Cyrtandra sulcata 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 : 109-110

37. Cyrtandra sulcata Blume, Bijdr. Fl. Ned. Ind. 14: 770 (1826)

– Type: Indonesia, Java, Blume 221 (lectotype L [ L2826829 ], designated here) .

Shrub (height not recorded). Stems striate, somewhat grooved, densely hairy on young growth, almost glabrous on older growth. Leaves opposite, both members of a pair well developed but somewhat unequal in size; petiole very variable, 7–70 mm long, hairy; blades 14–30 × 4–10 cm, narrow oblong to oblanceolate, base acute, slightly asymmetrical, margin serrulate to serrate, apex acuminate; 9–14 pairs of lateral veins and reticulate tertiary venation, sparsely hairy above and below, more densely so on midrib and veins. Inflorescences axillary, subsessile, with up to 6 flowers at various stages of development; bracts narrow ovate, 6–7 × 3–5 mm, densely hairy; peduncles 3–4 mm long, sparsely hairy. Calyx c. 10 mm long, two lower lobes c. 5.5 mm long, long-acuminate, three upper lobes slightly shorter, long-acuminate, c. 4.5 mm long, densely hairy externally. Corolla white, slightly purplish in bud, c. 14 mm long, more or less parallel-sided, widening very gradually to mouth, mouth oblique, lower lip somewhat extended, hairy externally and with glandular hairs internally on lobes and mouth. Stamens with filaments c. 3.5 mm long, attached c. 8 mm from base of corolla, glabrous; anthers 1 mm long, glabrous; staminodes not seen as corolla damaged. Gynoecium c. 7 mm long; disc unilateral with very slightly lobed margin, c. 1.5 mm long, glabrous; ovary and style densely hairy; stigma slightly bilobed, c. 1.5 mm across. Fruits ovoid, drying dark brown, hairy, particularly towards base of persistent style, verrucose, 5–10 × 3–4 mm, base of style and calyx persistent.

Distribution. South Sulawesi (see Figure 58 ).

Habitat and ecology. Lowland, hill and upland forest at an altitude of 50–1400 m.

Etymology. This species is named for its grooved stem and branches ( Blume, 1826).

Proposed IUCN conservation category. Cyrtandra sulcata is recorded from Sulawesi, Java ( Bakhuizen van den Brink, 1950) and Sumatra (fide Bakhuizen van den Brink, K, L) and appears to be one of the most widespread Cyrtandra species in the region. The collections from Sulawesi, however, are from the densely populated area around Makassar at relatively low altitude, and primarily from lowland and hill forest, which are the most threatened habitats on the island ( Cannon et al., 2007), and outside any protected areas (UNEP-WCMC & IUCN, 2019). No collections have been made of this species since 1976, despite this area being very accessible. Research on the distribution and the threats to the subpopulations

in Java and Sumatra is needed to understand the species’ conservation needs. Cyrtandra sulcata is therefore assessed as Data Deficient (DD). On Sulawesi it is likely that the species is threatened, and conservation actions need to be put in place to conserve the species on this island.

Additional specimens examined. INDONESIA. South Sulawesi. Gowa: Lombasang, 25 iv 1921, Bünnemeijer 11164 (BO, L); ibid., 29 iv 1921, Bünnemeijer 11233 (BO); ibid., 25 v 1921, Bünnemeijer 11734 (BO, L); Mt Bonthain (Mt Lompobatang), 28 v 1921, Bünnemeijer 11766 (BO, L); ibid., 1 vii 1921, Bünnemeijer 12608 (BO); Maros: Bantimurung, 20 ii 1938, Buwalda 3798 (BO, K, L); NE of Makassar, within 54–60 km on the road, 5 vii 1976, Meijer 10881 (A, BO, L, MO); Camba, Teijsmann 12641 (BO).

This species is similar to Cyrtandra longirostris from North Sulawesi in being a shrub with subequal leaves and axillary inflorescences with small white flowers, ovoid fruits and narrow inflorescence bracts but can be most easily distinguished from that species by its much shorter peduncles (3–4 mm long versus 15–40 mm long) as well as its densely hairy, as opposed to glabrous, ovary and unilateral, as opposed to cupular, nectary disc.

Cyrtandra sulcata was first described by Blume from Java and has a distribution that includes Sumatra (fide Bakhuizen van den Brink, L) and now Sulawesi. The description here is based on the Sulawesi collections only. The Sulawesi material shows the key diagnostic characters of non-decurrent leaf bases, unilateral disc and densely hairy ovary ( Bakhuizen van den Brink, 1950).

Blume did not designate a type when he described this species. Therefore, a Blume collection from Java, listed by Clarke (1883) alongside a number of other collections under this species, is selected here as the lectotype.

Figures

Figure 58. Distribution of Cyrtandra sulcata (black squares), C. tenuicarpa (black triangles) and C. widjajae (white circles).