Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 30, 2026

Nesocodon

Nesocodon is a monotypic genus of flowering plants within the family Campanulaceae. The sole species is Nesocodon mauritianus, formerly known as Wahlenbergia mauritiana, which is endemic to the island of Mauritius.

Last revised
Jul 30, 2026
Read time
≈ 2 min
Length
415 w
Citations
22
Source
Wikipedia ↗
Nesocodon
Nesocodon mauritianus at the Conservatoire botanique national de Brest, France in 2015 july
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Embryophytes
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Spermatophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Asterales
Family: Campanulaceae
Subfamily: Campanuloideae
Genus: Nesocodon
Thulin1
Species:
N. mauritianus
Binomial name
Nesocodon mauritianus
(I.B.K.Richardson) Thulin1
Map
     It is endemic to Mauritius2
Synonyms2
  • Wahlenbergia mauritiana I.Richardson

Nesocodon is a monotypic genus of flowering plants within the family Campanulaceae. The sole species is Nesocodon mauritianus, formerly known as Wahlenbergia mauritiana, which is endemic to the island of Mauritius.

Description

Vegetative characteristics

Nesocodon mauritianus is a 30–40 cm big3 dwarf shrub1 with simple, woody,3 straggly,4 glabrous stems bearing deep furrows from leaf scars.3 The spirally arranged,3 glossy,4 lanceolate leaves with a serrate margin and an acute apex are 6 cm long, and 0.6 cm wide.3

Generative characteristics

The lateral, 1-flowered inflorescence1 is produced in the leaf axils of the upper leaves.3

Taxonomy

It was first described as Wahlenbergia mauritiana I.Richardson by I.Richardson in 1979.35 It was placed into a new monotypic genus Nesocodon Thulin as Nesocodon mauritianus (I.Richardson) Thulin by Mats Thulin in 1980.16 It is closely related to Heterochaenia from the Mascarene Islands, but has single flowers rather than panicles of several.7

Ecology

It was the first plant ever discovered to produce red-colored nectar. It was originally thought to have been pollinated by birds, however, recent investigations have demonstrated that day geckos (Phelsuma ornata) are the preferred pollinator of these flowers whereas birds function as nectar thieves.8 The introduced red-whiskered bulbul (Pycnonotus jocosus) robs it of its nectar.9

Conservation

It is a threatened species.4

References

References

  1. Thulin, M. (1980). Nesocodon, a New Genus in Campanulaceae. Kew Bulletin, 34(4), 813–814. https://doi.org/10.2307/4119073
  2. Nesocodon mauritianus (I.Richardson) Thulin. (n.d.). Plants of the World Online. Retrieved June 1, 2026, from https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:144220-1
  3. Richardson, I. B. K. (1979). A Distinctive New Species of Wahlenbergia (Campanulaceae) from Mauritius. Kew Bulletin, 33(4), 547–550. https://doi.org/10.2307/4109796
  4. Coleman, M. (2017, July 6). Nesocodon mauritianus. Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. Retrieved July 26, 2025, from https://stories.rbge.org.uk/archives/25796
  5. Wahlenbergia mauritiana I.Richardson. (n.d.). International Plant Names Index. Retrieved July 26, 2025, from https://www.ipni.org/n/145835-1
  6. Nesocodon Thulin. (n.d.). Plants of the World Online. Retrieved July 26, 2025, from https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:5769-1
  7. Wyse Jackson, P. S. (1990). "Nesocodon mauritianus: Campanulaceae". Curtis's Botanical Magazine. 7 (33). Blackwell Publishing: 113–117. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8748.1990.tb00153.x.
  8. Mauritian coloured nectar no longer a mystery: a visual signal for lizard pollinators. Dennis M Hansen, Karin Beer, Christine B Müller Published 22 June 2006.DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2006.0458
  9. Olesen, J. M., et al. (1998). Mauritian red nectar remains a mystery. Nature 393, 529.