Eugenia veadeirensis Villarroel & Faria, 2018

Villarroel, Daniel, Faria, Jair E. Q., Quevedo, Ana W., Lopez, Mercy, Miranda, Vanessa, Klitgaard, Bente B. & Proença, Carolyn E. B., 2018, Eugenia veadeirensis, a new species of Myrtaceae from the highlands of Goiás (Central Brazil) and new miscellaneous records for the Brazilian flora, Phytotaxa 373 (4), pp. 283-290 : 284-287

Eugenia veadeirensis Villarroel & Faria , sp. nov. ( Figures 1 and 2 ).

Type:— BRAZIL. Goiás: Alto Paraíso de Goiás, bairro na entrada de Alto Paraíso de Goiás, vindo de Brasília, 14º08’43”S, 47º31’17”W,

16 May 2015 (fl.), J. E. Q. Faria, D. Villarroel & M. Mendoza 4259 (holotype UB!, isotypes HUFSJ!, RB!, USZ!).

Eugenia veadeirensis is related to E. michaelneei , differentiating by having glabrous stems, with papyraceous bark that is detached in longitudinal laminae (versus stems covered with whitish hairs, when mature grayish and glabrescent, with smooth rhytidome and which does not flake in E. michaelneei ); midvein of the leaf blade sulcate in the basal portion and becoming plane in the distal portion on adaxial surface (vs. biconvex and glabrous on the upper surface); pedicels 1–1.5 cm long (vs. 0.3–0.7 cm long); stamens 50–70 (vs.>100); ovules 5–8 per locule (vs. 8–11 per locule); and fruit yellow-orange when mature (vs. black when mature).

Subshrub up to 0.15 m tall, growing in scattered groups, generally connected by a horizontal woody xylopodium; xylopodium cylindrical with shell rhytidome; stems arising from the base, 2–6, erect, flattened, usually unbranched or rarely branched, glabrous, with papyraceous rhytidome that is detached in longitudinal laminae. Leaves 2.5–4.5 (–5) × (1–) 1.5–2 cm, opposite, inflexed, subsessile, elliptical or oblong; apex obtuse or rounded, sometimes acute; base obtuse or rounded; texture sub-coriaceous; upper surface and lower surface glabrous, the glands visible and dispersed on both surfaces, 9–16 per mm 2; surfaces discolorous, upper surface opaque green, lower surface light opaque green; margin entire and slightly revolute; midvein sulcate in the basal portion and becoming plane in the distal portion on adaxial surface, prominent on the abaxial surface; lateral veins 5–8 pairs, prominent on both surface; brochidodromous forming a marginal vein ca. 1–1.5 mm from the edge; petiole 0.1–2 mm long, glabrate. Inflorescence fasciculiform, axillary, from the base to the apex of the branches, one per axil, with 1–2 pairs of flowers per inflorescence; the axis is absent in flowering material but sometimes developed in fruiting one, in this case the axis 1.5–3 mm; bracts 0.7–1 × 0.5–0.8 mm, persistent in the fruits, concave, triangular, pulverulent and with strigose hairs scattered on both surface, the margin not ciliate; pedicels 1–1.5 cm long, glabrous, with glands visible; bracteoles 0.8–1 × 0.7–1 mm, persistent in the fruits, concave, deltoid to orbicular, abaxially glabrous, adaxially pulverulent, the margin ciliate and with strigose hairs at apex; flower buds 3–4 × 3 mm, pyriform, glabrous, when very young light green, passing to reddish wine; hypanthium ca. 2–2.2 mm long from the base of the ovary to the base of the staminal disk, glabrous; calyx 4-lobed, persistent in the fruits, the lobes equals in size, 1–1.2 mm long and 1.5–1.8 mm wide at the base, concave, orbicular, the apex rounded, both surface glabrous, the outer surface with visible glands, the margin ciliate; petals 4, 3.5–4.5 × 3–4 mm, concave, orbicular, glabrous on both surface sand with glands visible, the margin ciliate, reddish wine at the base and white at the apex; stamens 50–70, arranged in 2–3 irregular whorls; filaments 2.5–3.5 mm long; anthers 0.5–0.7 mm long, oblong, dorsifixed, with an apical gland; style 5–6 mm long, glabrous, the stigma punctiform; ovary 2-locular, ovules 5–8 per locule. Fruits 0.8–1 × 0.6–0.8 cm, ellipsoid, glabrous, green when immature and yellow-orange when mature; calyx lobes patents; seed 1, the testa membranaceous, the embryo reniform with scattered impressed glands.

Paratype:— BRAZIL. Goiás: Chapada dos Veadeiros. 50 km de Alto Paraíso/Teresina de Goiás, próximo ao aeroporto, 28 July 1994, fr., M. Aparecida da Silva et al. 2116 ( IBGE, UB!).

Distribution, habitat and phenology:— Eugenia veadeirensis was collected in the surroundings of the Chapada dos Veadeiros national park, in the municipalities of Alto Paraíso de Goiás and Teresina de Goiás (state of Goiás, Brazil).

The species grows in Cerrado sensu stricto, between 1250–1350 m elev. The specimen with flowers was collected in May, and with fruits in July.

Etymology:—The epithet alludes to the locality of the type specimen of the species.

Conservation status:— Eugenia veadeirensis is known from only two collections from the surroundings of the city of Alto Paraiso de Goiás (Goiás, Brazil), where much of the natural vegetation has been replaced by introduced pastures and urban expansion. However, it is very likely that it is also present throughout the region, not having been collected because it is not very visible. Based on current information of the species and the characteristics of its habitat, E. veadeirensis should be considered Vulnerable (VU) according to IUCN conservation criteria (IUCN 2011), since its area of occupation is less than 2000 km 2, it is known only from two localities and their populations are severely fragmented (B2a).

Affinities:— Eugenia veadeirensis is a species similar to E. michaelneei ( Villarroel et al. 2016) , both being part of Eugenia sect. Umbellatae O. Berg (1856: 204) , mainly for having flowers in umbelliform racemes ( Mazine et al. 2016). However, these two species have a series of vegetative and reproductive characteristics, and a biogeographical distribution that distinguish them (see differential diagnosis and Table 1).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Eugenia veadeirensis. A. General habit (J.E.Q. Faria et al. 4529; Holotype). B. Fruit (M. Aparecida da Silva et al. 2116; Paratype).

FIGURE 2. Eugenia veadeirensis in the field (J.E.Q. Faria et al. 4529). A. General habit. B. Branch with flower buds. C. Branch with open flower.