Miconia cerasiflora Urb., Symb. Antill.

Bécquer, Eldis R., Bochorny, Thuane, Gavrutenko, Maria & Michelangeli, Fabián A., 2022, A revision of the “ basal-axile placentation clade ” of Miconieae, the newly erected Miconia sect. Liogieria (Melastomataceae: Miconieae) from the Greater Antilles, Willdenowia 52 (3), pp. 387-432 : 397-401

2. Miconia cerasiflora Urb., Symb. Antill. 9: 112. 1923. – Lectotype (designated here): Cuba, Prov. Oriente [HolguÍn, MayarÍ], Sierra de Nipe ad RÍo Piloto , c. 750 m, 15 May 1915, E. L. Ekman 5696 ( S 5-3433 [photo!]; isolectotypes: NY 99518 !, US 120772!). – Fig. 2B, H; 3A, B; 6.

=

Miconia baracoensis Urb., Symb. Antill. 9: 112. 1923. – Lectotype (designated here): Cuba, Prov. Oriente [Guantánamo], Baracoa in Lomas de Cuaba in pinetis fruticosis, 13 Jan 1915, E. L. Ekman 4221 ( S 5-3386 !; isolectotypes: NY 99511 !, US 120765!).

Morphological description — Shrubs or trees to 10 m tall, branched, deciduous. Indumentum of stellate and dendritic trichomes 0.1–0.3 mm long, light brown or ferruginous, on young branches, leaves, inflorescences, flowers and fruits. Young branches terete, densely ferruginous tomentose, later glabrescent. Mature branches with conspicuous longitudinal lenticels. Petiole 0.5–1.7 cm long, terete, canaliculate adaxially, glabrous; leaf blade 3.5–15 × 3.5–7.5 cm, elliptic, ovate to broadly ovate, almost orbiculate or obovate, subcoriaceous, base broadly cuneate, rounded to emarginate, apex obtuse to rounded, sometimes acute, margin slightly revolute, entire; adaxial surface flat to bullate, sparsely tomentose mostly at veins, later glabrescent; abaxial surface sparsely tomentose mostly at veins, early glabrescent. Venation with 2(or 3) pairs of mostly basal secondary veins, symmetric, innermost conspicuous, sometimes placed up to 3 mm above base, marginal pair sometimes inconspicuous; midvein and secondary veins impressed adaxially and prominent abaxially, tertiary veins impressed adaxially and slightly prominent abaxially, quaternary veins mostly inconspicuous. Mite domatia absent, or occasionally present as a cavity between midvein and innermost pair of secondary veins. Inflorescence 2.5–5 × 3.5–7 cm, a lax paniculate cyme, occasionally with one pair of branches near base, peduncle 0.7–2.5 cm long, with (5–)7–29 flowers; each inflorescence with 2 or 3 pairs of major branches, pseudopedicel 0.5–1 cm long; bracts c. 1.1 mm long, subulate, caducous, bracteoles 0.4– 0.7 mm long, subulate, caducous. Flowers 5(or 6)-merous; pedicel c. 1 mm long. Hypanthium c. 2.3 mm long, campanulate, free portion c. 1 mm long, external surface stellate tomentose mostly toward calyx, internal surface glabrous. Calyx tube c. 0.3 mm long; calyx lobes 0.5–0.6 × c. 1 mm, broadly triangular to rounded, obtuse to almost truncate, internal surface glabrous; calyx teeth 0.2–0.3 mm long, inconspicuous, tomentose. Petals 4.5–5 × 3.5–5 mm, broadly obovate, white (occasionally with pink areas near margins on abaxial surface), glabrous, base decurrent, apex obtuse to rounded with a notch. Stamens 10, deflexed in 2 groups at anthesis, (2 or)3 or 4 toward style and 6 or 7(or 8) toward opposite side of flower, filaments later deflexed backward and stamens turning pink to red with age, mostly falling together with petals. Filaments 2.8–3 mm long. Anthers 1.6–3.5 × 0.7–0.8 mm, ovate to lanceolate, flattened and arcuate toward apex; connective thinning toward apex, not projecting below thecae; thecae slightly wrinkled, with a ventral-apical pore, white. Ovary 3- or 4-locular, free portion rounded, glabrous; placentation axile-central to basal. Style c. 3 mm long. Berries c. 6 × 8 mm, subglobose, 35–40-seeded. Seeds 2.5–3.5 mm long.

Phenology — Flowering specimens have been collected in January, from March to August and in October, fruiting specimens in July and October.

Distribution and ecology — Miconia cerasiflora is endemic to E Cuba ( Fig. 7), where it is found in the Sierra de Nipe, (HolguÍn), Sierra Cristal (HolguÍn and Santiago de Cuba), Sierra de Baracoa, Sierra del Frijol, Sierra del Maguey, Cuchillas del Toa and Sierra del Purial (Guantánamo), Sierra de Moa and serpentine hills of the coastal area between Moa and Baracoa (HolguÍn and Guantánamo). It grows in semi-arid montane shrub woods, semi-arid montane rainforest and pine forests on serpentine soils ( Borhidi 1996) at 10–1200 m.

Informal conservation status — Miconia cerasiflora (including M. cerasiflora var. setulifera = M. obtusa in the present study) and its heterotypic synonym M. baracoensis were preliminarily assessed in the Red List of Cuban flora as Least Concern (LC) (see González-Torres & al. 2016). Miconia cerasiflora has an estimated EOO of 513 km 2 (within the limit for Endangered status under sub-criterion B1) and its AOO to be 46 km 2 also within the limit for Endangered under sub-criterion B2. However, it does not meet the conditions for this criterion because its population is not considered severely fragmented. It is inferred that gene flow occurs between its localities, guaranteed by the abundant production of fruits that can be consumed and dispersed by birds, as shown for other Melastomataceae ( Loiselle & Blake 1999; Blendinger & al. 2011; Silveira & al. 2013). The species is known from 46 localities, 34 of them inside protected areas (National Parks Alejandro de Humboldt, La Mensura-Pilotos and Pico Cristal, Natural Monument Yunque de Baracoa and Protected Area with sustainable use of natural resources Cuchillas del Toa). In part of its range, civil constructions, intentional fires, mining and plantations of exotic trees for milling represent the main threats to its habitat. A decline in extent and quality of habitat is expected. The 46 localities represent more than 20 locations sensu IUCN (2012), with 83% of these locations inside protected areas. Population studies have not been carried out, but the species is considered frequent in its range of distribution. All of this allows us to recommend a status of Least Concern (LC).

Discussion — Miconia cerasiflora is a very variable member of the deciduous group of Miconia species endemic to E Cuba (i.e. M. lenticellata , M. lutgardae , M. obtusa and M. victorinii ). Within this group, M. cerasiflora most closely resembles M. obtusa and M. victorinii (see taxonomic history above), and can be distinguished from the first species by its indumentum of stellate and dendritic trichomes on young branches, leaves, inflorescences, flowers or fruits (vs conspicuous elongate glandular trichomes mixed with stellate and dendritic trichomes in M. obtusa ); also M. cerasiflora has petals mostly white or with a pink tinge, 6.4–8 mm long (vs petals pink, 4.5–5 mm long in M. obtusa ). Miconia cerasiflora can be distinguished from M. victorinii by its leaves that are usually bullate adaxially, drying dark brown and conspicuous inflorescences with 5–29 flowers (vs leaves usually flat adaxially, drying distinctly olivaceous with yellowish tint and the inflorescences of small cymes, with 3–5(–7) flowers in M. victorinii ).

When Urban (1923a) described Miconia baracoensis and M. cerasiflora he differentiated them based on leaf size and shape, number of secondary veins, leaf apex and anther size (even though he only had seen two specimens of M. baracoensis , both with leaves that were not fully developed). He defined M. baracoensis as a species with ovate leaves with 2 pairs of secondary veins, obtuse to acute apex and anthers c. 1.5 mm long, while M. cerasiflora was characterized by its cordate leaves with 2 or 3 pairs of secondary veins, rounded apex and anthers c. 3.5 mm long. Alain (1957) in his treatment of the Melastomataceae for the Flora of Cuba only used the vegetative characters such as the shape of the leaf and number of secondary veins to delimit these entities in the key. He characterized M. cerasiflora with leaves orbiculate and 7-veined (3 pairs of secondary veins) and M. baracoensis with leaves ovate to oblong-lanceolate, 3–5-veined (1 or 2 pairs of secondary veins) and apex acuminate to obtuse or rounded. There are numerous sterile herbarium specimens that have leaves ranging from ovate to orbiculate and have been determined over the years with one name or the other indiscriminately. In fact, the specimens Ekman 2527, Ekman 2186 and Ekman 2600 (all sterile), which Urban (1923a) mentioned in the protologue of M. cerasiflora and which were determined by him, mostly have ovate leaves with 2 pairs of secondary veins and an obtuse apex, characteristics attributed to M. baracoensis .

On the other hand, these plants being deciduous generally means that when they are collected in flower the leaves are absent or very young. Young leaves usually differ not only in size from adult ones, but also in shape, which is why they are not reliable for identifying specimens. In the field it is sometimes possible to find individuals in flower with some remaining mature leaves similar in size and shape to those among the leaf litter under the plant itself, which suggests that the leaves only complete their growth close to the time at which they drop prior to flowering. Another problem in separating the entities described by Urban (1923a) is that there is a continuum of anther sizes from small anthers c. 1.6 mm long (as in the type of Miconia baracoensis ) to c. 3.5 mm long (as in M. cerasiflora ). Based on these facts, we consider it better to treat M. cerasiflora as a highly variable species until more detailed field studies at the population level allow for any alternative definition of species limits.