Diploon cuspidatum ( Hoehne 1933: 302 ) Cronquist (1946: 466)

Völtz, Rafael R., Alves-Araújo, Anderson & Goldenberg, Renato, 2020, Native Species of Sapotaceae Juss. in Paraná, Brazil, Phytotaxa 430 (4), pp. 224-276 : 241-242

2.1 Diploon cuspidatum ( Hoehne 1933: 302) Cronquist (1946: 466) . Figure 10

Trunk sections cylindrical or slightly fluted, buttressed; bark light-brown to reddish-brown, scaly, scales papyraceous, rectangular; slash light-yellow-orange, tangential section with longitudinal streaks, not discoloured, with abundant or seldom scanty latex. Stems grayish, not lenticellate, slightly fissured, rounded, sericeous-tomentose, pubescent or glabrescent at first, soon glabrous. Petiole 2.5–6.5 mm long, slightly grooved, glabrescent or glabrous. Leaf blade chartaceous, 5.0–10.5 × 1.5–4.0 cm, narrow-elliptic or narrow-oblong, apex long acuminte, base acute to slightly decurrent, adaxial surface glabrous, abaxial surface glabrescent or glabrous, midrib flat or slightly raised on the adaxial surface, raised on the abaxial surface, secondaries 13–24 pairs, secondaries and tertiaries flat or slightly sunken on the adaxial surface, flat or slightly raised on the abaxial surface. Inflorescences 2–10-flowered. Pedicel 1.0–4.0 mm long, tomentose. Flowers whitish to cream in vivo; sepals 1.2–1.8 mm long, ovate, apex rounded, margin entire, abaxial surface tomentose or pubescent, adaxial surface with sparse hairs, without a broad glabrous marginal stripe; corolla 2.1–3.6 mm long, tube 0.4–1.2 mm long, lobes 1.6–2.6 mm long, ovate, apex rounded; filaments 0.7–1.4 mm long, glabrous, anthers 0.6–0.9 mm long, glabrous; ovary ca. 0.8 mm long, ovoid, style 0.3–0.7 mm long, glabrous, stigma simple. Fruit ripening black, ca. 2.2 × 1.9 cm, globose, exocarp coriaceus, mesocarp fleshy, endocarp gelatinous, calyx persistent. Seed 1.5 × 1.2 cm; scar 6.7–7.9 mm long, rounded.

Selected material: — BRAZIL. Paraná: Guaraqueçaba, 13 November 1994, S.F. Athayde 200 ( UPCB). Guaraqueçaba, 4August 2017, R.R.Völtz 1302 ( EFC, HCF, MBM, NY, RB, UPCB, VIES). Guaraqueçaba, 1 September 2017, R.R.Völtz 1367 ( EFC, NY, RB, UPCB). Guaraqueçaba, 9 January 2018, R.R.Völtz 1465 ( EFC, MBM, NY, RB, SP, UPCB, VIES). Morretes, 12 August 1968, G.G. Hatschbach 19595 ( MBM, INPA, RB, UEC, UPCB). Morretes, 24 January 1969, G.G. Hatschbach 20921 ( MBM, NY).

Additional selected material: — BRAZIL. Santa Catarina: Joinville, 27 September 2013, M.E. Engels 1667 ( MBM). São Paulo: Pariquera-Açu, 21 September 1996, N.M. Ivanauskas 894 ( MBM, UEC). São Paulo, 28 September 1960, O. Handro 956 ( HUEFS, MBM).

In Paraná Diploon cuspidatum occurs in the Atlantic coast mountainous regions and Serra do Mar on hill slopes up to 700 m elev., in Submontane Atlantic Rain Forest. Collected with flowers in August and September and with fruits in December and January. It can be recognized by the leaves spaced, alternate and distichous, long acuminate apex, a venation pattern that gives the leaves a striate appearance, and the slash with a yellowish-brown ring below the bark that distinguishes it from the light-yellow-orange inner bark. The ripening fruit is black and has a sweet jelly adherent to the seed. During the fruiting period, abundant fruits can be observed on the ground around the tree.

Conservation Status: —This species was listed as “Not evaluated” ( NE) by CNCFlora (2018). In Paraná D. cuspidatum is irregularly distributed along the Atlantic Rain Forest and most of the populations are in protected areas. The loss of habitat to agriculture or urbanization is the main problem to its conservation.

Figures

FIGURE 10. Diploon cuspidatum. A. Habit. B. Bark. C. Slash. D. Abaxial surface of the leaf. E. Flower, longitudinal section. F. Upper view of the flower. G. Lateral and frontal view of the seed. H. Fruit. I. Stem with fruit. J. Detail of the venation. K. Flower in vivo. (A–D from R.R. Völtz 1464; E–F, K from R.R. Völtz 1367; G–H, J from R.R. Völtz 1465; I from G.G. Hatschbach 20921) (ov: ovary; sc: seed scar; st: stamen).