Rojasimalva facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Rojasimalva |
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Scientific classification  |
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Rosids |
| Order: | Malvales |
| Family: | Malvaceae |
| Genus: | Rojasimalva Fryxell |
Rojasimalva is a special kind of flowering plant. It belongs to the Mallow family, which also includes plants like cotton and hibiscus. What makes Rojasimalva unique is that it's a "monotypic genus." This means it's the only known species in its entire plant group! Its scientific name is Rojasimalva tetrahedralis. This interesting plant grows naturally only in Venezuela, a country in South America.
What's in a Name?
Have you ever wondered how plants get their names? Rojasimalva was named to honor a very important person!
Honoring a Botanist
The first part of the name, Rojasimalva, is a tribute to Carmen Emilia Benítez de Rojas. She was born in 1937 and is a famous botanist from Venezuela. A botanist is a scientist who studies plants. Carmen Emilia Benítez de Rojas was also a university professor. She was especially good at studying a plant family called Solanaceae, which includes tomatoes and potatoes.
A Shape in the Name
The second part of the plant's name, tetrahedralis, describes its shape. It comes from two Latin words: tetra, meaning four, and hedra, meaning face or faces. This is like a Tetrahedron, which is a 3D geometric shape with four flat sides. So, the plant might have parts that look like they have four faces!
When it Was Discovered
Both the plant group (genus) and this specific plant (species) were first officially described in 1984. This happened in a science journal called Ernstia, in Volume 28, on page 11.
See also
In Spanish: Rojasimalva para niños
