Desmopsis dolichopetala R.E.Fr.

Schatz, G. E., Maas, P. J. M., Kamer, H. Maas-van de, Westra, L. Y. T. & Wieringa, J. J., 2018, Revision of the Neotropical genus Desmopsis (Annonaceae), Blumea 63 (1), pp. 67-86 : 74

6. Desmopsis dolichopetala R.E.Fr. — Map 4

Desmopsis dolichopetala R.E.Fr. (1941) 106. — Type: Yuncker et al. 6155 (holo S; iso F, MO, NY, U), Honduras, near the summit of the ridge above El Achote, in cloud zone, above the plains of Siguatepeque, 1800 m, 28 July 1936.

Tree 6–8 m tall, 10–12 cm diam; young twigs and petiole rather densely covered with appressed hairs, soon glabrous. Leaves: petiole 2–7 mm long, c. 1 mm diam; lamina narrowly elliptic, 8–22 by 3–7 cm, membranous, glabrous above, sparsely covered with appressed hairs, mainly along primary vein below to subglabrous below, base acute to obtuse and slightly attenuate, apex acute to acuminate (acumen 5–10 mm long), primary vein impressed above, secondary veins 9–12 on either side of primary vein, slightly raised above, tertiary veins slightly raised above, reticulate. Inflorescence and flower indument: pedicels sparsely covered with appressed hairs, outer side of bracts densely so, outer side of sepals and petals densely to sparsely so. Inflorescences 1- or 2-flowered, leaf-opposed or produced from the main trunk; pedicels 60–90 mm long, c. 1 mm diam, slightly increasing in diameter from base to apex, to c. 3 mm diam in fruit; basal and upper bracts scale-like, broadly ovate-triangular, 1–2 mm long, soon falling; sepals shallowly ovate-triangular, 1–2 by 2–3 mm; petals yellow to yellow-bluff, tinged with pink, subequal, narrowly triangular, 30–55 by 3–6 mm. Monocarps 3–12, red, orange inside in vivo, spherical to oblongoid-ellipsoid, 15–45 by 15–25 mm, sparsely covered with appressed hairs, soon glabrous, apex rounded, not constricted between the seeds upon drying, wall c. 1 mm thick, stipes 3–6 mm long, 2–3 mm diam. Seeds 2–4, in one row, discoid or hemispherical, 20–21 by 6–10 mm, smooth to slightly grooved.

Distribution — Honduras.

Habitat & Ecology — In forests in cloud zone. At elevations of 1400–1800 m. Flowering: May, July; fruiting: May, July.

Vernacular names — Not recorded.

Field observations — ‘Flowers green, then yellow with a banana odor’ (Walker 431, Honduras).

Note — Desmopsis dolichopetala , so far only known from two collections from Honduras, is very close to D. schippii , differing in: more numerous secondary veins (9–12 vs 6–8), larger monocarps (15–45 vs 10–27 mm), and larger seeds (20–21 by 6–10 vs 8–15 by 3–5 mm). Moreover, D. dolichopetala occurs at higher altitudes (1400–1800 m), whereas D. schippii normally grows at much lower elevations.