Orthophytum santosianum Leme, 2020

Leme, Elton M. C., Ribeiro, Otávio B. C., Souza, Fernanda Vidigal D., Souza, Everton Hilo De, Kollmann, Ludovic J. C. & Fontana, André P., 2020, Miscellaneous new species in the “ Cryptanthoid complex ” (Bromeliaceae: Bromelioideae) from Eastern Brazil, Phytotaxa 430 (3), pp. 157-202 : 188-190

4.5. Orthophytum santosianum Leme , sp. nov. ( Fig. 14 A–C )

Diagnosis:—This new species is morphologically close to O. harleyi , but differs by its smaller leaf blades (5–6 × 0.7–0.9 cm vs. 10–11 × 1.3–1.9 cm), floral bracts rose (vs. greenish toward the base and reddish-brown toward the apex), sepals narrowly lanceolate to suboblong (vs. sublinear-lanceolate), and rose (vs. pale green).

Type:— BRAZIL. Bahia: Jussiape, distrito de Caraguataí, mountain near the village, saxicolous in Campos Rupestres vegetation, ca. 800 m elevation, February 2015, J.E. dos Santos & R.F. Reis Jr. s. n., fl. cult. E. Leme 8977 (holotype RB!).

Description:— Plants terrestrial, stemless, ca. 8 cm long when flowering, propagating by slender stolons of ca. 9 × 0.5 cm. Leaves ca. 30 in number, arcuate to spreading at anthesis, densely arranged; sheath subtrapeziform, ca. 0.7 × 1.5 cm, whitish, lepidote mainly near distal end; blade narrowly triangular-lanceolate, apex caudate, 5–6 × 0.7–0.9 cm, subcoriaceous, ca. 2.5 mm thick near the base, nearly flat, bronze colored, densely and coarsely white lepidote on both sides, nerved, margins densely to subdensely spinose; spines acicular, prevailingly straight, 1.5–3 mm long, 2–6 mm apart. Inflorescence (fertile part) ca. 3 cm long (excluding the petals), ca. 2 cm in diameter, pseudosimple, bearing an abortive flower fascicle at the base; peduncle ca. 2 × 0.5 cm; peduncle bracts resembling the leaves, densely arranged, suberect-arcuate; floral bracts the basal ones somewhat resembling the leaves, equalling to exceeding the sepals, the upper ones triangular-lanceolate, acuminate, ca. 15 × 6 mm, thin in texture, rose colored, subdensely and coarsely white lepidote of lacerate trichomes, exceeded by the sepals, ecarinate, nerved, margins densely spinulose, spines 1–1.5 mm long. Flowers sessile, ca. 9 in number, ca. 35 mm long (with the petals extended), odorless; sepals narrowly lanceolate to suboblong, distinctly acicular-apiculate, 15–16 × 4.5–5 mm, free, rose colored, subdensely white lanate, entire, the abaxial one obtusely carinate, the adaxial ones sharply carinate; petals spathulate, apex subacute to obtuse, ca. 27 × 8 mm, white, spreading at anthesis and forming a compact fan-like corolla ca. 15 mm in diameter, bearing 2 longitudinal callosities about equalling the filaments; petal appendages echinatiform, ca. 2 mm above the base, densely and irregularly fimbriate with spreading ornamentation; filaments unequal in length, the antesepalous ones ca. 16 mm long, free, the antepetalous ones ca. 12 mm long, adnate to the petals for ca. 10 mm; anthers ca. 2.5 mm long, dorsifixed near the middle, base obtuse, apex apiculate; ovary ca. 7 × 5 mm, white, white lanate; epigynous tube inconspicuous; stigma simple-dilated, lobes broadened, lip-shaped, spreading, ca. 0.5 mm long, white, densely papillate; placentation apical; ovules many, obtusely apiculate. Fruits not seen.

Distribution, habitat and conservation:— Orthophytum santosianum grows in Bahia State, in the county of Jussiape. The individuals form dense groups in sun exposed sites in a mountain range near the village of Caraguataí, in the domain of the Campos Rupestres, in altitudes arround 800 m.

The size of the population and the extension of the occupied area are not clearly known, and so it is considered here a “data deficient” species (DD) and its conservation status still remains inconclusive.

Etymology:—The name chosen for this new species honors its collector, João Eduardo dos Santos, responsible for the preservation of an important fragment of Atlantic Forest in the county of Itapebi, Bahia state, from where he presented new species of different botanical families to the scientific community.

Observations:— Orthophytum santosianum , along with O. braunii , O. harleyi ( Fig. 14 D ), O. cearense ( Fig. 14 H–I ), O. conquistense Leme & M. Machado (2006: 105. Fig. 14 G ) O. minimum ( Fig. 13 A–D ), O. saxicola ( Fig. 14 E–F ), and O. triunfense J.A. Siqueira & Leme ( Leme & Siqueira-Filho 2006: 311. Fig. 14 J ) form a complex of cryptic species differentiated from each other by subtle morphological characters difficult to be observed in herbarium specimen, which require the study of living specimens for a clear understanding of leaf, inflorescence and flower conformation.

Orthophytum harleyi is its morphologically closest relative, but O. santosianum differs from it by smaller leaf blades (5–6 × 0.7–0.9 cm vs. 10–11 × 1.3–1.9 cm), peduncle inconspicuous (vs. distinct), ca. 2 cm long (vs. ca. 6.5 cm long), floral bracts rose (vs. greenish toward the base and reddish-brown toward the apex), sepals narrowly lanceolate to suboblong (vs. sublinear-lanceolate), and rose (vs. pale green).

Figures

FIGURE 13. Orthophytum minimum from Morro do Capim,Riacho dos Machados, Minas Gerais state:A. Group of saxicolous individuals on iron-rich rock outcrops known as “canga” in Campos Rupestres at the type locality. B–D. Specimens flowered in cultivation (Leme 9313). B. Habit and inflorescences. C. Inflorescence and flower. D. Detail of the flower. A. Photo R.C. Mota.

FIGURE 14. Orthophytum santosianum from Caraguataí, county of Jussiape, Bahia state (Leme 8977): A. Habit. B. Details of the inflorescence. C. Echinatiform type of petal appendages with spreading ornamentation. D. Orthophytum harleyi (Leme 6173). E. Orthophytum saxicola (Leme 6058). F. Orthophytum saxicola (Leme 7511). G. Orthophytum conquistense (Leme 6019 et al.). H–I. Orthophytum cearense (Leme 7700). J. Orthophytum triunfense (Leme 5548).