Phyllanthus macraei Müll.Arg.

Verwijs, J. I. M., Bouman, R. W. & Welzen, P. C. van, 2019, A taxonomic revision of Phyllanthus subgenus Macraea (Phyllanthaceae), Blumea 64 (3), pp. 231-252 : 241-242

11. Phyllanthus macraei Müll.Arg. — Map 7

Phyllanthus macraei Müll.Arg. (1863) 29 (non Phyllanthus rheedii Wight ); (1866) 393; Hook.f. (1887) 296; N.P.Balakr. & Chakrab. (2007) 378; Chakrab.& N.P.Balakr.(2018) 347. — Macraea rheedii Wight (1852) 27,pl. 1901. — Diasperus macraei (Müll.Arg.) Kuntze (1891) 599 (non D. rheedei Kuntze ). — Lectotype (designated by Chakrabarty & Balakrishnan 2018): Wight, Icon. Pl. Ind. Orient. 5 (1852) pl. 1901, India, Pulney mountains.

Shrubs, monoecious; branches winged, glabrous or puberulous, dark brown or green, distally flattened; internodes 3‒13 mm long. Stipules triangular, 1‒2 by 0.8‒1 mm, base bilaterally auriculate, margin entire, apex attenuate. Leaves: petiole 1‒2 mm long, glabrous; blade elliptic, 14‒45 by 4‒18 mm, 1.9‒2.8 times longer than wide, glabrous, upper surface medium to dark green, often underneath paler, base cordate, subcordate, rarely rounded, margin not thickened, revolute, often proximally puberulous, apex obtuse or rounded, often mucronate; midrib flat or sunken above, prominent and rarely puberulous underneath, lateral veins 6‒9 on each side, flat or sunken above, flat or prominent underneath. Staminate flowers 2 or 3 together in axils, c. 4 mm diam; pedicel 3‒6 mm long, glabrous; sepals 6, apex rounded, greenish yellow, in two whorls, outer ones ovate, c. 2 by 1.5 mm, inner ones elliptic, c. 1.5 by 1 mm; disc glands 6, oblate, c. 0.6 mm diam, c. 0.1 mm high; stamens 3, c. 1 mm long, filaments free, thecae subglobular, c. 0.3 mm long. Pistillate flowers solitary, 4‒5 mm diam; pedicel 12‒18 mm long, glabrous; sepals 6, apex obtuse or rounded, greenish yellow, in two whorls, outer ones elliptic, c. 2 by 1 mm, inner ones ovate, c. 2 by 2 mm; disc annular, flat, c. 2 mm diam; ovary sessile, globular, c. 1 mm diam, c. 1 mm high, verrucate; style absent, stigmas 3, c. 1 mm long, bifid for 3/4 of the length, reflexed. Fruits subglobular, 4‒5 mm diam, 6-grooved, glabrous, greenish; pedicel 12‒18 mm long, glabrous; columella c. 1.5 mm long. Seeds c. 2.5 by 2 mm, smooth or minutely verrucate, dark or chestnut-brown, verrucae circular, randomly and closely placed.

Distribution — South India (Palni hills, Pulney mountains and Kodaikanal).

Habitat & Ecology — Forests and edges of forests near grassland. Altitude: 365‒2100 m. Flowering and fruiting: May, June, September, October, December.

Vernacular name — India: Macrae’s Leaf-Flower (www. flowersofindia.net).

Notes — 1. Distinguishable by its often puberulous branches and leaf margins.

2. Wight (1852) described this plant as Rheede’s Niruri, Horti Malab. 10, t. 27 (1690); this drawing is not very detailed, small in scale and lacking staminate flowers and stipules. Wight, Icon. pl. Ind. Orient. 5 Pl. 1901 (1852) is larger scaled, more comprehensive and more precise and therefore more suitable as lectotype .

Figures

Map 7 Distribution of Phyllanthus gardnerianus (Wight) Baill.(●), P.macraei Müll.Arg. (▲), P. myrtifolius (Moon ex Wight) Müll.Arg. (■) and P. wheeleri G.L.Webster (✚) in S India and Sri Lanka.