Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 9, 2026

Coursetia

Coursetia is a genus of flowering plant in the pea family, Fabaceae. Members of the genus, commonly known as babybonnets, are shrubs and small trees native to the Southwestern United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, and South America as far south as Brazil and Peru. The genus is named for French botanist Georges Louis Marie Dumont de Courset (1746–1824).

Last revised
Jun 9, 2026
Read time
≈ 2 min
Length
375 w
Citations
5
Source
Coursetia
Coursetia glandulosa
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Embryophytes
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Spermatophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Subfamily: Faboideae
Tribe: Robinieae
Genus: Coursetia
DC.1
Species

See text.

Synonyms1
  • Benthamantha Alef.
  • Callistylon Pittier
  • Chiovendaea Speg.
  • Cracca Benth. (nom. cons.)
  • Humboldtiella Harms
  • Neocracca Kuntze

Coursetia is a genus of flowering plant in the pea family, Fabaceae. Members of the genus, commonly known as babybonnets,2 are shrubs and small trees native to the Southwestern United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, and South America as far south as Brazil and Peru. The genus is named for French botanist Georges Louis Marie Dumont de Courset (1746–1824).3

Species

As of April 2023, Plants of the World Online accepted the following species:4

  • Coursetia andina Lavin
  • Coursetia apantensis M.Sousa
  • Coursetia astragalina (Kunth) Lavin
  • Coursetia axillaris J.M.Coult. & Rose – Texas babybonnets
  • Coursetia barrancana Lavin
  • Coursetia brachyrhachis Harms
  • Coursetia caatingicola L.P.Queiroz
  • Coursetia cajamarcana Lavin
  • Coursetia caribaea (Jacq.) Lavin
  • Coursetia chiapensis Lavin & M.Sousa
  • Coursetia diversifolia (Liebm.) M.Sousa & Lavin
  • Coursetia dubia (Kunth) DC.
  • Coursetia elliptica M.Sousa & Rudd
  • Coursetia ferruginea (Kunth) Lavin
  • Coursetia fruticosa (Cav.) J.F.Macbr.
  • Coursetia glabella (A.Gray) Lavin – smooth babybonnets
  • Coursetia glandulosa A.Gray – rosary babybonnets
  • Coursetia gracilis Lavin
  • Coursetia grandiflora Benth. ex Oerst.
  • Coursetia greenmanii (Millsp.) R.Duno & Carnevali
  • Coursetia guatemalensis Rudd
  • Coursetia hassleri Chodat
  • Coursetia hidalgoana Lavin
  • Coursetia hintonii Rudd
  • Coursetia insomniifolia Lavin
  • Coursetia intermontana Lavin
  • Coursetia madrensis Micheli
  • Coursetia maraniona Lavin
  • Coursetia mollis B.L.Rob. & Greenm.
  • Coursetia oaxacensis M.Sousa & Rudd
  • Coursetia paniculata M.Sousa & Lavin
  • Coursetia paucifoliolata M.Sousa
  • Coursetia planipetiolata Micheli
  • Coursetia polyphylla Brandegee
  • Coursetia pumila (Rose) Lavin
  • Coursetia robinioides M.Sousa & Lavin
  • Coursetia rostrata Benth.
  • Coursetia tumbezensis J.F.Macbr.
  • Coursetia vicioides (Nees & Mart.) Benth.
References

References

  1. "Genus: Coursetia DC". Germplasm Resources Information Network. United States Department of Agriculture. 5 March 1999. Archived from the original on 11 October 2012. Retrieved 22 March 2011.
  2. "Coursetia". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 26 May 2010.
  3. Allen, Oscar Nelson; Allen, Ethel Kullmann (1981). The Leguminosae, a Source Book of Characteristics, Uses, and Nodulation. University of Wisconsin Press. pp. 187–188. ISBN 978-0-299-08400-4.
  4. "Coursetia DC". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
External links