Punjuba foreroana Iganci, M.V.B.Soares & M.P.Morim

Soares, Marcos Vinicius Batista, Guerra, Ethiéne, Morim, Marli Pires & Iganci, João Ricardo Vieira, 2024, Taxonomic revision of the genus Punjuba (Leguminosae, Caesalpinioideae), Phytotaxa 659 (1), pp. 41-55 : 45-47

3. Punjuba foreroana Iganci, M.V.B.Soares & M.P.Morim , sp. nov.

Type:— COLOMBIA. Dep. Del Cauca, Municipio Morales, resguardo Honduras, vereda Chorrea Blanca, cerro Pico de Águila, cordillera occidental, 2800 m, 21-23 Sep 1999, Reina G., Cucuñame E., Valencia J., Ordonez I., Pechené S., Flor J., Yandi V., Pillimue C. 360

(holotype: COL 453376!). Figures 1 & 2

Diagnosis. Punjuba foreroana is morphologically related to P. lehmannii , and differs by the leaves with 4–5 pairs of pinnae (vs. 1–3 pairs of pinnae in P. lehmannii ), and the pinnae with 12–18 pairs of leaflets (vs. 5–7 pairs of leaflets per pinnae in P. lehmannii ), and the smaller leaflets (0.8–1.3 × 0.5–0.7 cm) (vs. leaflets 2.5–9 × 1.5–4 cm in P. lehmannii ).

Trees 7 m tall; branches with pubescent indumentum. Leaves 4–5 pairs of pinnae; petiole 1.2–1.6 cm, pubescent; nectaries orbicular to patelliform between the pairs of pinnae and the leaflets; leaflets 12–18 pairs, 0.8–1.3 × 0.5–0.7 cm, ovate to elliptic, apex acute, base obtuse to rounded, margin plane, discolor, adaxial surface glabrous, abaxial surface pubescent, venation brochidodromous. Inflorescence spiciform, peduncles ca. 3 cm, floral axis 6 cm, pubescent. Flowers brownish, pubescent, sessile; calyx tubular campanulate, ca. 0.3 cm; corolla tubular, ca. 0.8 cm; filaments of the staminal tube white; ovary glabrous, ca. 0.1 cm. Pods unknown.

Distribution and habitat: — Punjuba foreroana is endemic to Colombia, where the species is known only by the typical locality, in Department of del Cauca, municipality of Morales, collected at 2800 m elevation ( Fig. 1 ).

Phenology: —Flowering and fruiting in September.

Etymology: —The specific epithet is in honor to the Colombian botanist Dr. Enrique Forero, an important taxonomist in Leguminosae of America, who dedicated his studies to the Mimosoids of Colombia.

Notes: — Punjuba foreroana is morphologically similar to P. lehmannii by presenting discolored leaflets and the spiciform inflorescences. The new species differs from P. lehmannii and from the other species of the genus by the leaves with 4–5 pairs of pinnae and 12–18 pairs of leaflets per pinnae, and leaflets 0.8–1.3 × 0.5–0.7 cm (vs. leaves with 1–3 pairs of pinnae, 5–7 pairs of leaflets per pinnae, and leaflets 2.5–9 cm long). Punjuba foreroana has a dense covering of pubescent indument in branches, abaxial surface of leaflets, and flowers. Reina et al. 360, described the fruit as “spiral legumes” in the sample label, but the fruit was absent in the exsiccate examined.

Conservation status: —The species is currently considered to be Data Deficient (DD) according to the IUCN Red List categories and criteria (2022). Further research on the distribution, population sizes and threats to the species is needed to assess its extinction risk.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Geographic distribution of Punjuba Britton & Rose (Leguminosae).

FIGURE 2. Punjuba foreroana Iganci, M.V.B.Soares & M.P.Morim (Leguminosae). A. Branch with inflorescences. B. Detail of leaflets and nectaries. C. Flower. [A-C: Reina, G. et al. 360 (COL!)]. Illustration by João Iganci.