Lophophytum pyramidale (Leandro) L.J.T. Cardoso & J.M.A. Braga, 2018

Cardoso, Leandro Jorge Telles, Smidt, Eric De Camargo & Braga, João Marcelo Alvarenga, 2018, Reinterpretation of the nomenclatural type of Archimedea pyramidalis (Balanophoraceae) with new combination to Lophophytum, Phytotaxa 345 (3), pp. 279-285 : 281-282

Lophophytum pyramidale (Leandro) L.J.T. Cardoso & J.M.A. Braga , comb. nov.

Basionym: Archimedea pyramidalis Leandro in Saint-Hilaire (1837: 32).

≡ Lophophytum leandrii Eichler (1869: 59) , nom. illeg.

— Lophophytum mirabile auct. non Schott & Endlicher (1832: 1): Weddell (1850: 185); Hooker (1856: 30).

Lectotype (designated here):— BRAZIL. Rio de Janeiro: “ in umbrosis sylvarum primaevarum propè flumen Guapiaçu [Municipality of Cachoeiras de Macacu] quod in Sebastianopolitanum sinum confluit; necnon in sylvis montis vulgò Tijuca [Municipality of Rio de Janeiro, Tijuca Massif] ”, Leandro do Sacramento s.n. ( K barcode K000642147 !) . Epitype (designated here):— BRAZIL. Rio de Janeiro: Itatiaia, Parque Nacional do Itatiaia, Trilha do Hotel Simon para os Três Picos, 1400 m, 23 Nov 1994, J.M.A. Braga 1623 (RB No. 337276 barcode 00460381!).

Notes:— After being neglected for such a long period of time and having already been considered lost ( Roquette-Pinto 1929), the original manuscript of Fr. Leandro do Sacramento was finally discovered in 2011 at the National Library of Brazil by the authors ( Figure 2 ). Based on an analysis of the original manuscript, the omission of the floral bracts made by Fr. Leandro do Sacramento was confirmed, even though this morphological feature was undoubtedly present in the whole type collected by the author himself in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil ( Weddell 1850, Hooker 1856).

Regardless of the omission of floral bracts in the protologue, Eichler (1869) described L. leandrii based on the same type as A. pyramidalis , making this an illegitimate name under Art. 52.1 of the ICN ( McNeill et al. 2012). Therefore, A. pyramidalis can no longer be considered a pro parte synonym of L. mirabile , which makes A. pyramidalis the correct name to be adopted for the plant traditionally known as L. leandrii .

A fragment of the type of A. pyramidalis , which has been considered lost in the Paris Herbarium (P) since the 19th century, was recently found in Kew Herbarium (K). According to Hooker (1856), this duplicate was sent to K by Weddell. The duplicate consists of a small envelope with fragments of two anthers and eight pistillate flowers ( Figure 3-B ). In this duplicate, we found the following handwritten notes: “figured by Weddell” and “paleae [same as floral bracts, see Hooker 1856: 30] + fruits” ( Figure 3-C ). The collector’s name “Leandro” is also written, as well as the collection location: “ Brasil, Rio Jan. [Rio de Janeiro]” or “Rio Prov. [Province of Rio de Janeiro]”. Among those fragments, we could discern the anthers with displaced thecae inserted at different heights of the connective, and the pistillate flowers with two cavities where the styles were originally inserted ( Figure 3-D–F ). According to Sato & Gonzalez (2013, 2016), both characteristics are also important in the circumscription of L. pyramidale (≡ L. leandrii ). Therefore, based on notes and morphological characteristics found in the envelope containing the duplicate at K, we herein designate the herbarium specimen “ Leandro do Sacramento s.n. ” (K barcode 000642147) as the lectotype of Archimedea pyramidalis . To complement the type, we designate J.M.A. Braga 1623 (RB), also collected in Rio de Janeiro, as the epitype ( Figure 4 ). After at least 172 years the collection of the type “ Leandro do Sacramento s.n. ”, this represents the first collection of the species in the Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil (based on Cardoso 2014). Finally, we transfer A. pyramidalis to the genus Lophophytum , proposing the new combination Lophophytum pyramidale (Leandro) L.J.T.Cardoso & J.M.A.Braga.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Part of the original manuscript of Fr. Leandro do Sacramento with description of Archimedea pyramidalis, found in the Archives of The National Library of Brazil. The same manuscript transcribed by Saint-Hilaire (1837).

FIGURE 3. Lectotype of Archimedea pyramidalis (Leandro do Sacramento s.n., K barcode K000642147). A. General view. B. Pistillate flowers and anthers found in the envelope. C. Envelope information. D–E. Fragmented stamens; arrows indicate the overlap of the thecae extremity as result of the different insertion heights in the connective (compare with Figure 1–B). F. Pistillate flowers (compare with Figure 1–E); arrow shows the cavities where the styles were originally inserted (see also Figure 1–D).—Abbreviations: An, anther; Pf, pistillate flower.—Photo credit:A. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

FIGURE 4. Epitype of Archimedea pyramidalis (J.M.A. Braga 1623, RB)—Photo credit: Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden Research Institute. Jabot—Brazilian Flora database.