Ceropegia schumanniana Swarupan. & Mangaly, Nordic J. Bot.

S. S., Kambale & Abstract, S. R. Yadav, 2019, Taxonomic revision of Ceropegia (Apocynaceae: Ceropegieae) in India, Rheedea 29 (1), pp. 1-115 : 84-88

Ceropegia schumanniana Swarupan. & Mangaly, Nordic J. Bot. 12(6): 699. 1992; Karthik. et al., Fl. Pl. India 1: 163. 2009. Type: INDIA, Tamil Nadu, Coimbatore district , Kharian Shola, Near Top Slip, 29.12.1976, K. Swarupanandan 13911 (MH: not found or apparently none preserved). Lectotype

(designated here): Fig. 3 . Nordic J. Bot. 12(6): 700. 1992.

Perennial trailing to twining glabrous herbs.Lamina 4–4.5 × 1.5–2 cm, ovate-lanceolate, acuminate at apex, narrow at base, glabrous, deep green with few purple spots above, pale beneath; petioles 0.8–1.6 cm long, channeled above, ciliolate along margins, glabrous otherwise. Cymes 5–7-flowered, extra-axillary; peduncles 4–7 mm long, glabrous; bracts and bracteoles linear, glabrous; pedicels 6–7 mm long, glabrous. Sepals 4–4.5 mm long, subulate, glabrous. Corolla 1.2–1.5 cm long; tube 0.8–1 cm long, curved, dilated at base, sub-cylindricalfunnel-shaped at throat, glabrous except for ring of hairs at the throat, deep purple within; lobes 3–4 mm long, elongate-ovate, completely folded on their back, connate at tip forming ovoid cage, hairy along margins. Corona shortly stipitate, bi-seriate; outer deeply bifid, shorter than inner corona, linear, hairy within, pink at upper-half, yellow at lower half; inner erect, linear-clavate, pink. Fruits not observed.

Flowering: December.

Habitat: Grows along edges of evergreen forests.

Distribution: Only known from type locality, Tamil Nadu, India. This species has never been collected after type.

Conservation status: After type it has not been collected and is not represented at any Indian herbaria . It is assessed here as Data Deficient [DD].

Notes: Ceropegia schumanniana has been accommodated in the C. sect. Janthina H. Huber because of the presence of a ring of hairs at the throat of dilated base and undivided erect inner coronal lobes. Five other species belonging to this section are known from India, viz. C. decaisneana Wight , C. thwaitesii Hook. , C. elegans Wall. , C. maculata Bedd. and recently described C. manoharii from Kerala. The mouth of the corolla tube is funnel-shaped and the lobes of the outer coronal scales are deltoid and hairy or puberulent in first three species. C. schumanniana differs from these species in the sub-cylindrical throat of the corolla tube, and an outer corona with glabrous, narrow lobes shorter than inner.

Swarupanandan and Mangaly (1992) mentioned only a single specimen in the protologue as type deposited at MH. However, authors could not locate the type material. Therefore, the figure which is the only original material, has been designated here as the lectotype following Art. 9.3 of Shenzhen Code (Turland et al., 2018).

Ceropegia thwaitesii Hook., Bot. Mag. 80: t. 4758. 1854; Hook.f., Fl. Brit. India 4: 71. 1883; Trimen, Handb. Ceylon Pl. 3: 166. 1895; Fyson, Fl. Nilgiri & Pulney 3: 81. t. 426. 1920; Gamble, Fl. Madras 4: 858. 1921; H. Huber, Mem. Soc. Brot. 12: 71. 1957; Ansari, Fasc. Fl. India 16: 30. 1984; M.P. Nayar & Sastry, Red Data Book Indian Pl. 2: 58. 1988; K.M. Matthew, Fl. Palni Hills, S. India 2: 803. 1999; A.P. Jagtap & N.P. Singh, Fasc. Fl. India 24: 240. 1999; T.S. Nayar et al., Fl. Pl. Kerala 87. 2006; Karthik. et al., Fl. Pl. India 1: 164. 2009. Lectotype (designated by Ansari 1984): Bot. Mag. t. 4758. 1854.

Perennial, extensive twining herbs. Stem branched, glabrous, slender. Lamina 2.2–11 × 1–5.5 cm, ovate-lanceolate, acute at apex, rounded-cordate at base, ciliate along margins, glabrous otherwise; petioles 0.5–3.5 cm long, channeled above, glabrous. Cymes sub-umbellate, 2–6-flowered, extra-axillary; peduncles 1–2.5 cm long, glabrous; pedicels 2.5–4 cm long, glabrous. Sepals 5–7 mm long, subulate, glabrous,red at tip. Corolla 3–6.7 cm long; tube 3.5–4.2 cm long, slightly curved, abruptly dilated at base, narrow at middle, funnel-shaped at throat, glabrous within except for ring of hairs at the throat of dilated part, yellow blotched with deep red spots at the expanded portion of throat; lobes 1.2–2.5 cm long, ovate-oblong, glabrous, completely folded along their back, glabrous throughout, yellow at lower 2/3 rd part, transverse band of deep red colour, dull green at upper 1/3 rd part. Corona bi-seriate; outer bowl-shaped, deeply bifid, shorter than inner corona, hairy along margins; inner erect, linear-spathulate, twice as long as the outer corona, glabrous. Follicles 20–26.5 cm long, glabrous. Seeds c. 1 × 0.3 cm, comose; coma c. 2.5 cm long, silky white.

Flowering & fruiting: February–November.

Chromosome number: 2 n = 22 ( Navaneetham & Sampathkumar, 1984).

Habitat: Grows at shola forests in association with Strobilanthes sp.

Distribution: India (Kerala, Tamil Nadu) and Sri Lanka.

Specimens examined: INDIA, Kerala, Idukki district, Devikolam, Umaiya Malai , 20.04.1966, B . V . Shetty 27345 ( MH!), Munnar, Vandaravu road, 13.05.1985, K . M . Matthew 41450 ( RHT!); Kasargod district, Ranipuram, Deviar Estate to Naduthottam , Sethur hills, S . R . Srinivasa. 68040 ( RHT!) . Tamil Nadu, Dindigul district, Palni hills, s. d., s.coll. s.n. ( MH!); Ibid., 25.06.1898, Bourne 1134; Kodaikanal , 11.09.1905, C . A . Barber CAB 7251 ( MH!); Ibid., 05.1941, s.coll. s.n. ( RHT!); Nilgiris, Coonoor , 11.1985, s.coll. s.n. ( MH!); Tirunelveli district , Old Courtallum forest , 17.02.1983, E . Vajravelu 76580 ( MH!) .

Conservation status: It is represented by few specimens in Indian herbaria . Due to insufficient information it is considered as Data Deficient (DD).

Notes: Ceropegia thwaitesii resembles C. cumingiana Decne. , but differs from it in having abruptly dilated corolla tube, narrow at the middle and corolla lobes with transverse bands across. Hooker (1854) did not mention any specimen in the protologue but provided a beautiful colour drawing. Huber (1957) cited ‘specimen cultum at Herb. K’. This specimen is not a part of original material as its type. Since it is collected after the date of publication, hence cannot serve as type. Ansari (1984) inadvertently cited the coloured drawing as lectotype (Bot. Mag. t. 4758).

Figures

Fig. 3. Diversity of rootstock in Ceropegia species: a & b. Globose tubers with fleshy roots in C. ravikumariana Kambale & Gnanasek.; c. Globose tuber with fibrous roots in C. sahyadrica Ansari & B.G. Kulk. var. sahyadrica; d & e. Stolon like tubers in C. juncea Roxb. (d) & C. intermedia Wight (e); f. Elongated tuber (probably the younger tuber) in C. odorata Nimmo ex J. Graham. (Photos a & b. Navendu Page; d. H.C. Lingaraj).