Burmeistera antioquensis Garzón & J.M. Vélez, Brittonia, 2013

González, Favio, 2023, Taxonomic revision of Burmeistera (Campanulaceae-Lobelioideae) in Colombia, Phytotaxa 615 (1), pp. 1-113 : 18

3. Burmeistera antioquensis Garzón & J.M. Vélez, Brittonia 65: 120. 2013.

Type:— COLOMBIA. Antioquia: Sonsón, ascenso al Páramo de La Vieja , 5°46´10´´N, 75°13´33´´W, 2640 m, 10 Apr 2009 (fl, fr), J. Vélez et al. 3345 (holotype: MEDEL!; isotypes: COL!, NY!). Figs. 3 , 4A–C .

Terrestrial herbs up to 30 cm tall. Stem glabrous. Petiole 3–9 mm long; blade narrowly oblong to narrowly elliptic, 2.7–6.2 × 0.7–2.5 cm, glabrous above and beneath, base acute, cuneate or round, slightly asymmetric, apex acute to acuminate, acumen up to 9 mm long, margin serrate, with 6 to 10 intramarginal hydathodes per side, secondary veins 6 to 8 per side, higher order veins inconspicuous, intramarginal vein lacking. Peduncle 2–5 cm long, green to red, glabrous, ebracteolate. Hypanthium obconic, 3–7 × 3–6 mm, glabrous. Calyx lobes narrowly oblong to lanceolate, 3–7 × 0.7–2.5 mm, patent, basally spaced by sinuses up to 0.8 mm wide, margin serrulate with 3 or 4 teeth per side. Corolla bright red externally, often white internally, glabrous; tube 5–6 mm long, 3–6 mm diameter at its mid-level, slightly inflated proximally and distally; lobes ovate, slightly falcate, apex acute to shortly acuminate, dorsal lobes 9–13 × 4–6 mm, lateral lobes 7.3–11.0 × 1.4–4.4 mm, ventral lobe 6.9–9.2 × 1.4–4.2 mm. Synandrium 14‒16 mm long, exserted up to 5 mm; filament tube up to 12 mm long, woolly; anther tube covered with strigose indumentum, 2‒4 mm long, ventral anthers sparsely puberulous and barbate, with an apical tuft of white woolly hairs up to 0.4 mm long. Berries obconic, 4.3–5.6 × 4.8–6.0 mm, not inflated, glabrous, pale green with red tints.

Phenology: —The species sets flowers and fruits in January, April, May, July, and November.

Distribution, ecology and conservation status: — Burmeistera antioquensis is known only from understory strata of cloud forests and páramo patches of the Central Cordillera in Antioquia, at elevations between 1800 and 3100 m. These forests are dominated by Brunellia trianae Cuatrec. (Brunelliaceae) , Drimys granadensis L. f. ( Winteraceae ), Quercus humboldtii Bonpl. (Fagaceae) and Weinmannia sp. (Cunoniaceae) . The páramos and high-Andean forests around Sonsón have been sites of great interest to botanical explorers since the mid eighteenth century, resulting in a considerable number of newly described plant taxa from the region. The species is locally rare and threatened due to habitat loss, as its habitat is being rapidly transformed for agriculture and pasture activities. Following the IUCN´s (2022) criteria [B1(EOO) and B2(AOO), conditions (a) and (b), and C2(a)(i)], B. antioquensis qualifies as Critically Endangered.

Notes: — Burmeistera antioquensis is similar to B. crassifolia and B. reclinata , from which it differs by the leaf blades with 6 to 8 secondary veins per side, the corolla bright red, the synandrium exserted up to 5 mm, and the mature berries green with red tints (versus the leaf blades with 5 or 6 secondary veins per side, the corolla uniformly green or yellowish green, sometimes suffused with purple or with reddish lines, the synandrium exserted up to 9 mm, and the mature berries white, sometimes suffused with vinaceous lines and apex yellow in B. crassifolia and B. reclinata ).

Additional specimens examined:— Antioquia. Sonsón, vereda Manzanares Arriba , sector cerro de La Vieja, 5°47´29´´N, 75°14´43´´W, 2600‒2700 m, 15 Nov 1997 (fl, fr), A. Cogollo et al. 11572 ( JAUM); Sabanalarga, vereda de Pena, sector La Antena, 1800‒2200 m, 6°49´32´´N, 75°47´58´´W, 23 May 2007 (fl), H. David et al. 1836 ( HUA); Sonsón, vereda Manzanares, morro La Vieja, 2800 m, 12 Jul 1989 (fl), S. Hoyos et al. 1269 ( COL) .

Figures

FIGURE 3. Distribution of Burmeistera aeribacca, B. andakiana, B. antioquensis, B. asclepiadea and B. betancurii.

FIGURE 4. A–C. Burmeistera antioquensis (Vélez et al. 3345, type), leaves and flowers at frontal (A, B) and lateral (C) view. D–F. B. betancurii (photo J.L. Toro, Amalfi, Antioquia), leaves, flowers and berries (D), flower (E) and berry (F). G–H. B. bullatifolia (Garzón et al. 454, type), flower (G) and berries (H). Scale bars: 5 mm in A–C, E–G; 1 cm in D, H.