries providing an important food for birds and other animals during the winter, greenbrier plants also provide shelter for many other animals. The thorny thickets can effectively protect small animals from larger predators who cannot enter the prickly tangle. Deer and other herbivorous mammals will eat the foliage, as will some invertebrates such as Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths), which also often drink nectar from the flowers. Among the Lepidoptera utilizing ''Smilax'' are Hesperiidae like the water snow flat (''Tagiades litigiosa''), Pieridae like the small grass yellow (''Eurema smilax''), or moths like the peculiar and sometimes flightless genus ''Thyrocopa''. But particularly fond of greenbriers are certain Nymphalidae caterpillars, for example those of: * ''Faunis'' – duffer butterflies * ''Kaniska canace'' – Blue admiral (on China smilax, ''Smilax china'') * ''Phalanta phalantha'' – Common leopard (on ''S. tetragona'') 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「smilax」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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