A Key to the Neotropical Genera of Lauraceae

Flávio Macedo Alves; Leandro Cézanne de Souza  Assis; Alexandre  Quinet; João Batista  Baitello†

doi:10.3417/2025938

Flávio Macedo Alves Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5634-8266
Leandro Cézanne de Souza Assis Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1274-3667
Alexandre Quinet Instituto de Pesquisas Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9749-9554
João Batista Baitello† Instituto Florestal, Herbário Dom Bento José Pickel (SPSF) https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4195-3409

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3417/2025938

Keywords: Avocado family, generic limits, identification key, Lauraceae, Laurales, Magnoliids, phylogenetic relationships, plant systematics, taxonomy

Abstract

Lauraceae are a diverse family of the Neotropical flora that have recently undergone extensive taxonomic changes in the delimitation of genera. Here we review 30 currently accepted Neotropical genera of Lauraceae based on the combination of vegetative and reproductive characters, with a focus on floral characters. We present an identification key, as well as diagnostic descriptions, number of species, distribution, and phylogenetic information for the accepted Neotropical genera.