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Trees or shrubs, evergreen, without spines, often with aerial roots. Stem nodes swollen. Stipules interpetiolar, sheathing terminal bud, caducous. Leaves simple, opposite or distichous, petiolate; leaf blade leathery, usually glabrous, margin entire, serrulate near apex, or completely serrulate. Inflorescences axillary, dense cymes. Flowers bisexual, actinomorphic; hypanthium present [or absent]. Calyx lobes 4-16, inserted on rim of hypanthium, free or scarcely connate a base, valvate, persistent in fruit. Petals usually as many as sepals, free, usually caducous, margin entire, lacerate, or 2-cleft. Stamens twice as many as calyx lobes; anther locules 4 to many, dehiscing longitudinally or by an adaxial valve. Hypogynous disk present or absent. Ovary inferior or half-inferior; carpels 2-5(-20), 2-8-loculed; ovules usually 2 per locule, pendulous; style 1; stigma entire, capitate, or lobed. Fruit pulpy or leathery, indehiscent. Seeds 1 to few, viviparous; seedling (propagule) 7-80 cm when shed (except in Carallia and Pellacalyx).
Evergreen trees or shrubs, often with conspicuous aerial roots. Leaves decussate, simple, entire, glabrous, often leathery and shiny above, petiolate; stipules interpetiolar, caducous leaving an annular scar. Inflorescence axillary, cymose, sometimes reduced to 1 or 2 flowers. Flowers bisexual, actinomorphic, usually subtended by a pair of united bracteoles. Sepals 4–16, inserted on rim of an hypanthium, free or scarcely united at base, valvate, persistent in fruit. Petals as many as sepals, free, entire or lacerate or bifid, usually caducous. Stamens twice as many as petals, occasionally more; anthers 4-locular, dehiscing longitudinally, or multi-locular (in Rhizophora). Ovary inferior or half-inferior, 2–8-locular, each locule with usually 2 pendulous ovules; style 1; stigma entire or lobed. Fruit pulpy or leathery, indehiscent. Seeds viviparous in all Australian genera except Carallia; seedling (propagule) 4–80 cm long when shed.
Shrubs or trees, evergreen, synoecious [dioecious]. Leaves opposite, simple; stipules present, interpetiolar; petiole present; blade margins entire [serrulate near apex]; venation pinnate. Inflorescences axillary, cymes [fascicles or flowers solitary]. Flowers bisexual [rarely unisexual]; perianth and androecium perigynous [hypogynous or epigynous]; hypanthium completely adnate to ovary [adnate to ovary proximally and free distally, or absent]; sepals 4[–16], distinct or connate basally, valvate; petals 4[–16], distinct; nectary present [absent]; stamens [4 or]8[–32], distinct [connate basally], free; anthers dehiscing by adaxial valve [longitudinal slits]; pistil 1, 2[–5(–20)]-carpellate; ovary 1/2-inferior [superior to inferior], [1–]2[–5(–10)]-locular, placentation apical-axile; ovules 2[–8] per locule, anatropous [hemitropous]; style [0–]1; stigmas [1–]2[–4]. Fruits berries [capsules or drupes]. Seeds 1 per fruit [1 per locule].
Stamens usually twice as many as the petals, sometimes ¥ (indeterminate number), usually in 1 whorl, free, epipetalous or adnate to the calyx-tube, variously inserted in relation to the disk, when present; filaments usually subulate to ± filiform, sometimes very short; anthers 4-locular and dehiscing longitudinally or, rarely, multilocular and dehiscing by a large ventral valve (Rhizophora), dorsifixed, introrse
Leaves simple, petiolate, usually isomorphic, decussate (very rarely 3(4)-nate), with interpetiolar and caducous stipules, or rarely dimorphic, alternate, without stipules (Anisophyllea); nervation generally pinnate, rarely curvinerved and with 1–2 intramarginal nerves (Anisophyllea)
Ovary syncarpous, (l)2–4(5)-locular, inferior to superior; placentae axile, each with usually 2 (1 in Anisophyllea) pendulous, anatropous ovules; style usually single or 4–5(8) (Anisophylle), ± persistent, with entire or ± lobed stigmas
Seeds 1 or more, sometimes arillate (Cassipourea), often viviparous (mangrove species); embryo straight or curved and often with green cotyledons; endosperm present or rarely absent (Anisophylled)
Inflorescences simple or branched, axillary or, rarely, supra-axillary, of cymes (lax or condensed and clustered), racemes, panicles, fascicles or spikes, rarely a solitary flower
Petals as many as the calyx-lobes and alternating with them, free, often clawed, divided above to rarely entire, usually fleshy and conduplicate, caducous or rarely persistent
Flowers usually bisexual, rarely unisexual or polygamous, actinomorphic, with a pair of ± connate bracteoles, rarely ebracteolate
Calyx gamosepalous, usually ± adnate to the ovary, persistent in fruit; calyx-lobes (3)4–5(7) or 8–15 (Bruguiera), valvate
Fruit a berry, a drupe (Anisophyllea) or a dry, septicidally dehiscent, 2–4-loculed capsule (Cassipourea)
Monoecious trees, shrubs or, rarely, undershrubs; young branches glabrous or glabrescent with age
Disk fleshy, annular or ± cup-shaped, crenate, flat or lobed, rarely absent
