Stem, node, petiole, and leaf anatomy of Antigonon, Brunnichia, Coccoloba, Muehlenbeckia, and Podopterus was investigated. These genera have historically been united within the tribe Coccolobeae. The tribe is interesting to study because the genera form a heterogeneous group of taxa with either winged achenes or drupes and habits that include vines, lianas, shrubs, and trees. Forty anatomical features were compared across 39 species. Despite many similarities among the genera a number of interesting patterns were observed. Anatomical trends that were observed include variation in the presence of a stem endodermoid layer, sclerenchyma, leaf trace divergence, and leaf trace pathways. Petiole anatomy revealed differences in the vascular bundle arrangement, and the presence of tanniniferous idioblasts, and endodermoid layers. In leaves, there was variation in the presence of tanniniferous idioblasts, prismatic crystals, leaf hypodermal layers, as well as variation in venation patterns at the species level in Brunnichia and Podopterus. The data suggests that Coccolobeae may not be a cohesive evolutionary unit and contains genera that would be best placed in other tribes.

Key words: anatomy, Coccolobeae, Polygonaceae, systematics, tribe