A taxonomic revision of the African genus Desplatsia Bocq. (Malvaceae - Grewioideae) with identifiers

A taxonomic revision of Desplatsia Bocq. (Malvaceae s.l., subfamily Grewioideae, tribe Grewieae) based on 810 herbarium specimens is presented. Desplatsia is a genus of trees and shrubs found in tropical West and Central Africa and is characterised by subulately divided stipules, the absence of an androgynophore, stamens that are fused to a tube at the base, and large and distinctive fruits that are dispersed by elephants. Four species are recognized (D. subericarpa, D. chrysochlamys, D. dewevrei and D. mildbraedii) and 12 species names are placed into synonymy, two of which have been put into synonymy for the first time: D. floribunda and D. trillesiana. All four species are locally abundant and their conservation status is assessed as Least Concern (LC). A key to the species, full species descriptions, illustrations, a specimen citation list and distribution maps are provided.