Metternichia is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Solanaceae.[1] For a long time he only species was Metternichia principis .[2], but recently a second species, M. macrocalyx (Carvalho)L.S.de Souza was recognised [3]
It is native to eastern Brazil.
The genus name of Metternichia is in honour of Klemens von Metternich (1773–1859), prince of Ochsenhausen, diplomat and Austrian painter and illustrator.[4] The Latin specific epithet of principis is derived from princeps meaning foremost, but in this case refers to belonging to the prince.[5] Both the genus and species were first described and published by Johann Christian Mikan in Del. Fl. Faun. Bras. on table 13 in 1823.[2] from material collected near Sao Paulo and Copa Cabana. The second species occurs in drier habitat and was described by Carvalho in Solanaceae: Biol. & Syst. 12 (1986).