Anthurium knopflmacherianum Díaz Jim. & Croat, 2023

Jiménez, Pedro Díaz, Carrera-Sánchez, Edith, Croat, Thomas B., Pérez-Farrera, Miguel Ángel, Gómez-Marín, Francisco J., Hentrich, Heiko & Aguilar-Rodríguez, Pedro A., 2023, A new species of Anthurium sect. Cordato-punctatum (Araceae) from Veracruz, Mexico, Phytotaxa 597 (3), pp. 231-236 : 233-235

Anthurium knopflmacherianum Díaz Jim. & Croat , sp. nov.

( Fig. 2 ).

Anthurium knopflmacherianum is morphologically similar to A. verapazense but differs from that species in having longer geniculum (up to 6 cm vs. less than 4.5 cm), shorter anterior lobe (23–33 vs. 24–49 cm), inflorescence with shorter peduncle (<50 vs.> 50 cm) and shorter spadix (up to 12.5 cm vs. up to 29 cm), olive-green at anthesis (vs. violet-purple). It also be confused with A. lucens Standl. ex Yuncker (in Yuncker 1938: 317), but that species differs in having shorter geniculum, violet-purple spadix at anthesis and pistils weakly raised at anthesis.

Type:— MEXICO. Veracruz: Municipio Catemaco, Reserva ecológica “ La Otra Opción A.C. ”, Bosque mesófilo, 18°22’28”N, 094°55’30”W, 1063 m, 26 June 2020, Edith Carrera Sánchez & Alex Javier Martínez García 01 (holotype: XAL!, isotype HEM!) .

Terrestrial; stems to 19 cm long, 2.0– 3.5 cm diam.; leaf scars 1.5–2.2 cm wide; roots thick, 2–5 mm diam., greenish, brown or whitish; cataphylls coriaceous, 3.2–5.5 cm long, whitish, the apex acute, drying brown, weathering to fibrous network at the base, persisting. Leaves erect; petioles erect to spreading, 25.0– 38.5 cm long, 4.0– 5.5 cm diam., terete, shallowly and acutely sulcate, green to yellowish-green; geniculum 3–6 cm long, 6–7 mm diam., (sometimes adaxially acutely sulcate), light green; blades triangular to ovate-triangular, sometimes gradually acuminate at apex, coriaceous, acuminate at apex, deeply lobed at base, 31.0– 40.5 cm long, 17.5–22.0 cm wide (at the base); anterior lobe 23–33 cm long, the margins concave to straight or sometimes convex; posterior lobes 6.0– 8.2 cm long, 6.0– 9.5 cm wide, rounded at apex; sinus parabolic, sometimes triangular or hippocrepiform, acute or rounded at apex; upper surface dark green, strongly glossy; lower surface light green, glossy, the lower surface not very densely punctate, more densely towards the margins of the blades; midrib raised above, diminished and flat at apex, acutely raised below, dark green above and light green below; basal veins 4–5 pairs, the first free to base, departing midrib at 35–40° angle, the second to the third coalesced 4–6 mm, third to the fourth and fifth 1.0– 1.5 cm, light green below; posterior ribs naked; primary lateral veins 6–8 per side, departing midrib at 25–40° angle, sunken or flat above, raised below, yellowish green above and light green, interprimary veins sunken or flat above, flat below; collective veins arising from first basal vein, sometimes from the primary veins, sunken above, raised below, 0.5–1.3 cm from margin. Inflorescence erect-spreading; peduncle 40.3 cm long, 4 mm diam., terete, yellowish-green; spathe reflexed, oblong-lanceolate, thin, yellowish-green, 9.5 cm long, 1.6 cm wide, acuminate at apex, rounded to at the base, inserted at 50° angle on peduncle; spadix tapered, sessile, olive-green at anthesis, 12.5 cm long, 6.5 mm diam. at the base, 4.5 mm diam. at the apex. Flowers rhombic 2.5–3.3 mm wide, 2.0–3.2 long longitudinally, the sides sigmoid; 4–5 flowers visible in the principal spiral, 6–7 flowers visible in the alternate spiral; tepals yellowish-green, papillate minutely, the lateral tepals 1.3–1.8 mm wide, the inner margin ± straight; pistils not emergent, light purplish in front, 1–1.5 mm long longitudinally, stigma oblong, 0.1–0.2 mm long; thecae ellipsoid, 0.1–0.2 mm long, yellowish; pollen yellowish. Infructescence pendent; spadix up to 22 cm long, 2.9 cm diam. Berries, globose, subglobose to obovoid, glossy red at maturity, 9–15 mm long, 8.5–12.0 mm wide; seeds 1 or 2, ± flattened, oblong, covered with a sticky and transparent mucilage, 4.0– 5.3 mm long, 2.5–4.0 mm wide.

Distribution, habitat, phenology and conservation status: — Anthurium knopflmacherianum is endemic to the Los Tuxtlas region, Mexico. It is known from the Ecological Reserve “La Otra Opción A.C.”, which is located on the slopes of the Santa Marta volcano, municipality of Catemaco, Veracruz ( Fig. 1 ). It grows in the understory in montane cloud forest and transitional forest between in high evergreen rainforest and montane cloud forest, between 1000–1200 m. The specimens with inflorescence were collected between June and August. According to the few individuals collected and the small area where they were found (less than 5 hectares), in addition to deforestation in its surroundings, considering that the species was found in the buffer zone of the Los Tuxtlas biosphere reserve, the species can be considered as critically endangered species [CR B2ab(ii,iii,iv,v)] ( IUCN 2012).

Eponymy: —The new species is named in honor of Arturo Miguel Knopflmacher Basañez, owner of the ecological reserve “La Otra Opción A.C.”, in recognition of all his efforts to support the restoration and recovery of ecosystems in the region of Los Tuxtlas, Veracruz, México.

Notes: — Anthurium knopflmacherianum represents the seventh taxa of the section Cordato-punctatum in Mexico and the eighth for Central America ( Croat & Carlsen 2020; Croat et al. unpubl. data). This new species is terrestrial, growing frequently in the understory between 1000 and 1200 m. It is characterized by having a sulcate petiole, long geniculum (up to 6 cm), peduncle less than 50 cm long, triangular to ovate-triangular blades, a parabolic, triangular or hippocrepiform sinus, the lower surface more densely punctate towards margins of the blades, olive-green spadix at anthesis and its berries ripen glossy red. It is most closely related to A. verapazense , a species usually epiphytic or epipetric ( Croat 1983; Díaz Jiménez, pers. obs.), but that species has a shorter geniculum (up to 4 cm), an inflorescence with a longer peduncle up to 90 cm long, and a long spadix, violet-purple at anthesis ( Croat 1983). It is also morphologically similar to A. lucens , but this species has purple spadix at anthesis, similar to A. verapazense , and its pistils emerge weakly ( Croat 1983). Anthurium knopflmacherianum is the second species in the section Cordato-punctatum with an olive-green spadix at anthesis ( Croat 1983).

Anthurium knopflmacherianum represents the third species of Araceae recently described for the Los Tuxtlas region, one of the regions considered to be one of the most studied in Mexico, raising the number to 12 species in the region ( Guevara et al. 2004; Acebey & Krömer 2008; Díaz Jiménez et al. 2020; Díaz Jiménez et al. 2021). This finding demonstrates the importance of exploring poorly explored areas, particularly the Sierra de Santa Marta and its surroundings. The ecological reserve “La Otra Opción A.C.” where A. knopflmacherianum was collected, is located in an area previously used for cattle raising within the buffer zone of the Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve. The effort of its owner has been important for its recovery for more than 15 years.

Additional specimens examined (paratypes): — MEXICO. Veracruz: Municipio Catemaco, Reserva ecológica “La Otra Opción”, 18°37’22”N, 094°92’56”W, 1120 m, 03 June 2021, Alex Javier Martínez García 01 (HEM!); 18°37’56”N, 094°92’40”W, 1110 m, 24 June 2021, Alex Javier Martínez García & Edith Carrera Sánchez 02 (HEM!); 18°37’51”N, 094°92’12”W, 1147 m, 04 August 2021, Alex Javier Martínez García 03 (HEM!).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Map showing the collection site (red dots) of Anthurium knopflmacherianum in the region of Los Tuxtlas, Veracruz, Mexico.

FIGURE 2. Anthurium knopflmacherianum. A. Adult plant in its habit; B. Adaxial view of the leaf blade and the inflorescence with its green spadix. The blade shows the upper surface dark green and strongly glossy, the margin of anterior lobe concave and its parabolic sinus; C. Geniculum showing its length and its green coloration; D. Partial view of a portion of the blade showing the lower surface punctate; E. Partial view of a portion of the spadix showing its olive-green color, pistils non-emergent, oblong stigma, and anthers with yellow pollen. Photos:A and E: Edith Carrera-Sánchez; B, C and D: Pedro Díaz Jiménez.