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A putative tropical American plant,Ipomoea nil (Convolvulaceae), in pre-Columbian Japanese art

Una planta aparentemente Americana tropical (Ipomoea nil, Convolvulaceae), representada en una pieza de arte Japonesa pre-Colombiana

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Abstract

The Heike Nôkyô, Japanese scrolls of Buddhist sutras created in 1164 AD, includes illustrations of anIpomoea that has long been identified by Japanese scholars asI. nil. What makes this occurrence ofI. nil in pre-Columbian Japan remarkable is that all of its closest relatives are American plants. We give a synopsis of the history of this economically important species. Then, using cladistic analysis, we show the relationships ofI. nil toI.eriocalyx,I. hederacea,I. indica,I. laeta,I. lindheimeri,I. meyeri, andI. pubescens. Six of these eight species inIpomoea seriesHeterophyllae are endemic to the New World.Ipomoea indica is pantropical, and may be carried by ocean currents. We offer four hypotheses as to how this putatively tropical American species may have arrived in Asia: 1)Ipomoea nil was introduced through long-distance dispersal by animals; 2)Ipomoea nil was introduced by humans in a pre-Columbian context; 3) TheIpomoea in theHeike Nôkyô scrolls does not representI. nil, but a different native Asian species; and 4)Ipomoea nil was introduced during post-Columbian times by Europeans. There are problems with accepting any of these possible alternatives.

Resumen

LosHeike Nôkyô, pergaminos japoneses creados por sutras Budhistas en 1164 AD, incluyen ilustraciones de unaIpomoea que ha sido identificada por estudiosos japoneses comoI. nil. La presencia deI. nil en Japón pre-Colombino es notable porque todos sus parientes cercanos son nativos del continente Americano tropical. Aquí presentamos un resúmen de la historia de esta planta, que es de importancia económica. Luego, usando un análisis cladistico, mostramos las relaciones deI. nil conI. eriocalyx,I. hederacea,I. indica,I. laeta,I. lindheimeri,I. meyeri, eI. pubescens. Seis de estas ocho especies deIpomoea serieHeterophyllae son endémicas al Nuevo Mundo.Ipomoea indicaes pantropical, y tal vez sea traido por corrientes oceánicas. Ofrecemos cuatro hipótesis para explicar como esta especie, de origen aparentemente americano tropical, puede haber llegado a Asia: 1)Ipomoea nil fue introducida a troves de dispersión a larga distancia por animates; 2)Ipomoea nil fue intoducida por humanos en un contexto pre-Colombino; 3) LaIpomoea en los pergaminosHeike Nôkyô no representa aI. nil, sino a otra especie nativa de Asia; 4)Ipomoea nil fue introducida durante tiempos post-Colombinos por europeos. Hay problemas con la aceptación de todas estas alternativas.

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Author notes

  1. Daniel F. Austin

    Present address: Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, 2021 N. Kinney Road, 85743, Tucson, AZ, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biological Sciences, Florida Atlantic University, 33431, Boca Raton, FL

    Daniel F. Austin, Kaoru Kitajima & Yoshiaki Yoneda

  2. Department of Botany, University of Florida, 32611, Gainesville, FL, USA

    Kaoru Kitajima

  3. Shizuoka University, Shizuoka, Japan

    Yoshiaki Yoneda

  4. Department of Mathematics, Florida Atlantic University, 33431, Boca Raton, FL, USA

    Llanfen Qian

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Austin, D.F., Kitajima, K., Yoneda, Y. et al. A putative tropical American plant,Ipomoea nil (Convolvulaceae), in pre-Columbian Japanese art. Econ Bot 55, 515–527 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02871714

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