Anisophyllea chartacea Madani (1993: 51)

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

11. Anisophyllea chartacea Madani (1993: 51) ( Figure 21 )

Type:— MALAYSIA. Sarawak: Ng. Mengiong, Ulu Balleh, Kapit , 3 rd Division , 275 m, 11 September 1969, Othman bin Haron S . 29055 (holotype KEP, isotypes A, BO, K-H2008/00218118!, L, MEL, SAR, SING) .

Trees to 33 m tall, 76 cm in diam., branches shortly pubescent with hairs 0.13–0.25 mm long; buds pannose with pale-brown hairs. Leaves dimorphic, internodes between similar types of leaves 1.0– 2.2 cm, between two adjacent different types of leaves 2–5 mm; small leaves caducous, only leaving scars on young twigs; large leaves petiolate, petiole 4–5 mm long, to 1 mm in diam., sparsely pubescent or glabrous; leaf blade elliptic, 5.5–7.0 cm long, 2.2–3.5 cm wide, base acute, apex acuminate, margins often slightly revolute, chartaceous, dull or matte and glabrous adaxially when dry, sparsely pubescent abaxially; main longitudinal veins 5, springing from blade base,

36 • Phytotaxa 229 (1) © 2015 Magnolia Press

CHEN ET AL.

middle three bold, impressed adaxially and prominent abaxially, outermost two rather fine, 0.5–2.0 mm apart from blade margins at proximal portion and almost merged with blade margins distally, slightly prominent or flat on both surfaces; transverse veins numerous, sub-parallel, at angles of 60–80° with the midrib; veinlets loosely reticulate (not distinctively tessellated) abaxially, slightly prominent on both surfaces. Inflorescence an axillary or supra-axillary spike, solitary or in 2–3 serials; rachis to 6 cm long, 0.4–0.6 mm in diam., pannose with pale-brown hairs

MONOGRAPH OF ANISOPHYLLEACEAE

Phytotaxa 229 (1) © 2015 Magnolia Press • 37 0.10–0.16 mm long; bracts 4, decussate at base of rachis, ovate, to 1.2 mm long, ca. 0.6 mm wide; flowers polygamous, 4-merous, remotely on rachis with floral internodes 1.5–6.5 mm long; bisexual flowers sessile or subsessile, 2.9–3.2 mm long; receptacle obovate, 1.1–1.4 mm long, 1.3–1.6 mm in diam., pannose outside; sepals broadly ovate, ca. 1.4 mm long, 1.9 mm wide at the base; petals ca. 0.9 mm long, 0.5 mm wide at base, entire or faintly emarginate; stamens 8, episepalous 4 fertile, filaments fleshy, ca. 0.6 mm long, subulate-oblong, 0.13 mm wide at base, anthers sub-globose, ca. 0.25 mm long, epipetalous 4 sterile, filaments shorter, ca. 0.58 mm long, undeveloped anthers punctiform; styles 4, free, base conical, ca. 1.1 mm long, 0.38 mm in diam., farinose, distally attenuate; male flowers with stamens 0.5–0.7 mm long. Fruits unknown.

Flowering and fruiting: —Flowering in September; fruiting time unknown.

Habitat and distribution: — In lowland forests mixed with Dipterocarpus trees; ca. 270 m. Malaysia (Sarawak) ( Figure 22 ) .

Vernacular names: — Penang pear, dalek limau manis.

Taxonomic notes: — Anisophyllea chartacea was compared with A. corneri in the protologue ( Madani 1993). It is different from the latter in its papery and relatively smaller leaves with reticulate but not distinctly tessellate veinlets on abaxial surface, and its sessile flowers. It is also similar to A. nitida , from which it is distinguished by its broadly ovate leaves with glossy adaxial surfaces, its main longitudinal lateral veins raised adaxially, and its rachis with persistent purple-brown wooly hairs when fruiting ( Wong & Madani 1995). The species is only known from its type material and we only examined one of the isotypes. Its affinity with other species with solitary flowers on rachis, entire or slightly apically emarginate petals, sessile flowers, etc. needs further investigations.

Figures

FIGURE 21. Anisophyllea chartacea Madani. Flowering branch (Drawn by L. Madani; reproduced and modified from Madani in Sandakania 3: 50. 1993).

FIGURE 22. Geographical distribution of Anisophyllea chartacea Madani.