Passiflora quelchii N.E. Br., Transactions of the Linnean Society of London, Botany 6: 31, pl. 3. 1901.

Mezzonato-Pires, Ana Carolina, Milward-de-Azevedo, Michaele Alvim, Mendonca, Claudia Barbieri Ferreira & Goncalves-Esteves, Vania, 2018, Taxonomy, palynology and distribution notes of seven species of Passiflora L. (Passifloraceae s. s.) newly recorded from Brazil, PhytoKeys 95, pp. 1-14 : 8

Passiflora quelchii N.E. Br., Transactions of the Linnean Society of London, Botany 6: 31, pl. 3. 1901. Figs 2K, L , 3H, I

Descriptions.

Shrubs; tendrils absent. Stipules diminute, narrowly triangular, glabrous. Petioles with two glands on the terminal end of the adaxial side. Blades 11.3-18.8 × 2.6-4.8 cm, chartaceous, narrowly oblong to oblong-lanceolate, apex acute, base cuneate, glabrous on both sides; margins strongly undulate, with ca. three glands; 29-33 pairs of secondary veins, arcuate, conspicuous. Bracts diminute, triangular, verticillate, with marginal glands. Flowers arranged in racemose inflorescences, hypanthium cylindrical; sepals oblong-lanceolate; petals oblong-lanceolate; corona with 2 series of filaments, filaments of first series dolabriform, filaments of second series hair-like, apex entire or bifid, straight; operculum straight, non-tubular, included, filamentous with a fimbriate apex, 3.4-3.5 cm long; trochlea absent on the androgynophore; ovary oblongoid, glabrous. Fruits ca. 3.11 × 2.93 cm, orbicular, glabrous, green.

Palynology.

Pollen grains medium-sized (ca. 47.8 µm), prolate spheroidal, 6-colporate, colpi short, narrow, three endoaperture lalongate (ca. 8.7 × 17.0 µm) unique for each pair of ectoaperture, sexine reticulate, heterobrochate; muri (ca. 2.0 µm) duplicolumellate, sinuous, continuous, without perforations, columellae high, apparent, tectum surface mostly slightly curved, lumina ornamented with pila, large (ca. 15.2 µm diam.) (Fig. 3H, I ).

Specimens examined.

BRAZIL. Roraima: Cantá, Serra Grande , 2°32'53"S, 60°47'10"W, 554 m, 12 Nov 2014 [fl], R.C. Forzza et al. 8321 (RB) .

Distribution and ecology.

Found in savannahs from southwestern Guyana, being here recorded in the state of Roraima, municipality of Cantá, in the Serra Grande inselberg, around 554 m elevation. Beside the type specimens and the one recorded for Brazil, P. quelchii is only known by another specimen (i.e., Graham 342) from the Ireng District in Guyana ( Escobar 1990).

Taxonomic comments.

Passiflora quelchii belongs to P. subg. Astrophea sect. Capreolata . It can be distinguished by its shrubby habit and leaf-blades with undulate margins and inconspicuous in sicco. The included, non-tubular, filamentous operculum with fimbriate apex is characteristic to P. quelchii and easily differentiates it from closely related species. Passiflora quelchii possess type III pollen grains, with reticulate sexine forming large lumina ( Mezzonato-Pires et al. 2017).

Figures

Figure 2. Illustrations of leaves and flowers in longitudinal section. A, B Passiflora amoena (S. V. Costa Neto et al. 2818, HAMAB) C, D Passiflora fuchsiiflora (S. Sakagawa et al. 248, INPA) E, F Passiflora jussieui (D. C. Daly et al. 7423, UPCB) G, H Passiflora ovata (S. Sakagawa et al. 668, INPA) I, J Passiflora plumosa (C. A. Cid et al. 561, MG) K, L Passiflora quelchii (R. C. Forzza et al. 8321, RB) M, N Passiflora tessmannii (C. A. Sothers & E. C. Pereira 612, INPA).

Figure 3. Photomicrographs and electron photomicrographs of pollen grains of the species of Passiflora. A, B Passiflora amoena C, D Passiflora fuchsiiflora E, F Passiflora jussieui G, H Passiflora ovata I, J Passiflora quelchii K, L Passiflora tessmannii A, C, E, G, K general aspect of polar view B, F, H, I, L general aspect of equatorial view, D and J ornamentation detail. Scale bars: 10 µm (C, E, F, G, H, I, K, L); 5 µm (A, B, J); 1 µm (D).