Tillandsioideae, Harms, 1930

Leme, Elton M. C., Halbritter, Heidemarie & Barfuss, Michael H. J., 2017, Waltillia, a new monotypic genus in Tillandsioideae (Bromeliaceae) arises from a rediscovered, allegedly extinct species from Brazil, Phytotaxa 299 (1), pp. 1-35 : 31-32

Key to eastern Brazilian Tillandsioideae genera

The recent revision of Tillandsioideae proposed by Barfuss et al. (2016), with profound changes in generic concepts, as well as the establishment of several new ones, recommends the elaboration of an identification key to the tillandsioid genera occurring in Brazil. The identification key presented here, which encompasses the new genus Waltillia not included in that revision, provides an overview of the key characters of the eastern Brazilian genera based on Barfuss et al. (2016).

1 Sepals strongly asymmetric and seeds with a plumose flight apparatus formed at the apical end by multicellular hair folded at maturity, and a multicellular, undivided plume at the basal end; ovary 1/8 inferior to completely superior......................... Catopsis

- Sepals symmetric or nearly so, if strongly asymmetric then seeds with divided, well developed plumose appendage at the basal end forming the flight apparatus and usually undivided, straight appendage at the apical end, or apical appendage lacking; ovary 1/8 to 1/2 inferior ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 2.

2 Seeds with long appendages on both ends, appendage at the basal end equalling to distinctly shorter than the well-developed appendage at the apical end............................................................................................................................................................... 3.

- Seeds with usually well-developed appendage at the basal end many times longer than the inconspicuous appendage at the apical end, or appendage at the apical end lacking...................................................................................................................................... 4.

3 Plants with prevailingly epilithic or saxicolous habit in well drained terrains; petals 10 to 15 times longer than wide, not forming a campanulate corolla, ephemeral and becoming flaccidescent after anthesis, bearing well developed basal appendages; pollen without any or with only small and low ornamental elements on the sulcus, which has sharply cut margins; anthers with the line of dehiscence on the pollen sacs prevailing lateral (latrorse dehiscence), the opposed margins of the pollen sacs becoming strongly recurved and touching each other and completely hiding the connective at anthesis; stigma of the conduplicate-erect or conduplicate-patent type, white......................................................................................................................................... Alcantarea

- Plants with terrestrial (including saxicolous) habit associated with margins of running streams or periodically soaked soils; petals 4 to 6 times longer than wide, forming a narrow campanulate corolla, persistent and becoming erect after anthesis, unappendaged; pollen with a sulcus covered by a kind of operculum of almost smooth exine elements, the sulcus margins moderately to weakly defined; anthers with the line of dehiscence on the pollen sacs prevailing frontal (introrse dehiscence), the connective area completely exposed and not covered by the margins of the pollen sacs at anthesis; stigma of the convolute-blades II type, green... ................................................................................................................................................................................................ Waltillia

4 Petals bearing well developed basal appendages or rarely unappendaged, totally free or shortly connate at the base only; stigma of the convolute-blade II, tubo-laciniate or cupulate type ..................................................................................................................... 5.

- Petals unappendaged; stigma of the conduplicate-pinnatisect, conduplicate-spiral, coralliform, simple-erect, simple-patent, simpletruncate type, or if of the convolute-blade I type then petals conglutinated/connate into a distinct tube ......................................... 7 .

5 Stigma of the cupulate type; Amazonian distribution .......................................................................................................... Werauhia

- Stigma of the convolute-blade II or tubo-laciniate type; usually non Amazonian distribution......................................................... 6.

6 Epilithic exclusive on vertical granitic surfaces; leaves semi-xeromorphic or xeromorphic; stigma of the tubo-laciniate type ......... ......................................................................................................................................................................................... Stigmatodon

- Epiphytic, terrestrial or epilithic on more or less horizontal rocky outcrops, rarely in vertical rocky surfaces; leaves often mesomorphic, rarely semi-xeromorphic; stigma of the convolute-blade II type .................................................................... Vriesea

7 Petals conglutinated/connate into a distinct tube; seeds with usually brown plumose basal appendage............................ Guzmania

- Petals free; seeds with white plumose basal appendage.................................................................................................................... 8.

8 Sepals strongly asymmetric.................................................................................................................................................. Racinaea

- Sepals symmetric............................................................................................................................................................................... 9.

9 Petals basally constricted into a claw, with usually strongly, rarely slightly enlarged spreading blades, forming a salverform corolla; stamens deeply included within the corolla; style shorter than the ovary; seeds without apical appendage .................................. 10.

- Petals usually not basally constricted, much longer than broad, usually with erect often revolute apex and margins, or slightly cucullate, usually forming a tubular corolla or blades spreading to recurved, if rarely basally constricted into a claw with enlarged, spreading blades forming a salverform corolla, then plants xeromorphic; stamens included or exserted from the corolla; style usually much longer or rarely as long as or shorter than the ovary; seeds with a short to long apical appendage ............. Tillandsia

10 Leaves mostly conspicuously longitudinally reddish-brown striped near the base; petals blue to violet, rarely light blue to whitish; stigma of the conduplicate-pinnatisect type; ovules slenderly cylindric................................................................................ Wallisia

- Leaves not longitudinally striped; petals white or rarely yellowish; stigma of the coralliform type; ovules clavate ...... Lemeltonia