Croton reitzii Smith & Downs (1959: 152)

Pereira, Amanda Da Paixão Noronha, Riina, Ricarda & Caruzo, Maria Beatriz Rossi, 2022, Croton (Euphorbiaceae) of the Brazilian state of Paraná: an annotated checklist, species distribution, and identification key, Phytotaxa 570 (3), pp. 231-274 : 256

28. Croton reitzii Smith & Downs (1959: 152) .

Type: — BRAZIL. Santa Catarina: Canoinhas, 19 km ao oeste de Canoinhas no caminho para Porto União , 17 December 1956, L.B. Smith & R. Reitz 8590 (holotype US 2249814 !; isotypes K 000254430!, NY 00262942!, R 000200949!, UC 1079899!) . (Illustration available in Smith et al. 1988, p. 100)

Due to its congested inflorescences and dense indumentum, this shrub may resemble members of Croton sect. Julocroton , which justifies the comparison made by Smith & Downs (1959) with C. calocephalus Müller Argoviensis (1865:121) . However, C. reitzii can be distinguished from all species in section Julocroton by its leaves with basilaminar nectary glands and its inflated, trilobed columella (both characters absent in sect. Julocroton ). Collections of C. reitzii have been misidentified in some herbaria as C. lanatus , but they can be differentiated by several vegetative and reproductive characters (see under C. lanatus and Table 2 ). Croton reitzii belongs to section Adenophylli subsect. Meridionalis ( van Ee & Berry 2021) .

Distribution and habitat:— It occurs in southern (PR, RS, SC) and southeastern (SP) Brazil ( Smith et al. 1988, Caruzo et al. 2020), where it grows in borders of Araucaria forest , rarely in open vegetation, between 475 and 1155 m elevation. ( Fig. 14 ).

Phenology:— Flowering and fruiting throughout the year, except August.

Material selected:— PARANÁ: Dois Vizinhos, campus da UTFPR , 10 November 2007, E . L . Siqueira 91 ( HCF, MBM). Campo Mourão, Parque Estadual do Lago Azul , 03 March 2007, A . R . Silva 276 ( HCF, RB). Campo Largo, Serra São Luís do Purunã , 07 April 1946, G . Hatschbach 263 ( MBM). Castro, Parque Estadual do Caxambu , 05 November 1988, R . M . Britez 2045 ( MBM). Florestópolis , arredores, 22 July 2001, J . Carneiro 1129 ( MBM) .

Figures

FIGURE 14. Map showing the known geographic distributions of Croton myrianthus, C. polygonoides, C. pycnocephalus, and C. reitzii in Paraná state.