Griffinia meerowiana Campos-Rocha & M. Peixoto, 2018

Campos-Rocha, Antonio, Semir, João, Peixoto, Mauro & Dutilh, Julie Henriette Antoinette, 2018, Griffinia meerowiana, a remarkable new species of Amaryllidaceae from Espírito Santo state, Brazil, Phytotaxa 344 (3), pp. 228-238 : 229-235

Griffinia meerowiana Campos-Rocha & M. Peixoto , sp. nov. ( Figs. 2 & 3 )

Griffinia meerowiana is similar to G. liboniana Morren (1845: 143) ( Fig. 4 ) because of its small size, lamina shape, often spotted and occasionally with a longitudinal white stripe near the midrib. However, G. meerowiana differs from G. liboniana and all species of Griffinia by its violet flowers, spatulate sepals and petals with white spots in the middle.

Type:— BRAZIL. Espírito Santo: Santa Teresa, no sub-bosque de um pequeno fragmento de mata seca sobre inselberg, 10 November 2016, A. Campos-Rocha & W. S. Borges 1641 (holotype UEC!, isotype NA!).

Bulbiferous, geophytic perennial herb. Bulb 2.2–3.5 × 1.8–3 cm, globose to subglobose, white, covered with a brown coloured tunic; bulb neck up to 8 cm long. Leaves (1–)2–6, pseudopetiolate; pseudopetiole up to 8 × 0.45–0.75 cm, green, slightly canaliculate on the adaxial side, rounded on the abaxial side; lamina 6–24 × 2.2–5 cm, dark green on the adaxial surface, often with white to greyish spots, occasionally with a longitudinal whitish stripe or whitish region close to the midrib, light green on the abaxial side, narrowly elliptic, lanceolate or oblanceolate, to slightly subfalcate, apex acute, base attenuate, both sometimes asymmetric, with a projecting mid-rib on the abaxial surface, margin flat to slightly revolute. Inflorescence 3–7 flowered; scape 5.8–10 cm long, 4.5–7 mm diameter, green, sometimes with vinaceous pigmentation at the base, occasionally a narrow vinaceous ring at the apex, cylindrical, slightly compressed, solid, erect, becoming decumbent with fructification; spathe bract 1, 1.8–2.2 × 0.8–1.2 cm, hyaline with a bifid apex on the longer side up to 1.2 cm; bracteoles numerous, lanceolate or subulate. Pedicel 0.7–2.7 cm long, 2–3.5 mm in diameter, green, sometimes with vinaceous pigmentation, often with a narrow vinaceous ring at the apex, obtusely triangular in transverse section, elongating as fruit matures. Perigone 3.8–5 cm long, zygomorphic, violet to bluish with a white spot in the middle of the upper sepal and petals, occasionally on the lateral sepals and lower petal, frequently with a white longitudinal stripe on the abaxial side of lateral sepals; hypanthium tube 2.5–5 mm long, greenish to vinaceous. Sepals spatulate, with a subapical adaxial apiculum, 1.4–4 mm long; upper sepal 3.6–4.5 × 0.6–0.9 cm, curved upwards; lateral sepal 3.6–4.5 × 0.5–0.85 cm, patent, asymmetrical; petals with inconspicuous apiculum, <1 mm long; lateral petal 3.6–4.5 × 0.65–1 cm, spatulate, curved upwards, wider than the sepals; lower petal 3.5–4.5 × 0.5–0.7 cm, spatulate to oblanceolate, deflexed downwards. Stamens 6, 5 declinate or spreading, the upper episepalous one erect-ascending. Filaments violet to lilac or bluish, sometimes whitish in the middle; the upper one episepal 2.7– 3.2 cm long; lateral episepal 3.2–3.8 cm long; lateral epipetal 2.2–3 cm long; lower epipetal 2.2–2.8 cm long; anthers 2–4 mm long, bluish or violet, oblong-reniform; pollen greyish. Ovary 4.2–10 × 4–6 mm, green, oblong-ellipsoid, obtusely triangular in transverse section; ovules 4–6 per locule, 1.2–1.8 mm long. Style 3–4.4 cm long, violet to lilac or bluish, sometimes whitish in the middle; stigma punctate to capitate, violet or bluish. Capsules 2.4–2.8 cm long, green, ovoid to ellipsoid, trilobed. Seeds 0.7–1.2 cm long, whitish, ellipsoid, with conspicuous elaiosome up to 5 mm long.

Specimens examined: — BRAZIL. Espírito Santo: Santa Teresa ; inselberg, florescimento em cultivo no município de Mogi das Cruzes-SP, 20 November 2014, A. Campos-Rocha & J. Dutilh 1509 ( UEC!) ; ibidem, 24 November 2015, A. Campos-Rocha & J. Dutilh 1618 ( UEC!) ; ibidem, florescimento em cultivo no município de Campinas-SP, 24 October 2017, A. Campos-Rocha 1818 ( MBML!, UEC!) .

Etymology: —The specific epithet was chosen in honor of our colleague Alan William Meerow, geneticist and systematist of the United States Department of Agriculture, recognizing his extensive contributions to the modern knowledge of the Amaryllidaceae .

Distribution and habitat: — Griffinia meerowiana is known only from the type locality ( Fig. 5 ), in the rural area of the municipality of Santa Teresa. This inselberg is lower in elevation, drier and hotter than nearby higher elevation forested areas ( Tabacow 1992 apud Mendes & Padovan 2000, INCAPER 2011). The plants were found in the understory of a fragment of deciduous forest on a rocky outcrop, around a depression with deeper substrate, 300 to 400 meters above sea level. Co-occurring species included a deciduous yellow-flowered Handroanthus Mattos (1970: 1) sp. ( Bignoniaceae ), Lecythis pisonis Cambessèdes (1829: 377) ( Lecythidaceae ), Bactris Scopoli (1777: 70) sp. ( Arecaceae ), a shrubby species of Capparidastrum (DC. 1824: 248) Hutchinson (1967: 310) sp. ( Capparaceae ), and several individual of Oeceoclades maculata (Lindl. 1821: t. 15) Lindley (1833 [1830–1840]: 237) ( Orchidaceae ), this latter naturalized from Africa. The presence of large anthills in the fragment is notable, as ants are known as seed dispersal agents of Griffinia ( Meiado et al. 2012) , with all examined species showing seeds with an elaiosome ( Preuss 1999, Campos-Rocha 2015).

Conservation status: —According to the guidelines for using the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria v.12 ( IUCN 2016), G. meerowiana should be categorized as Critically Endangered (CR), based on criteria B1ab(iii)+2ab(iii), because of the number of known locations (1) and declining habitat quality; as well as D, since its single population is composed of less than fifty mature individuals. The plants are isolated in a very steep place, which gives them some protection against the advance of regional crops, especially coffee, but does not spare them from fire threat, evident in some areas of the fragment, nor from invasive species. Human-induced fires are considered the main threat to inselberg ecosystems worldwide, producing significant impact on vegetation structure and species composition ( Burke 2003, Fitzsimons & Michael 2016). Fire can result in open environments, creating opportunities for invasive species, another danger for native plant communities in inselbergs ( Pigott 2000, Porembski 2000, Gomes & Sobral-Leite 2013). In recent years, fires at the type locality have caused the local extinction of species such as Wunderlichia azulensis Maguire & Barroso in Barroso & Maguire (1973: 402), considered an Endangered (EN) species ( MMA 2014). Moreover, since Griffinia species depend on ants to disperse, they become more vulnerable to the consequences of pesticides, often used indiscriminately throughout Brazil ( Dasgupta et al. 2001, Waichman et al. 2007 Albuquerque et al. 2016, Caldas 2016).

Phenology: — Griffinia meerowiana flowers from October to November in its natural habitat. Immature fruits were seen in early November.

Taxonomic notes: —The new species possesses unique features for the genus, such as the violet colour of its spatulate sepals and petals with a white medial spot. Spots in floral parts are reported only for G. intermedia Lindley (1826 : t. 990), a large-sized species of Rio de Janeiro state ( Campos-Rocha 2015), but of different colour, shape and position. Griffinia meerowiana can be distinguished from the other small-sized species of Griffinia by a set of characteristics ( Table 1). This informal group of subg. Griffinia can be recognized by a combination of: (1) bulb up to 6 cm in diameter; (2) fully expanded leaf lamina up to 20 cm in length, rarely 30 cm in a few species, except G. arifolia Ravenna (2000: 19) with an araceous leaf; (3) and perigone less than 5 cm in length. Griffinia meerowiana is vegetatively similar to G. liboniana ( Fig. 4 ), because of its leaf blade, of very variable shape, from narrowly elliptic to lanceolate, oblanceolate or subfalcate, often spotted and occasionally striped. Griffinia meerowiana has larger flowers bearing six stamens, the upper episepalous erect-ascending (very rare but when present declinate in G. liboniana ). Griffinia itambensis Ravenna (1974: 70) and G. rochae Morel (1961: 28) are the other two species of this group with five stamens. The leaves of G. itambensis can show a longitudinal white stripe as well, but they are narrower than in G. meerowiana (1.2–2.4 cm vs. 2.2–5 cm). Griffinia meerowiana can be easily distinguished also from the other small-sized species with the upper episepalous stamen ascending. Griffinia angustifolia Campos-Rocha et al. (2017: 411) is characterized by its linear leaves, much smaller flowers and yellowish pollen (vs. greyish); G. arifolia is a species known only from the type collection, a single specimen with a sagitate leaf and flowers up to 3.7 cm in length (vs. 3.8–5 cm long); G. colatinensis Ravenna (2000: 22) , has a hypanthium tube that represents 1/4 to 1/5 the total length of the perigone (vs. 1/10 to 1/16); G. parviflora Ker Gawler (1820: t. 511) has a pseudopetiole 12–36 cm in length (vs. up to 8 cm), perigone up to 3.4 cm length (vs. from 3.8 cm), stigma and staminal filaments about half its length (vs. almost as long as the perigone); G. paubrasilica Ravenna (2000: 20) presents flowers enclosed by two spathe bracts with entire apex (vs. one with bifid apex).

Figures

FIGURE 2. Griffinia meerowiana. A. Habit. B. Leaves (adaxial surface). C. Detail of leaf venation. D. Flower in frontal view. E. Sepals and petals: shape and apices. E1. Upper sepal. E2. Lateral petal. E3. Lateral sepal. E4. Lower petal. F. Flower with removed perigone, showing stamens and style. G. Stigma detail. H. Longitudinal section of the hypanthium tube and ovary. I. Cross-section of the ovary. Drawing: Klei Sousa.

FIGURE 3. Griffinia meerowiana. A. Typical habitat (October 2016). B–D. Variation in lamina ornamentation. E. Individual plant flowering at type locality. F. Individual plant flowering ex situ. G. Detail of spathe bract and hypanthium tube. H. Detail of subapical apiculum (lateral sepal). I. Seed. J. Immature fruits (in situ). E, J: A. Campos-Rocha 1641. F: A. Campos-Rocha 1509. G, H: A. Campos- Rocha 1818. Photos A: D. Lima. B–H, J: A. Campos-Rocha. I: J. Dutilh. Scales bar: 1 cm (G); 400 μm (H); 5 mm (I).

FIGURE 4. Griffinia liboniana. A. Plants in habitat. B–C. Flowering plants. D. Individual plant flowering (unearthed). E. Flowers in different views. A. A. Campos-Rocha 1492, UEC. B, E. A. Campos-Rocha 833, UEC. C, D. A. Campos-Rocha 954, UEC. Photos: A. Campos-Rocha. Scales bars: 10 cm (D); 1 cm (E).

FIGURE 5. Distribution map showing the only known collection of Griffinia meerowiana (black triangle), in Espírito Santo state, Brazil.