Aracées du Guyane Francaise. 2015. (Faune et Flore Tropicales, 46). illus. 349 p. Broché.- In French.

The Araceae family includes 118 genera and 3,800 species of tropical plants. It is the 13th richest family in the world and 3rd among the Monocotyledons after the Orchidaceae and Poaceae.

This book is devoted to the Araceae of French Guiana, where the family is well represented with 21 genera and 122 species, a large number of samples of which have been deposited in the Guiana Herbarium. The originality of the Araceae lies in their varied floral morphology (bi- or unisexual fertile flowers, sterile flowers), their mode of growth (aquatic plants, geophytes, climbers and epiphytes), their mode of pollination and their unusual physiology. The temperature of the inflorescence is likely to rise sharply during pollination, creating favourable conditions for the activities of nocturnal pollinating beetles. Several chapters deal with the biology and ecology of Araceae: growth patterns, floral morphology, thermogenesis, pollination and relationships with non-pollinating animals. Ethnobotanical uses are described in a separate chapter. The final section on systematics provides identification keys for the genera and species in French Guiana, as well as a short description of each species.

The book is aimed at researchers, teachers and students, as well as amateurs wishing to learn more about this family of plants.