Leandra cristata Reginato & R.Goldenb., 2013

Reginato, M. & Goldenberg, R., 2013, Two new species of Leandra s. str. (Melastomataceae) from the Atlantic Forest in Espírito Santo, Brazil, Blumea 57 (3), pp. 210-214 : 210-213

1. Leandra cristata Reginato & R.Goldenb. , sp. nov. — Fig. 1a, b , 2a– d , 3

Typus. L. Kollmann 2494 , E. Bausen & W. Pizziolo (holo MBML; iso RB, UPCB) , Brazil, Espírito Santo, Santa Teresa, São Lourenço, Estação Biológica da Caixa d’água, 14 Apr. 1999 .

Etymology. The name refers to the conspicuous nodal ridges.

1 Institute of Systematic Botany , The New York Botanical Garden , Bronx, NY 10458 , USA - City University of New York ( CUNY); corresponding author e-mail: [e-mail] .

2 Universidade Federal do Paraná, Departamento de Botânica , Centro Politécnico, Caixa Postal 19031, Curitiba, PR, 81531-970, Brazil .

Shrub, up to 3 m. Young stems terete, with nodal ridges distinctly projected, glabrous, but with the nodal line sparsely covered with small reddish glandular trichomes (0.1 mm long). Leaves isophyllous; petiole 0.5 –1 cm long, glabrous; blade 7–17 by 1.5–3.5 cm, lanceolate, chartaceous, apex acuminate, base long decurrent, margin obscurely serrulate, ciliate (0.35 mm) and plane; secondary veins suprabasal, with 2 pairs plus an additional marginal faint pair, diverging 1–2.5 cm above the base, symmetrical or sometimes asymmetrical, veins printed on the adaxial surface and prominent on the abaxial surface, both surfaces glabrous, but with sparse, reddish, small (c. 0.1 mm), glandular trichomes restricted to the main vein on the abaxial surface. Thyrses 7–9 cm long, terminal, slightly pendent, glabrous, with no accessory branches, 3 – 5 pairs of paraclades, flowers on lax triads; bracts 1.5– 2 cm long, linear to lanceolate, entire; bracteoles similar to the bracts. Flowers on pedicels 0.2 mm long. Hypanthium 3.2 – 3.8 by 2.1–2.4 mm, campanulate to slightly pyriform, both surfaces glabrous, but with several, dense, minute druses on the external surface, conspicuous with hand lenses, androecial fringe absent. Calyx tube 0.3– 0.5 mm long at anthesis, the lobes 0.1–0.2 mm, obscurely deltoid; calyx teeth triangular, 2.3– 2.7 mm, sparsely covered by small (0.1 mm), reddish, glandular trichomes. Petals 5, 1.5–1.9 by 0.5–0.8 mm, white at anthesis, ovate, apex acuminate, margin entire, glabrous. Stamens diplostemonous, isomorphic, anthers c. 1.4 mm long, oblong with the apex slightly attenuated, connective not prolonged, dorsally bumped. Ovary 3-locular, 1/5 superior, the free portion projecting 0.5 – 0.6 mm, cylindrical, glabrous; style and stigma not seen. Berries 6 –7 by 4 –5 mm, dark violet to black. Seeds 0.8 –0.9 by 0.4 –0.5 mm, ovate elongated, the hilum covering 90 % of the seed, slightly conspicuous tertiary sculpturing, testa yellow, the cells periclinal walls flat or sligthly concave, the anticlinal walls jigsaw-like, unappendaged.

Distribution & Habitat — Endemic to the state of Espírito Santo, Brazil. It has been collected in three neighbouring localities in the municipality of Santa Teresa. The species is found in the Atlantic Forest, more precisely in the understory of montane rain forest, at altitudes between 700 and 850 m.

Other specimens examined. BRAZIL, Espírito Santo, Santa Teresa, Nova Lombardia, Reserva Biológica Augusto Ruschi , 10 Jan. 2002 (fl), L. Kollmann 5291 & E. Bausen ( MBML), idem, 29 Jan. 2002 (fr), L. Kollmann 5383 & E. Bausen ( MBML, RB, UPCB),idem, 2Apr.2002 (fr), R. R.Vervloet 52, E.Bausen

© 2013 Nationaal Herbarium Nederland

& W. Pizziolo ( MBML, UPCB), idem, 20 Mar. 2003 (fr) , R. R. Vervloet 2024 & E. Bausen ( MBML, RB, UPCB); Santa Teresa, Nova Lombardia , Terreno do Furlani, 7 Feb. 2011 (sterile) , R. Goldenberg et al. 1524 ( NY, UPCB); Santa Teresa , Santo Henrique, 22 July 2005 (fr) , L. Kollmann 8156 & A.P. Fontana ( MBML, UPCB) .

Notes — The description of the reproductive characters has been made on buds and young fruits, since the specimens available have no mature flowers. This explains why some measurements (i.e. filaments, pore and style) have not been provided here. The persistence of the dorsal bump found in the stamens from the buds still stands to confirmation in specimens with mature flowers.

As for the sectional placement, this species could be assigned to three different sections, as proposed by Cogniaux (1886, 1891). Sections Chaetodon Cogn. , Oxymeris Cogn. and Carassanae Cogn. are probably not monophyletic ( Martin et al. 2008, pers. obs.), but have been traditionally recognized based on the pseudolateral or pendent inflorescences ( Chaetodon ), glabrous or furfuraceous hypanthia ( Oxymeris ), and terminal, erect inflorescences, and non-glabrous neither setose hypanthia (Carassanae). Leandra cristata has terminal but pendent inflorescences and glabrous hypanthia as the ones found in the two first sections. Its seeds with tertiary sculpturing ( Martin & Michelangeli 2009) are found more frequently among species assigned to sections Carassanae and Niangae, both of which with pilose hypanthia, which in turn is absent in this species. Since there is no way to assign this species precisely in one of Cogniaux’s sections, we opted to compare this species with all similar Leandra , no matter to which section they belong.

Leandra cristata can be recognized by the distinct nodal ridges on the young branches, and also by the leaves with decurrent bases and transversal nerves consistently perpendicular to the main nerve, by the triangular external teeth, and by the dorsal bump on the stamen connective.All species that can be regarded as morphologically similar, like L. brackenridgei Cogn. , L. laevigata (Triana) Cogn. , L. mouraei Cogn. and L. pilonensis Wurdack , lack the nodal ridges, the leaves with long decurrent bases and the dorsal bumps on the connective. They also have the leaves with inclined transversal nerves, and subulate external calyx teeth, with the exception of L. pilonensis , that also has triangular calyx teeth. Leandra longisetosa Cogn. and L. multiplinervis (Naudin) Cogn. also have leaves with decurrent bases and calyces with triangular external teeth, but both lack the nodal ridges and have ovate leaves, a dense indument of simple trichomes mixed with small dendritic ones and an urceolate hypanthium.

Leandra cristata has a remarkable character that may not be useful as diagnostic,but contrasts with the absence of trichomes: the large amount of druses found on the hypanthium, even visible at its external surface. These druses are also found in other flower parts in the same species, and are almost always found throughout Leandra and other genera in tribe Miconieae (pers. obs.), but seldom in the same quantity. Perhaps these strongly abundant druses act on repelling herbivores ( Cortez & Carmello-Guerreiro 2008), in the same way that trichomes do ( Paleari & Santos 1998), and in a certain sense, may compensate for the absence of trichomes in an essentially glabrous plant.

Figures

Fig. 1 a, b. Leandra cristata Reginato & R.Goldenb. a. Non-fertile branch; b. detail of the ridges nodes. — c–e. Leandra fontanae Reginato & R.Goldenb. c. Fruiting branch; d. flower; e. infructescences (a, b: R. Goldenberg et al. 1524; c–e: Reginato et al. 1190; all NY, UPCB).

Fig. 2 a–d. Leandra cristata Reginato & R.Goldenb. a. Leaf on abaxial view; b. detail of the seed testa; c. detail of the small reddish glandular trichomes; d. seed. — e–h. Leandra fontanae Reginato & R.Goldenb. e. Leaf on abaxial view; f. detail of the seed testa; g. detail of the simple trichome on leaf adaxial side; h. seed (a–d: Vervloet 52, MBML, UPCB; e–h: Reginato et al. 1190, NY, UPCB). — Scale bars: a, d, e, g, h = 100 μm; b, c, f = 10 μm.

Fig. 3 Leandra cristata Reginato & R.Goldenb. a. Detail of the nodes showing the projected ridges; b. anther; c. floral bud; d. longitudinal section of the floral bud; e. seed; f. transversal section of the 3-locular fruit; g. branch with inflorescence; h. petal on adaxial view; i. leaf on abaxial view (a, e–g, j: holotype; b–d, h, i: L. Kollmann 5291, MBML).