Bauhinia ungulata Linnaeus (1753: 374)

Amorim, Daniele Dos Santos De & Pessoa, Edlley, 2025, Bauhinia s. s. (Fabaceae-Cercidoideae) from Baixada Cuiabana, Mato Grosso, Brazil: a neglected center of diversity for the genus, Phytotaxa 681 (2), pp. 146-166 : 162

15. Bauhinia ungulata Linnaeus (1753: 374) ( Figure 2F, 2G , 4G )

Type:— “Habitat in America. Clifford: 157, Bauhinia nº 3 (lectotype: BM, designated by Wunderlin in Turland & Jarvis, 1997).

Trees, treelets or shrubs, 1.0–6.0 m tall. Branches unarmed, extrafloral nectaries present. Stipules persistent, lanceolate or ovate. Leaves unifoliolate, petiole 1.3–4.0 × 0.1–0.2 cm; leaf blade 4.6–16.5 × 5.2–15.2 cm, bilobed, base cordate or truncate, apex of lobes rounded, obtuse or acute, leaflets ovate, elliptical, oval-elliptic or lanceolate. Inflorescence terminal, peduncle 0.5–2.3 cm long; rachis 13.5–37.5 cm long, floral bracts ovate or lanceolate, 0.1–0.3 cm long. Flowers 24–50 per inflorescence; pedicel 0.5–2.0 cm long; developed floral bud 2.4–5.0 cm long, smooth, clavate to subclavate; hypanthium 0.6–1.0 cm long, internally glabrous; sepals 2.4–3.5 cm long; petals 2.0–2.8 × 0.1–0.3 cm, clawed, linear to elliptic, apex acuminate; fertile stamens 10, heteromorphic, filaments 1.6–2.6 cm long; gynoecium, stipe 1.3–2.2 cm long, ovary 0.8–1.2 cm long, tomentose, style 1.0– 1.6 cm long, stigma clavate. Fruits 11–19 × 0.6–1.8 cm.

Selected examined material: — Brazil. Mato Grosso: Acorizal , rio Paraguai, 11 June 1979, (bd.), G. T. Prance 26150 et al. ( CEN) ; Barão de Melgaço, RPPN Sesc Pantanal , 16°35’19”S, 56°16’50”W, 30 May 2015, (bd.), G. Martinelli 18712 et al. ( HUEFS, RB) ; Chapada dos Guimarães, proximidades do Véu da Noiva , 27 May 1982, (bd.), M. B. Vasconcelhos 13587 & C. N. da Cunha ( UFMT) ; Chapada dos Guimarães, Rio Mutuca , 12 July 1984, (bd., fl., fr.), S. A. Mori 16706 et al. ( MO, NY) ; Chapada dos Guimarães, Cachoeira Rica , 16 July 2001, (bd.), T. G. Cunha 48 & E. Silva ( UFMT) ; Cuiabá , 17 June 1902, (bd.) G. O. A. Malme 1643c ( K, US) ; Cuiabá , campus da UFMT, 13 June 1980, (bd.), A. L. Prado 114 ( UFMT) ; Cuiabá, Parque Mãe Bonifácia , 15°34’42.40”S, 56°6’10.9”W, 21 July 2022, (bd., fl., fr.) D. S. Amorim 204, 205, 206, 207, 208, 209 et al. ( UFMT) ; Jangada, Serra da Araras, fazenda Santa Elina , 16 July 1999, (bd., fl., fr.), G. Ceccantini 1291 B & M. H. Fernandez ( MBM) ; Nobres, BR 242 , Crista da Serra da Caixa Furada , 19 May 1997, (bd., fl.), V. C. Souza 16468 et al. ( ESA, HUEFS, RB, UFMT) ; Nobres, arredores da fazenda Quebó , 24 May 1997, (bd.), V. C. Souza 17253 et al. ( ESA, UFMT) ; Nobres, arredores do Lago Azul , 24 May 1997, (bd., fl.), V. C. Souza 17172 et al. ( ESA, UFMT) ; Nobres, Parque Estadual Gruta da Lagoa Azul , 19 June 2006, (bd., fr.), A. L. Gasper 221 & A. Uhlmann ( FURB, JOI) ; Nossa Senhora do Livramento , 24 August 2007, (bd., fr.), A. N. da Silva s/n ( UFMT 24684 ) ; Nova Brasilândia , 10 October 1997, (fr.) V. C. Souza 20687 et al. ( ESA, UFMT) ; Nova Brasilândia, estrada entre Riolândia ( Frieira ) e Marzagão , 07 October 1997, (fr.), V. C. Souza 20180 et al. ( ESA, UFMT) ; Poconé, Pirizal , 17 April 2006, (bd., fr.), C. P. Costa 09 ( UFMT) ; Poconé, área do Sesc Pantanal , 16°41’37.7”S, 56°06’01.8”W, 15 July 2006, (bd., fl.), C. P. Caliari 15 et al. ( ESA, LUSC, RB) ; Poconé , 27 May 1983, (bd., fl.), C. N. da Cunha 1073 et al. ( UFMT) ; Poconé, Fazenda Campo Largo , 16°40’68.2S, 56°45’56.1”W, 02 June 2008, (bd., fl.), R. R. Silva 1753 et al. ( UFMT) ; Rosário Oeste, Fazenda Nossa Senhora da Conceição , 01 July 2011, (bd., fl.), A. L. Prado 9091 et al. ( UFMT) ; Santo Antônio de Leverger, morro de Santo Antônio de Leverger , 20 May 1982, (bd.), G. Guarim Neto 594 et al. ( UFMT) ; Santo Antônio de Leverger , fazenda experimental-UFMT, 22 August 2007, (bd., fr.), S. C. Guimarães s/n ( UFMT 19284 ) ; Várzea Grande, comunidade São Miguel , 23 July 2014, (bd., fl.), J. S. S. Mamede 88 ( UFMT) .

Distribution: This species is widely distributed, occurring in Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guiana, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, and Venezuela ( POWO 2023). In Brazil, its occurrence is confirmed in the North (AC, AM, AP, PA, RO, RR and TO), Northeast (CE, MA and PI), Central-West (DF, GO, MS and MT) and Southeast (MG and SP) regions ( Vaz & Santos 2023). It is found in the Amazon Forest, Cerrado and Atlantic Forest domains ( Vaz & Santos 2023), and in the study area it is recorded in semidecidual seasonal forest, ciliary forest, Cerradão, flooded grasslands and forests, rock outcrop vegetation and disturbed areas.

Taxonomic comments: The species belongs to Bauhinia sect. Pauletia ser. Cansenia . B. ungulata shows wide morphological variation, but can be recognized by the adaxially glabrous leaves, the unmarked veins on the abaxial surface of the leaf, with a tomentellous or sparse and short pubescent indumentum, and by the flowers with urceolate hypanthium. Additionally, the stamen filaments become reddish after pollination or with flower aging. According to Vaz & Tozzi (2003a), B. ungulata forms a complex with B. brevipes , with the main overlapping characters being the clavate floral bud, glabrous hypanthium and the externally pilose staminal column tube with tufts of ferruginous trichomes.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Examples of Bauhinia species found in Baixada Cuiabana. A: Bauhinia longifolia (Bong.) Steud. (D.S. Amorim 219); B and C: Bauhinia malmeana Vaz & Lewis (D.S. Amorim 210 et al.); D: Bauhinia mollis (Bong.) Steud. (D.S. Amorim 211); E: Bauhinia pentandra (Bong.) Dietr. (D.S. Amorim 218); F and G: Bauhinia ungulata L. (D.S. Amorim 204 et al.); H and I: Bauhinia vespertilio S.Moore (D.S. Amorim 214 & A. Melo). Image credits: D.S. Amorim and E. Pessoa.

FIGURE 4. Leaf morphology of species found in Baixada Cuiabana. A: Bauhinia malmeana Vaz & Lewis (D.S. Amorim 210); B: Bauhinia marginata (Bong.) Steud.; C: Bauhinia mollis (Bong.) Dietr.(A. Melo 1899 & A.K. Koch); D: Bauhinia pentandra (Bong.) Dietr. (G.A. Lima Jr. 509 & M. Ferreira da Silva); E: Bauhinia platypetala Burch. ex Benth. (G.A. Lima Jr. 648 et al.); F: Bauhinia pulchella Benth. (B. Wilke 5 et al.); G: Bauhinia ungulata L. (D.S. Amorim 205 et al.); H: Bauhinia vespertilio S.Moore (D.S. Amorim 214).