Phyllanthus occurs in tropical and temperate regions of the world. Around 100 species are recorded to Brazil, growing in forests, cerrados, grasslands and caatingas. The aim of this study was to survey the species of Phyllanthus from the State the Rio de Janeiro and thus contribute to the project Flora Fanerogâmica do Rio de Janeiro. For each species is indicated the original publication, type collections, geographic distribution, period of flowering and fruiting, and comments on diagnostic characters. Also some new synonyms are proposed and original illustrations of some species are presented, as well as an identification key to the 20 species of the genus found in the State.
Euphorbiaceae s.l.; floristics; taxonomy
