View source for Prosopis

{{For|the plant species considered to be an [[Invasive species|invasive weed]] in Africa, Asia, and Australia|Neltuma juliflora}}{{Short description|Genus of legumes}}
{{Automatic taxobox
|image = Khejri.jpg
|image_caption = ''[[Prosopis cineraria]]'' tree known as Khejri in Rajasthani and Hindi
|display_parents = 2
|taxon = Prosopis
|authority = [[Carl Linnaeus|L.]]<ref name="GRIN">{{cite web |url=http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/genus.pl?9871 |title=''Prosopis'' L. |work=Germplasm Resources Information Network |publisher=United States Department of Agriculture |date=1999-03-05 |access-date=2009-12-31}}</ref>
|type_species = ''[[Prosopis cineraria|Prosopis spicigera]]''
|type_species_authority = L.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tropicos.org/NameDetails.aspx?nameid=40016475 |title=''Prosopis'' L. |work=TROPICOS |publisher=Missouri Botanical Garden |access-date=2009-12-31}}</ref>
|subdivision_ranks = Species
|subdivision = See text
|synonyms =
* ''Dasiogyna'' {{small|Raf. (1832)}}
* ''Lagonychium'' <small>M.Bieb. (1819)</small>
* ''Pleuromenes'' {{small|Raf. (1838)}}
|synonyms_ref = <ref name = powo>[https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:23337-1 ''Prosopis'' L.] ''[[Plants of the World Online]]''. Retrieved 9 August 2023.</ref>
}}
[[File:Prosopis articulata MHNT.BOT.2015.34.130.jpg|thumb|''Prosopis articulata'' ([[MHNT]])]]
'''''Prosopis''''' is a [[genus]] of [[flowering plant]]s in the family [[Fabaceae]]. The current circumscription of the genus contains three species found in northern Africa, the Middle East, Central and South Asia.<ref>{{cite taxon|POWO|id=23337-1 |title=''Prosopis'' L. |access-date=11 February 2025}}</ref> Previously it also contained around 40 species of [[Thorns, spines, and prickles|spiny]] [[tree]]s and [[shrub]]s found in [[Subtropics|subtropical]] and [[Tropics|tropical]] regions of the Americas and Africa, now mostly placed in genera ''[[Strombocarpa]]'' and ''[[Neltuma]]''. They often thrive in [[arid]] [[soil]] and are resistant to [[drought]], on occasion developing extremely deep [[root]] systems. Their [[wood]] is usually hard, dense and durable. Their [[fruit]]s are [[legume|pod]]s and may contain large amounts of [[sugar]]. The generic name means "[[burdock]]" in [[late Latin]] and originated in the Greek language.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kaN-hLL-3qEC |title=CRC World Dictionary of Plant Names |volume=4 M-Q |first=Umberto |last=Quattrocchi |publisher=CRC Press |year=2000 |isbn=978-0-8493-2677-6 |page=2171}}</ref>

==Species==

The current circumscription  of the genus contains three species, which are found in South Asia, the Middle East and northern Africa.<ref>{{cite taxon|POWO|id=23337-1 |title=''Prosopis'' L. |access-date=11 February 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite WFO|id=wfo-4000031235 |title=''Prosopis'' L. |access-date=11 February 2025}}</ref>

* ''[[Prosopis cineraria]]'' <small>([[Carl Linnaeus|L.]]) [[George Claridge Druce|Druce]]<!--1914--></small> – Persian mesquite, ghaf, khejri (Arabian Peninsula, Iran and South Asia)<ref>{{cite taxon|POWO|id=515801-1 |title=''Prosopis cineraria'' (L.) Druce |access-date=11 February 2025}}</ref><!--&ndash; jand; ''ghaf'' ([[Arabic (language)|Arabic]]); ''sami'' or ''sumri'' ([[Gujarati language|Gujarati]]); ''khejri'', ''sangri'' ([[Rajasthani language|Rajasthani]]); ''kandi'' ([[Sindhi language|Sindhi]])-->
* ''[[Prosopis farcta]]'' <small>(Banks & [[Daniel Solander|Sol.]]) J.F.Macbr.<!--1919--></small> – Syrian mesquite (northern Africa, Middle East, Central and South Asia)<ref>{{cite taxon|POWO|id=515819-1 |title=''Prosopis farcta'' (Banks & Sol.) J.F.Macbr.|access-date=11 February 2025}}</ref>
* ''[[Prosopis koelziana]]'' <small>Burkart</small> ([[Arabian Peninsula]], [[Iraq]] and [[Iran]])<ref>{{cite taxon|POWO|id=515839-1 |title=''Prosopis koelziana'' Burkart |access-date=11 February 2025}}</ref>

Traditionally the genus included many more species with a cosmopolitan distribution. A taxonomic monograph in 1976 by [[Arturo Erhardo Burkart]] recognised 44 species and subdivided the genus into five sections: section ''Anonychium'' in Africa, section ''Prosopis'' in Asia, and sections ''Algarobia'', ''Monilicarpa'' and ''Strombocarpa'' in the New World.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Burkart |first=Arturo Erhardo |year=1976 |title=A Monograph of the Genus ''Prosopis'' (Leguminosae Subfam. Mimosoideae) |journal=Journal of the Arnold Arboretum |volume=57 |issue=3 |pages=219–249 |doi=10.5962/p.185864 |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/part/185864 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref name=Hughes/>  Twelve additional species in  section ''Algarobia'' have since been recognised. A genomic analysis published in 2022 concluded that ''Prospopsis'' was polyphyletic and that species traditionally grouped under the genus ''Prosopis'' belonged to four genera that broadly aligned with the Burkart's sections: ''[[Anonychium]]'', ''[[Neltuma]]'' (for sections ''Algarobia'' and ''Monilicarpa''), ''Prosopis'', and ''[[Strombocarpa]]''.<ref name=Hughes>{{cite journal |author1=Hughes, Colin E. |author2=Ringelberg, Jens |author3=Lewis, G. P. |author4=Catalano, Santiago |url=https://phytokeys.pensoft.net/article/75379/ |title=Disintegration of the genus Prosopis L. (Leguminosae, Caesalpinioideae, mimosoid clade) |issue=205 |journal=PhytoKeys |date=August 2022 |pages=147–189 |publisher=Pensoft Publishers |doi=10.3897/phytokeys.205.75379|pmid=36762004 |pmc=9849005 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2022PhytK.205..147H }}</ref>

The following phylogenetic tree shows the relationship of these genera (bold) with other closely related [[mimosoid]] genera.<ref name=Hughes/> 

{{clade
|label1=
|1={{clade
   |1='''''Anonychium''''' (Africa; formerly ''Prosopis'' sect. ''Anonychium'')
   |2={{clade
      |1=''[[Plathymenia]]''
      |2={{clade
         |1=''[[Fillaeopsis]]''
         |2={{clade
            |1=''[[Newtonia (plant)|Newtonia]]''
            |2={{clade
               |1=''[[Cylicodiscus]]''
               |2={{clade
                  |1=''[[Indopiptadenia]]'' (an Indo-Nepalese monospecific genus)
                  |2='''''Prosopis''''' sensu stricto (formerly ''Prosopis'' sect. ''Prosopis'')
                  }}
               |3={{clade|1={{clade|1='''''Neltuma''''' (New World, former ''Prosopis''  sects. ''Algarobia'' + ''Monilicarpa'')
                     |2={{clade
                        |1='''''Strombocarpa''''' (New World, formerly ''Prosopis'' sect. ''Stromocarpa'')
                        |2=''[[Xerocladia]]'' (Namibian / Namaqualand monospecific endemic genus)
                        }}
                     }}
                  |2=remaining core mimosoids (many genera)
                  }}
               }}
            }}
         }}
      }}
   }}
}}                      

=== Selected former species ===

; African species now placed in ''[[Anonychium]]'' 

* Former ''Prosopis'' sect. ''Anonychium''
** ''[[Prosopis africana ]]'' <small>(Guill. & Perr.) Taub.</small> &ndash; African mesquite or ''gele'' (in [[Malinke language|Malinke]], traditional [[Djembe#Shell|''djembe'']] wood)

; New World species now placed in ''[[Strombocarpa]]'' 

* Former ''Prosopis'' sect. ''Strombocarpa''
** ''[[Prosopis abbreviata]]'' <small>Benth.<!--1841--></small> &ndash; algarrobillo espinoso
** ''[[Prosopis pubescens]]'' <small>[[George Bentham|Benth.]]<!--1846--></small> &ndash; screwbean mesquite
** ''[[Prosopis reptans]]'' <small>Benth.<!--1841--></small> &ndash; tornillo
** ''[[Prosopis strombulifera]]'' <small>([[Jean-Baptiste Lamarck|Lam.]]) Benth.<!--1841--></small> &ndash; creeping mesquite, Argentine screwbean
** ''[[Prosopis tamarugo]]'' <small>[[Rodolfo Armando Philippi|Phil.]]<!--1891--></small> &ndash; tamarugo

; New World species now placed in ''[[Neltuma]]''

* Former section ''Monilicarpa''
** ''[[Prosopis argentina]]'' <small>[[Arturo Burkart|Burkart]]<!--1937--></small> 
* Former section ''Algarobia'' 
** ''[[Prosopis affinis]]'' <small>[[Curt Polycarp Joachim Sprengel|Spreng.]]<!--1825--></small> &ndash; nandubay, algarrobillo, espinillo, Ibopé-morotí
** ''[[Prosopis alba]]'' <small>[[August Grisebach|Griseb.]]<!--1874--></small> &ndash; algarrobo blanco; ''ibopé'' or ''igopé'' ([[Guarani language|Guaraní]])
** ''[[Prosopis caldenia]]'' <small>[[Arturo Burkart|Burkart]]<!--1939--></small> &ndash; caldén
** ''[[Prosopis chilensis]]'' <small>([[José Antonio Molina Rosito|Molina]]) [[Stephen Conrad Stuntz|Stuntz]]<!--1914--></small> &ndash; algarrobo Chileno, algarrobo blanco
** ''[[Prosopis fiebrigii]]'' <small>[[Hermann Harms|Harms]]<!--1915--></small>
** ''[[Prosopis flexuosa]]'' <small>[[A. P. de Candolle|DC.]]<!--1825--></small> &ndash; alpataco, algarrobo negro
** ''[[Prosopis glandulosa]]'' <small>Torr.</small> &ndash; honey mesquite
** ''[[Prosopis hassleri]]'' <small>Harms<!--1909--></small>
** ''[[Prosopis juliflora]]'' <small>(Sw.) DC.</small> This has become established as an [[Invasive species|invasive weed]] in Africa, Asia, Australia and elsewhere.
** ''[[Prosopis kuntzei]]'' <small>Harms ex [[Otto Kuntze|Kuntze]]<!--1898--></small> &ndash; itín, barba de tigre, carandá, palo mataco
** ''[[Prosopis laevigata]]'' <small>([[Alexander von Humboldt|Humb.]] & [[Aimé Bonpland|Bonpl.]] ex [[Carl Ludwig Willdenow|Willd.]]) M.C.Johnst.<!--1962--></small> &ndash; smooth mesquite
** ''[[Prosopis nigra]]'' <small>(Griseb.) [[Georg Hans Emmo Wolfgang Hieronymus|Hieron.]]<!--1882--></small> &ndash; algarrobo negro, algarrobo amarillo, algarrobo dulce, algarrobo morado
** ''[[Prosopis pallida]]'' <small>(Humb. & Bonpl. ex Willd.) [[Carl Sigismund Kunth|Kunth]]<!--1823--></small> &ndash; American carob, ''huarango, kiawe'' ([[Hawaiian language|Hawaiian]])
** ''[[Prosopis rojasiana]]'' <small>Burkart<!--1941--></small>
** ''[[Prosopis ruscifolia]]'' <small>Griseb.<!--1874--></small> &ndash; vinal
** ''[[Prosopis velutina]]'' <small>[[E. O. Wooton|Wooton]]<!--1898--></small> &ndash; velvet mesquite

; Other species formerly placed in ''Prosopis''

*''[[Acacia atramentaria]]'' <small>Benth.</small> (as ''P. astringens'' <small>Gillies ex Hook. & Arn.</small>)
*''[[Entada elephantina]]'' <small>(Burch.) S.A.O’Donnell & G.P.Lewis</small> (as ''P. elephantina'' <small>(Burch.) E.Mey.</small> or ''P. elephantorrhiza'' <small>Spreng.</small>)
*''[[Prosopidastrum globosum]]'' <small>(Gillies ex Hook. & Arn.) Burkart</small> (as ''P. globosa'' <small>Gillies ex Hook. & Arn.</small>)

==References==

=== Notes ===
{{Reflist}}

==General references==
*Paciecznik, N. M., Harris P. J. C., & S. J. Smith. 2003. [https://web.archive.org/web/20060325145538/http://www.frp.uk.com/dissemination_documents/R7295_-_prosopis_field_guide_-_July_03.pdf Identifying Tropical Prosopis Species: A Field Guide]. HDRA, Coventry, UK. {{ISBN|0-905343-34-4}}.
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060321051407/http://www.fao.org/documents/show_cdr.asp?url_file=%2FDOCREP%2F006%2FQ2580E%2FQ2580E07.htm Handbook on taxonomy of Prosopis in Mexico, Peru and Chile] (FAO Document Repository)
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20051031090909/http://eebweb.arizona.edu/herb/PLWALK/pw1.html Plant Walk I: Old Main] (website of the Vascular Plant Herbarium of the University of Arizona in Tucson)
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060512040609/http://arboretum.arizona.edu/mainplants.html Plant Walk 1 UofA]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060415075323/http://cals-cf.calsnet.arizona.edu/arboretum/plantwalk/chart.cfm Plant Walk 2 UofA]

==External links==
*{{Commons category-inline|Prosopis}}
*{{Wikispecies-inline}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20071225204040/http://www.aphis.usda.gov/plant_health/plant_pest_info/weeds/downloads/weedlist2006.pdf U.S. Federal Noxious Weed List (USDA)]
*[http://www.prosopis.net/ The Prosopis Website (Has a nice range map)]

{{Tannin source}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q133422}}

[[Category:Prosopis| ]]
[[Category:Forages]]
[[Category:Medicinal plants]]
[[Category:Botanical taxa named by Carl Linnaeus]]
[[Category:Fabaceae genera]]