Syagrus deflexa Noblick & Lorenzi (2010b: 19)

Noblick, Larry R., 2017, A revision of the genus Syagrus (Arecaceae), Phytotaxa 294 (1), pp. 448-450 : 448-450

15. Syagrus deflexa Noblick & Lorenzi (2010b: 19) . Type:— BRAZIL. Goiás: Alto Paraíso de Goiás, ca. 7 km from the town of Alto Paraíso de Goiás in the direction of Tocantins, entrance for the Hotel Fazenda Agua Clara. 1,360 m, –14.07, –47.51, 19 June 2008, R. Tsuji, H. Lorenzi, L.A. Ventura, L.R. Noblick 2691 (holotype HPL!, isotypes ESA!, FTG!, K!, NY!, RB!, SP!, UFG!, UB!)

Figures 21–22 plates, Figure 20 map.

Small to moderately-sized, clustering palm, rarely solitary, 0.5– 4 m. Stem 2–3 m × 6–10 cm, caulescent, generally arched, ringed but often covered with leaf base remains. Leaves 5–7 in the crown, 1–1.25 m long; sheath with fibrous margin 25–39 cm long; pseudopetiole 14–33 cm long; petiole ca. (4–)12–22 × 0.6–0.9 cm; rachis 52–85 cm long; leaflets, coriaceous, 39–50(–100) along each side, irregularly spaced, the majority in clusters of 2–5(–8), inserted in different planes, all strongly bent or deflexed downward, glaucous on the lower surface when young later becoming green; no ramenta scales or tomentum present where the leaflets are inserted on the rachis, and none along the abaxial midvein; basal leaflets (6.5–)21–34 × 0.1–0.4(–1.2) cm, middle leaflets 16–37 × 0.85–2 cm, apical leaflets (5–)14–29 × 0.2–0.5(–1.1) cm. Inflorescence erect or pendulous, spirally branched, rarely unilaterally branched in younger inflorescences; prophyll 12–24 × 1.4–3 cm; peduncular bract 34–90 cm long, expanded portion 22–30 × 4–7 cm, including a beak 0.5–1.5 cm, glaucous to short tomentose near the base; peduncle 12–18(–48?) cm × 5–9 mm, 4–6 mm thick, slightly flattened, ellipsoid in cross-section, covered with a silver lepidote to ferruginous indument; inflorescence axis 22–33 cm long; rachis 9–28 cm; rachillae 5–19, the apical ones are spiraled around the rachis (smaller inflorescences with rachillae sometimes arranged unilaterally similar to S. flexuosa ), 7–13 cm long at the apex, 15–29 cm at the base, lepidote to glabrous; staminate flowers ca. 7–10 mm long at the apex, 11–15 × ca. 3–4 mm at the base, sepals ca. 2–3 × 1–1.5 mm, glabrous, petals 6–11 × 2– 3 mm with acute to acuminate tips, glabrous to scattered lepidote pubescence, nerves indistinct to slightly raised, but usually obscure at the base, stamens (3.2–) 4.5–6.5 mm long, anthers 2.5–4.8 mm long, filaments ca. 1.0– 2.5 mm long; pistillate flowers elongate pyramidal, 9–12 × 5–7 mm at the apex, 12–20 × 8–10 mm at the base, yellow, lepidote especially near the base, sepals 14–19 × 7–7.5 mm with scattered lepidote scales especially at the base, visibly nerved, strongly keeled, petals 14–17 × 6.0– 8.5 mm slightly to distinctly nerved, sparsely lepidote, but more so at the base, valvate tips ca. ½–3/5 of the length of the petal, 5–9 mm long, pistil 6–14 × 3.5–6 mm, glabrous or

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NOBLICK A REVISION OF THE GENUS SYAGRUS

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NOBLICK with lepidote indument from the base of the pistil to nearly the base of the stigmas, stigmas 3–4 mm long, staminodal ring ca. 1–3.5 mm high, 6-dentate. Fruit ellipsoid, (1.3–)3.0–4.5 × 1.5–2.0 cm (still immature, probably a bit larger), lepidote or somewhat tomentose at the tip, but otherwise glabrous, with an apical beak, yellowish-green, epicarp less than 0.5 mm thick, mesocarp ca. 2 mm thick, sweet, succulent and fibrous; endocarp ca. 3.2 × 1.6–1.7 cm, 3–4 mm thick; seed ellipsoid ca.1.2–1.5 × 1.0 cm with endosperm homogeneous. Germination remote-tubular.

Common name:— acumã-branco, licuri-da-serra (Kalunga).

Etymology:— The specific epithet, deflexa , is derived from the fact that all of the leaflets are bent downwards; deflexed.

Distribution and habitat:— This palm is endemic to northern Goiás, Brazil, in the Chapada dos Veadeiros region, in campo rupestre and cerrado vegetation in the sandy, rocky soils between Alto Paraíso de Goiás and Teresina de Goiás.

Conservation:— This species is protected within the boundaries of a national park (Chapada dos Veadeiros ) and grows in very rocky soils in inaccessible areas that are not agriculturally valuable. Therefore, it is classified as least concern, LC.

Phenology:— Flowering January to June and maturing fruits April through November. There were flowers and immature fruits in June.

Uses:— The mesocarp of the fruit is edible, in spite of being mucilaginous, as are the seeds. The dry leaves are used as kindling for fires. The plant is ornamentally attractive because of its clustering habit and deflexed leaflets and maybe a candidate for cultivation.

Notes:— This attractive clustering palm is easily identified by its unique strongly deflexed leaflets. The rachillae are spirally arranged around the rachis, but in younger plants the rachillae are often unilaterally arranged, which may cause some confusion between this species and the dried material of S. flexuosa and S. campestris .

Harri Lorenzi discovered this palm in the Chapada dos Veadeiros region, in the Municipio of Alto Paraíso de Goiás and brought it to the author’s attention in 2005. However he was not the first to collect it. It has probably been collected and misidentified in most herbaria as Syagrus flexuosa . In a pressed specimen, the deflexed leaflets that so easily separate this species from S. flexuosa , which may be a close relative, are not apparent. Finding this species has forced the author to re-examine the S. flexuosa complex, which includes palms with unilateral inflorescences, with caulescent, procumbent or acaulescent stems, with pendulous or stiff leaflets varying in texture from membranaceous to coriaceous, including S. campestris , the former S. urbaniana and others that have yet to be distinguished. Syagrus campestris appears to be a distinct species, even though Glassman (1969) synonymized it. Although Glassman examined over 50 herbarium specimens, he never saw the important differences in the habit and in the texture of the leaves that are obvious in living plants. Syagrus campestris and S. deflexa have restricted ranges (eastern Minas Gerais for S. campestris and northern Goiás for S. deflexa ), while S. flexuosa has a larger range. Syagrus campestris and S. deflexa have more coriaceous leaflets that tend to stay rigid and straight on the live plant and even after drying, while S. flexuosa has thinner membranaceous leaflets that tend to curl in from the sides when drying and are more pendulous on the plant. In S. deflexa , the primary branches of the inflorescence are spirally arranged on the rachis (with the exception of younger plants where they are sometimes unilaterally arranged). In both S. flexuosa and S. campestris the primary branches are always unilaterally arranged, giving it that distinctive “wind-blown” appearance.

Representative specimens:— BRAZIL. Goiás: Alto Paraíso de Goiás, Chapada dos Veadeiros , 30 May 1994, S. Bridgewater S210 ( UB!) ; Alto Paraíso de Goiás, Chapada dos Veadeiros, 1500 –1700, –14.12, –47.52, 16 February 1979, F. Cardosa 70 ( UB!) ; Alto Paraíso de Goiás; Estradinha de terra a 3 km N de Alto Paraíso de Goiás, 1380 m, –14.13, –47.45, 14 March 1995, T.B. Cavalcanti et al. 1312, 1313 ( CEN) ; Alto Paraíso de Goiás , –14.13, –47.51, 1 December 1992, G. Hatschbach 58346 ( MBM!) ; Alto Paraíso de Goiás, Chapada dos Veadeiros , ca. 15 km W of Veadeiros, 1000 m, –14.13, –47.51, 13 February 1966, H.S. Irwin et al. 12766 ( BH, F!, MO, NY, UB!, US) ; Alto Paraíso de Goiás, Chapada dos Veadeiros , ca. 19 km N of Alto do Paraíso, 1250 m, –14.13, –47.51, 20 March 1971, H.S. Irwin et al. 32828, 32833 ( MO, NY, UB!) ; Alto Paraíso de Goiás, RPPN Mata Funda , 5 July 1998, R.C. Mendona 3568 ( UB!) ; Alto Paraíso de Goiás, Estrada para a estação de tratamento de água, ca. 1, 5 km da entrada lateral ao posto na margem da GO-118, 1150 m, –14.14, –47.53, 22 January 2005, J. Paula-Souza et al. 4441 ( ESA!) ; Alto Paraíso de Goiás, Fazenda São Bento, 1200 m, –14.16, –47.61, 21 October 2005, Pinto & E.O. Lenza 356 ( UB!) ; Alto Paraíso de Goiás, Chapada dos Veadeiros , ca. 21 km N de Alto Paraíso de Goiás na Rodovia

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Phytotaxa 294 (1) © 2017 Magnolia Press • 67 GO 118, –13.97, –47.45, 8 February 1987, J.R. Pirani et al. 1892 (K, SPF!) ; Alto Paraíso de Goiás, Chapada dos Veadeiros , GO-118 ca. 5 km de Alto Paraíso na estrada para Travessa se Goiás , 1553 m, –14.12, –47.52, 31 October 2010, L.P. de Queiroz et al. 15177 ( HUEFS!) ; Alto Paraíso de Goiás, Chapada dos Veadeiros , 30 November 1971, J.A. Rizzo 7256 ( UFG!) ; Alto Paraíso [de Goiás], Chapada dos Veadeiros , 4 January 1972, J.A. Rizzo 7379 ( UFG!) ; Alto Paraíso de Goias, Chapada dos Veadeiros-Cerrado. 4 February 1972, J.A. Rizzo 7575 ( UFG!) ; Alto Paraíso de Goias, Chapada dos Veadeiros-Cerrado. 2 March 1972, J.A. Rizzo 7804 ( UFG!) ; Alto Paraíso de Goiás; Margem da rodovia GO -118, 2, 8 km após Alto Paraíso , 1410 m, –14.00, –47.33, 9 March 1988, A.O. Scariot & J.N. da Silveira. 23 ( CEN) ; Alto Paraíso de Goias, ca. 5 km da cidade na estrada de terra para acesso ao Hotel Fazenda Água Clara , 4 February 2008, R. Tsuji & R. Pimenta 2726 ( HPL!) ; Alto Paraíso de Goiás, em beira da estrada sentido TO, ca. 3 km da cidade, 7 May 2008, R. Tsuji & E. Franco 2620 ( HPL!) ; Alto Paraíso de Goiás, próximo ao Hotel Carmelot, saindo de Atlo Paraiso (sentido TO) , lado direito, 1280 m, –14.13, –47.52, 19 June 2008, R. Tsuji et al. 2690 (paratype HPL!) ; Cavalcante, caminho para Vão do Moleque, 15–16 km da cidade a partu do asfalto, –13.66, –47.48, 21 May 2011, J.B. Bringel & J.F.B. Pastore 785 (UB!); Cavalcante , – 13.80, –47.46, 26 May 1975, G. Hatschbach 36872 (F!, MBM!) ; Cavalcante, Parque Nacional da Chapada dos Veadeiros. Alto do Cruzeiro , –13.94, –47.70, 15 April 2009, G. Martinelli 16447 ( RB) ; Cavalcante, comunidade Kalunga , Engeho II, –13.58, –47.47, 20 September 2009, R.C. Martins et al. 1042 (UB!); Cavalcante, Próximo ao Córrego Quebra-coco, 16 January 2010, R.C. Martins 1062 (UB!); Cavalcante, Beira da estrada entre o Engenho II e o Brocotó, 17 January 2010, R.C. Martins 1067 (UB!); Cavalcante, Estrada para Minaçu, cabeceira das Covas, 27 February 2010, R.C. Martins 1074 (UB!); Teresina de Goiás, 31 km by road S of Terezina; ca. 40 km N of Alto Paraíso. Chapada dos Veadeiros , 1500 m, –13.78, –47.26, 16 March 1973, W.R. Anderson 7175 ( NY!, UB!); Teresina de Goiás, na Rodovia GO 118 p/ Alto Paraíso, km 215 (ca. 35 km da cidade de Alto Paraíso ) , 1140 m, – 13.87, –47.34, 7 March 2009, H. Lorenzi et al. 6648 ( HPL!) .

Figures

FIGURE 20. Distribution maps of Syagrus coronata, S. deflexa, S. duartei, S. elata, S. emasensis and S. evansiana.

FIGURE 21. Syagrus deflexa. A. Habit. B. Leaf. C. Deflexed leaflets. D. Inflorescence. E. Portion of a primary branch with staminate flowers. F. Infructescence. G–I. Pistillate flowers. J–K. Staminate flowers. L. Fruit. M. Endocarp. A–D drawn from images taken by L. Noblick, E–L drawn from R. Tsuji et al. 2691. All scales are in centimeters except A and B which are in decimeters. Drawn by Wes Jurgens.

FIGURE 22. Syagrus deflexa. A. Clustering habit. B. Inflorescence. C. Solitary habit. D. Flowers. First 5 on left are staminate followed by a pistil and an unopen pistillate flower. Flowers on the right are pistillate flower or pistillate flower parts terminating at the bottom with another pistil. E. Whitish waxy bloom on the underside of the leaflets. F. Infructescence spirally branched. G. Leaf with characteristic deflexed leaflets. H. Close of immature fruit. All grids are in centimeters.