Copaifera araguaiensis R.B. Pinto, L.C.C. Antunes, C.M. Silva-Neto & Ferreira, 2025

Pinto, Rafael Barbosa, Ferreira, Indiara Nunes Mesquita, Antunes, Lorena Lana Camelo, Telles, Mariana Pires De Campos & Melo, Carlos De, 2025, An outstanding new Copaifera L. (Leguminosae, Detarioideae) species from the Araguaia River Basin, Goiás, Brazil., Phytotaxa 687 (1), pp. 101-108 : 102-103

Copaifera araguaiensis R.B. Pinto, L.C.C. Antunes, C.M. Silva-Neto & Ferreira , spec. nov. Figures 1–3 .

Copaifera araguaiensis is morphologically similar to C. malmei in its shrubby habit, the position of the hairs in the ovary (along the margin), and the white aril. However, it differs mainly by the conspicuous presence of translucent dots in the leaflet lamina (vs. absent or poorly visible in C. malmei ), revolute leaflet margin (vs. flat) and sepals externally glabrescent (vs. externally hairy). ( Table 1).

Type:— BRAZIL. Goiás: Aruanã, Reserva Extrativista Lago do Cedro , acesso pela estrada GO-173, -14.735859 ; -50.988790, 09 April 2024, L. L. C. Antunes et al. 2681 (Holotype: UFG [ UFG38920 ])

Description:— Shrub ca. 1.5 m tall; branches terete, brown to grayish, striate, with apparent lenticels, lanate to glabrescent; stipules deciduous. Leaves 13–16 cm long; pulvinus 3.4–5 mm long, lanate to glabrescent; rachis 7.5–9 cm long, terete, lanulose, with a prolongation in the apex up to 11 mm long (usually curved); leaflets 3–4 pairs, the proximal similar to the distal or slightly smaller, opposite to subopposite, petiole 2.7–3.8 mm long, rugose, lanate to tomentose; blade ovate to slightly elliptic, 4–8 × 2.5–4.5 cm, base rounded, apex rounded to slightly retuse, margin revolute, sparsely lanulose; abaxial surface with sparsely golden lanulose hairs, venation conspicuous with lanate midrib and secondary veins salient, translucid dots present; adaxial surface glabrous, slightly lustrous, venation inconspicuous; Inflorescence panicle, 9–15 cm long, axillary, secondary axes 2.5–4 cm long, rachis with densely gold lanate hairs; flower buds ovate with acute apex, 2–2.5 × 4–4.5 mm; bracts caducous; bracteoles 1.5–2 mm long, densely tomentose; pedicel inconspicuous to 0.5 mm long. Flower with an overall white aspect; sepals 4, elliptic with the standard sepal slightly bigger and concave and the carenal sepal slightly narrower, flat, 3.5–4.4 × 1.5–2.7 mm, externally glabrescent, internally golden tomentose; stamens 10; filaments 4.5–4.8 mm long, glabrous, terete; anthers elliptic to oblong, ca. 1.5 × 0.8 mm; ovary ovate, ca. 1.5 × 1.5 mm, glabrous in the adaxial surface and densely tomentose at the suture; style ca. 2.5 mm long, glabrous, terete; stigma punctate. Fruits legume up to 2.1 × 1.9 × 1.9 cm; slightly rounded shape with valves of different sizes forming flattened at the suture and with trichomes at the margin; reddish color when ripe with external roughness. Seeds one unit per fruit, up to 1.3 cm long, dark brown seed, white aril covering most of the fruit.

Additional specimens examined (Paratypes): — BRAZIL. Goiás: Aruanã, Reserva Extrativista Lago do Cedro , dentro de propriedade privada, -14.73416667 ; -50.99000000, 09 February 2024, R. B. Pinto et al. 597 ( UFG) ; Reserva Extrativista Lago do Cedro , acesso pela estrada GO-173, -14.735859 ; -50.988790, 09 April 2024, L. L. C. Antunes et al. 2674, 2675, 2677, 2678, 2679, 2680 ( UFG) ; 08 June 2024, I. N. M. Ferreira, C. M. Silva-Neto 443, 444, 445 ( UFG) ; Reserva Extrativista Lago do Cedro , -14.806944 ; -51.033055, 01 September 2013, R. F. Haidar 1710 ( CEN). Bandeirante, Nova Crixas , -13.7144851 ; -50.8030998, 23 July 2024, C. M. Silva-Neto et al. 656, 657, 658. Jussara , conglomerado: GO-314, subunidade 1, subparcela 01, indivíduo 03, -15.3 ; - 51.66, 18 June 2018, L. Lerner 2228 ( CEN). Santa Isabel, Parque Nacional do Araguaia , Ilha do Bananal , caminho Lago Rico , campo de murundum, - 12.203924, -50.651346, 17 June 1979, F. Cardoso Silva, D. Glifford, G. F. Santos 167 ( SP, UPCB) .

Phenology: —Flowering occurs from February to April and fruits from June.

Etymology: —The species name is after the location where it was collected, the Araguaia River basin.

Vernacular name: —“Copaíba” (Portuguese); Pau d’óleo (Portuguese).

Distribution and habitat: —The species occur in small populations restricted to the middle of the Araguaia River basin associated with the “Murundu” field (small hills in sandy and wet soil), as occur in species with similar characteristics ( Ben Mahmoud et al. 2024). The occurrences of the species are highlighted on Figure 4 . The main collections of the species were carried out in the Cedro Extractive Reserve, a protected area of sustainable use with several private properties where it is permitted to carry out activities to extract products from nature. In the different locations where the species was found, the vegetation physiognomies were those of Cerrado areas in the strictest sense. ( Figure 2A ).

Preliminary conservation assessment: —Vulnerable (VU). Copaifera araguaiensis is currently known from a few and fragmented areas near Araguaia River. No populations besides the ones shown in the map have been found in other localities during the field study. The species is currently subject to anthropogenic intervention and faces several threats, such as water drainage in flooded areas of the Araguaia River, significantly modifying the ecology of the environment, transformation into pasture areas, and deforestation for the expansion of agriculture. Following the IUCN Criteria (2019) it should be considered as Vulnerable (VU) based on the Extent of Occurrence (EOO) 9,252.128 km 2, Area of Occupancy (AOO) 20.000 km 2 and the Criterias VU A4+B1ab(iv)+D2.

Taxonomic notes: —This taxon is morphologically similar to three species of Copaifera ( C. elliptica , C. luetzelburgii and C. malmei ) by its shrubby habit ( Figure 2B ) and seed with white aril ( Figure 3E ), in which can occur in the same region where this new taxon was collected ( Figure 4 ). The detailed morphological comparison is presented in Table 1. The revolute margin of the leaflet ( Figure 2C–D ) and internally tomentose sepals ( Figure 3B ) differ the new species from C. malmei and, the hairy ovary is a main characteristic that differs C. araguaiensis of the glabrous ovary of C. elliptica . Another characteristic that stands out for C. araguaiensis is the different size of the valves of the fruit that results in a kind of convex/concave sides ( Figure 3D ). Copaifera araguaiensis has glabrescent fruits, differing from other species. While C. malmei and C. luetzelburgii have pubescent fruits, C. elliptica has glabrous fruits.

The synonyms C. coriacae var. macrophylla Dwyer (1954: 180) under C. elliptica and C. bulbotricha Rizzini & Heringer (1977: 149) under C. malmei was analyzed to verify the possible reestablishment of some scientific binomial, however they have not been confirmed. The new species differs from the C. coriacae var. macrophylla by the hairy leaflets vs. glabrous leaflets, and from C. bulbotricha by the white aril vs. reddish aril. Despite the simple description of the protologue for C. coriacae var. macrophylla , the investigation of the type species Weddell 2144 (P) collected in the “ Goyas or Minas Geraes (?): Salinas” was not possible because it does not refers to a Copaifera species. Some collections identified by Aeschynomene sensitiva Sw. ( Fabaceae ) and Evolvulus ericifolius Mart. ex Schrank ( Convolvulaceae ) was found with the same collector and number indicated in the protologue, but they do not refer to the type species.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Copaifera araguaiensis. A. Flowering branch. B. Indument of the branch. C. Indument along the central vein of the leaflet. D. Revolute leaflet margin. E. Adaxial surface of leaflet. F. Abaxial surface of the leaflet. G. Leaflet apex. H. Bract. I. Whole flower. J. Sepals of the flower, note the standard sepal slightly bigger and concave, the others flat, and the carenal sepal slightly narrower. K. Internal indument of the sepal (tomentose). L. External indument of the sepal (glabrescent). M. Ovary. N. Fruits, note the different sizes of the valves forming flattened at the suture. O. Open fruits with seed and aril. (Illustrated by Cristiano Gualberto). UFG38920.

FIGURE 2. Copaifera araguaiensis. A. Habitat. B. Habit. C. Adaxial side of the leaflet. D. Abaxial side of the leaflet. E. Inflorescence and buds, note the details of indumentum. (Photographed by Lorena Lana Camelo Antunes).

FIGURE 3. Copaifera araguaiensis. A. Flowering branch. B. Flower in frontal view (note the concave standard sepal and the internal indument - red arrows). C. Fruiting branch. D. Fruit in lateral view (note the different sizes of the valves). E. Open fruit with white aril. F. Open fruits without seeds. (Photographed by Indiara Nunes Mesquita Ferreira).

FIGURE 4. Distribution map of Copaifera araguaiensis and the morphologically similar cogeneres: C. elliptica, C. luetzelburgii, and C. malmei.