Cyrtandra celebica Blume, Bijdr. Fl. Ned. Ind.

Atkins, H. J. & Kartonegoro, A., 2021, A TAXONOMIC REVISION OF CYRTANDRA (GESNERIACEAE) IN SULAWESI, INDONESIA, Edinburgh Journal of Botany 78 (364), pp. 1-122 : 27-31

5. Cyrtandra celebica Blume, Bijdr. Fl. Ned. Ind. 14: 772 (1826).

– Rhynchocarpus coccineus Reinwardt ex de Vriese, Pl. Ind. Bat. Orient. 11 (1856), nom. inval. – Cyrtandra coccinea var. celebica (Blume) C.B.Clarke in A.DC. & C.DC., Monogr. Phan. 5: 256 (1883).

– Type: Indonesia, Celebes [Sulawesi], in monte Lokkon, x 1821, Reinwardt mss no. 1541 (lectotype L, designated here) .

Cyrtandra rhizantha Kraenzlin, J. Linn. Soc., Bot. 37: 277 (1906). – Type: Indonesia, Celebes [Sulawesi], Forêt a l’entrée de la vallée du Tiram, 23–25 viii 1876, de la Savinierre 138 (holotype K). Figure 16 .

Shrub or small tree to 10 m in height, usually much less. Stems subglabrous, woody, occasionally with prop roots. Leaves opposite or sometimes in threes; those of a pair or group well developed but somewhat unequal in size; petioles 2.5–6(–11) cm, glabrous, often warty at base; blades 8–40 × 6–18.5 cm, narrow ovate to narrow oblong, acute to obtuse and markedly oblique at base, margin subentire to crenate-serrate, acuminate at apex; 9–25 pairs of lateral veins, curving upwards and running out to margin, tertiary venation reticulate, sometimes quite obscure; sparsely hairy above, glabrous to sparsely hairy below, including midrib and veins. Inflorescences cauliflorous, often near base of stem, or occasionally in leaf axils, many-flowered; inflorescence axis pendulous or trailing often from a single point and then branching, appearing slightly notched from the remains of old bracts and bracteoles; bracts and bracteoles 10–15 × 5–10 mm, ovate, glabrous to sparsely hairy, connate sometimes only at base, sometimes to 3/4 the length, soon caducous. Calyx tubular, slightly bilabiate, dark red or green, 12–20 mm long, lobes triangular, shortly acuminate at apex, three upper lobes very briefly divided, c.3 × 2 mm, two lower lobes slightly longer, c.5 × 4 mm, glabrous externally. Corolla red, 20–25(–35) mm long, tubular, very narrow towards base, mouth oblique with lower and lateral lobes recurved and folded under themselves thus appearing very small, c.1 × 4 mm, upper lobes extending forwards, c.2 × 4 mm, more or less glabrous externally with a scattering of short glandular hairs towards the lobes; lobes glandular hairy internally. Stamens with filaments 8–12 mm long, attached 11–18 mm from base of corolla, cream or pinkish, glabrous; anthers brown or cream, 2–3 mm long, connected at tips before dehiscence; staminodes 1–1.5 mm long. Gynoecium 20–30 mm long; disc cupular, slightly wider at base, sometimes with one side slightly lower than the other and slightly undulate margin, glabrous, 2 mm long; ovary glabrous; style glandular at the top of the style near the stigma, glabrous towards the ovary; stigma peltate, slightly bilobed, c. 2.5 mm across, green, exserted beyond the mouth of the corolla at maturity. Fruits narrow ovoid to oblong, 10–15 × 3–5 mm, glabrous, green when unripe, calyx not persistent, base of style persistent.

Distribution. North, Central, West and Southeast Sulawesi ( Figure 17 ).

Habitat and ecology. Lowland to montane forest, often on vertical banks at an altitude of 50–1600 m.

Etymology. This species is named after the island of Sulawesi, using its former name Celebes ( Blume, 1826).

Proposed IUCN conservation category. The EOO of this species is 210,408 km 2 and the AOO is 116 km 2, based on a 2 × 2 km grid cell size, under the B criteria ( Bachman et al., 2011). Cyrtandra celebica is one of the most widespread species on the island, with a very wide altitudinal range, from 50 to 1600 m, and has been collected on a number of recent expeditions (in 2003, 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2016). For these reasons, it is given a category of Least Concern (LC).

Additional specimens examined. INDONESIA. North Sulawesi. Bolaang Mongondow: Tapakolintang area , 29 x 2016, Barber, Atkins, Kartonegoro & Kinho BAKK12 (BO, E) ; Kasingolan River , 30 x 2016, Barber, Atkins, Kartonegoro & Kinho BAKK15 (BO, E) ; Dumoga Bone National Park, Mt Mogogonipa , 12 iv 1985, de Vogel & Vermeulen 7114 (K, L) ; East Bolaang Mongondow: Mt Ambang Nature Reserve , 2 xi 2016, Barber, Atkins, Kartonegoro & Kinho BAKK49 (BO, E) ; Mt Ambang Nature Reserve, Bolrang Solfatara area , 19 iv 1985, de Vogel & Vermeulen 7300 (K, L) ; Manado: Malalayang waterfall, 31 i 2019, Ardi WI 393 ( KRB) ; Manado , 28 xii 1894, Koorders 17198β (BO, L) ; ibid., ii 1923, Wisse 101(BO) ; Minahasa :

Mt Masarang, 4 xii 2003, Ambriansyah AA2656 (BO); Tondano, 1923, Boesveld s.n. (BO); 1894–5, Hose 799 (BM, K); Tondano, 1923, Kruyff 18 (BO); Sangihe Islands: Tabukan Selatan, 27 ix 1998, Hicks 87 (K); between Ganding peak and Batungbakara peak, 12 iv 1999, Hicks 225 (E, K); South Minahasa: Above Kelelonde, Soputan Mountains, 16 v 1954, Alston 15859 (A, BM, BO); Winowangan, 4 km E of Menado, 3 vii 1954, Alston 16189 (A, BM, BO, L, S); Mt Soputan, 11 x 1973, de Vogel 2497 (A); Talaud Islands: Karakelang, slope of G. Datua, 2 v 1926, Lam 2744 (BO, L); Tomohon: Tomohon, 5 vi 1954, Alston 15665 (A, BM, BO); Mt Mahawu, 23 v 1956, Forman 225 (BO, L); ibid., Wagio Crater, 4 vii 1956, Forman 385 (BO, L); Tomohon, 6 i 1895, Koorders 17201β (BO); Mt Lokon, 7 i 1895, Koorders 17184β (BO, L); Tomohon, 9 i 1895 Koorders 17179β (BO, L).

Central Sulawesi. Banggai: inland from Batui , 15 x 1989, Coode 5944 (BO, K, L, SING) ; Bunta subdistrict, Sumber Agung, Mt Hek , Sungai Hek , 25 ii 2004, Hendrian, Newman, Scott, Saleh & Supriadi 896 (E) ; Mt Hek , 14 iv 2008, Thomas & Ardi 08-50 (BO, CEB n.v., E) ; Mt Katopas , 7 v 2008, Thomas & Ardi 08-68 (BO, CEB n.v., E) ; Palu: Top of pass from Palu to east coast, 23 ii 2000, Mendum, Argent & Hendrian 00129 (E) ; Sigi: Lore Lindu National Park , 29 vii 2018, Ardi WI 248 ( KRB) ; Area of Mt Nokilalaki , SE of Lake Lindu, 3 v 1975, Meijer 9981 (L) .

West Sulawesi. Mamuju: Kona-kona River , Ds. Sondang, Kec. Kaluku Kab, 6 ii 1993, Afriastini 2053 (BO, K, L) .

Southeast Sulawesi. North Kolaka: Rante Angin subdistrict, Tinukari village, 2 viii 2009, Hidayat, Santika & Hapid AH4095 (BO, E); ibid., 4 viii 2009, Potter, Sujadi, Shaputri, Asuar & Sarpin 090804-01 (BO, E); ibid., 29 vi 2011, Widjaja, Sujadi, Santoso & Hapid EAW9694 (BO, E).

Sulawesi: de Vriese 2 (L0277486 and L0277488) (L) ; de Vriese & Teijsmann 2 (L0277487) (L); Unknown collector 202 (L0277489) (L).

Cyrtandra celebica is one of the most common and widespread species on Sulawesi. It is also one of the most striking, and although it is variable in terms of leaf shape and venation, it is easily recognised by its cauliflorous inflorescences and bright red corolla.

Blume (1826) originally described two species: Cyrtandra celebica from Sulawesi and C. coccinea Blume from Java. Clarke later reduced Cyrtandra celebica to a variety of C. coccinea and listed two de Vriese collections from Sulawesi as examplar specimens ( Clarke, 1883). Although the morphological similarities between the Javan and Sulawesi taxa are striking, there are differences between them. The difference originally described by Blume is in the structure of the inflorescences, with those of the Javan species being subumbellate and those of Sulawesi being branched panicles ( Blume, 1826). Clarke, when reducing the species to varietal level, also highlighted differences in the indumentum of the young growth, the Sulawesi specimens being more densely hairy when young ( Clarke, 1883). In addition to these differences, the corollas of the Javan taxa, although usually red, can be quite pale and even yellowish white, and the corolla lobes are larger and not as strongly recurved as in the Sulawesi species.

Molecular phylogenetic research on the genus has confirmed that Cyrtandra coccinea from Java and Sulawesi are not conspecific, and in fact the Javan material is more closely related to C. floccosa and C. hispidula than to C. celebica ( Atkins et al., 2020) . Here, the Sulawesi material is treated as a distinct species, Cyrtandra celebica , as Blume originally proposed. Cyrtandra rhizantha was described in 1906 ( Kraenzlin, 1906) from a collection from Minahasa in Sulawesi, and is treated as a synonym of C. celebica . The name Cyrtandra rhizantha was subsequently also used illegitimately by Schlechter for a completely unrelated white-flowered species from New Guinea ( Schlechter, 1923).

Blume did not list any specimens when he described Cyrtandra celebica . The only specimen that was collected early enough to have been seen by him is Reinwardt 1541, which is designated here as the lectotype.

Figures

Figure 16. Cyrtandra celebica. a, Leaves; b, cauliflorous inflorescence; c, habit (small tree); d, front and side views of flowers; e, infructescence. Photographs: Sadie Barber. Specimens: Barber et al. BAKK8, BAKK12 and BAKK15.

Figure 17. Distribution of Cyrtandra bruteliana (black triangles) and C. celebica (red circles).