Anisophyllea mayumbensis Exell (1928: 163)

Chen, Xin, He, Hai & Zhang, Li-Bing, 2015, A monograph of the Anisophylleaceae (Cucurbitales) with description of 18 new species of Anisophyllea, Phytotaxa 229 (1), pp. 448-450 : 448-450

40. Anisophyllea mayumbensis Exell (1928: 163) ( Figure 78 )

Type:— ANGOLA. Cabinda: near Caio, Hombe , Rio Lufo , Mayumbe , 23 April 1919, M. J. Gossweiler 8019 (lectotype K-000075952!, here designated, isolectotypes BM-000902017!; K-000075950!, K-000075951!, LISC-002371!, LISC-002372!, LISC-002373!, LISC-002374!, LISC-002375!, LISC-002376!, LISC-002377!, LISC-002378!, LISC-002379!, LISC-002380!) .

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CHEN ET AL.

Trees to 25 m tall; trunk erect, outer bark peeling off in small rectangular pieces, inner bark purplish red; young branches sericeous with hairs brownish, appressed or ascending, to 0.8 mm long, or shorter ones ca. 0.12 mm long, glabrescent and lustrous when mature; lenticel white; buds glabrous. Leaves dimorphic, internodes between similar types of leaves 2.5–6.0 cm, between two adjacent different types of leaves 5–10 mm, small ones nearly opposite to large ones; small leaves caducous, sub-sessile, deltoid, 8–12 mm long, 4–10 mm wide, base broadly acute to rounded but not cordate, apex acute, sparsely sericeous on both surfaces, main lateral veins 2–3, obscure adaxially and slightly prominent abaxially; large leaves petiolate, petiole 3–4 mm long, 1.6–2.0 mm in diam., sericeous when young and glabrescent with aging; leaf blade ovate to sub-orbicular, 8–16 cm long, 4–8 cm wide, base cordate, apex acuminate, margins often revolute, coriaceous, sericeous when young while glabrescent and lustrous with aging; main longitudinal veins 7–11, inner lateral veins springing from midrib above blade base, sometimes near base, or rarely with innermost one from midrib above middle of blade forming a pinnate-like venation, impressed adaxially and distinctly raised abaxially, outer 2–4 veins rather fine, slightly prominent on both surfaces, outermost pairs of veins often disappearing into blade margins at lower portion; transverse veins sub-parallel, at angles of (55–)70–85° with midrib; veinlets reticulate, tessellate and slightly prominent on both surfaces. Inflorescence an axillary spike, solitary or in serials, ascending; rachis 6.5–11(–19) cm long, 0.8–1.0 mm in diam., pannose with short hairs ca. 0.06 mm long and mixed with fewer longer hairs up to 0.4 mm, remotely flowered with floral internodes 2.5–7.0 mm long; bracts narrowly lanceolate, to 4.5 mm long, 1.6 mm wide, sparsely pannose; flower buds obovate, to 2 mm long, sparsely pannose and farinose; flowers bisexual, 4-merous, sessile, receptacle cylindric, 0.8–1.3 mm long, same in diam., sparsely pubescent with hairs to 0.2 mm long, and more densely hairy at base; sepals broadly ovate, to 2 mm long, 1.6 mm wide, green, glabrous adaxially, minutely pubescent abaxially, margin short-ciliate; petals yellowish and glabrous, ovate, to 1.7 mm long, lower part entire, obovate, ca. 0.3 mm wide at base, to 0.8 mm wide where laciniae starting, 5-laciniate from middle; stamens 8, to 1.3 mm long, anther sub-globose, 0.3–0.4 mm long; disk lobed, bulged between stamens; styles 4, to 1.3 mm long, base conical and connate, 0.5 mm in diam., distally attenuate, nearly three times as long as thick. Fruits unknown.

Flowering and fruiting: —Flowering in April–May; fruiting time unknown.

Habitat and distribution: — In coastal forests; below 100 m. Angola (Cabinda); Gabon (Estuaire); Nigeria (Cross River, Edo) ( Figure 79 ) .

MONOGRAPH OF ANISOPHYLLEACEAE

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Taxonomic notes: —As mentioned in the protologue (Excell, 1928), Anisophyllea mayumbensis appears to be related to A. cordata , but it has earlier falling and non-cordate small leaves, and the size of its largest large leaves is not exceeding 16 cm long and 8 cm wide. Based on the lectotype (K-000075952), the petals are laciniate from the middle rather than from the very base as stated in the protologue, and the styles adnate together from the base to ca. 1/4 of their length. The structure of styles, the sericeous young branches and its neither glandular nor granulate large leaves also differ it from other related African species.

Additional specimens examined: — GABON. Estuaire: near Libreville, 15 May 1901, Klaine , R. P . 2208 ( K); Okala, Jardin , 00°31’S 009°35’E, 06 May 1987, J. J . Dibata 157 ( MO); Wilks’s garden, 00°29’00”N 009°24’00”E, 15 m, 20 December 1991, J. J . Dibata 915 ( MO, US) . NIGERIA. Edo: Benin City, Okomu F. R ., 21 February 1948, J. P. M . Brenan 9086 ( K) . Cross River: Akamkpa, Awi, 14 April 1983, Ariwaodo / Osanyinlusi AO 7 ( MO); Ikom Gor Raie, October 1934, R . Catterall 46 ( K); Ikom F. R ., 15 kilometers from Nigeria-Cameroon border, 05 September 1995, B. O . Daramola 629 ( MO) .

Figures

FIGURE 78. Anisophyllea mayumbensis Exell. Flowering branch (J. Gossweiler 8019; lectotype, K-000075952).

FIGURE 79. Geographical distribution of Anisophyllea mayumbensis Exell.