Sabinaria R. Bernal & Galeano, 2013

Galeano, Gloria & Bernal, Rodrigo, 2013, Sabinaria, a new genus of palms (Cryosophileae, Coryphoideae, Arecaceae) from the Colombia-Panama border, Phytotaxa 144 (2), pp. 27-44 : 28

Sabinaria R. Bernal & Galeano gen. nov.

Diagnosis. Solitary, unarmed, monoecious palm with induplicately palmate leaves, the petiole basally split, the blade silvery whitish below, medially divided almost to the base by an abaxial split, the two halves lacking any further deep abaxial splits, but with a short abaxial split present at the apex of each leaf segment. Inflorescence interfoliar, branched to 1–2 orders, each branch subtended by a large, conspicuous bract, with mostly unisexual flowers, staminate ones exposed beyond the bracts, with 20–23 stamens connate by their broadened filament bases, the pistillate flowers restricted to the lower portion of the proximal rachillae and hidden by large persistent rachis bracts, with a single carpel and staminodes with no anthers, a few pistillate flowers sometimes bearing 1–2 anthers. Fruit uniseminate, with eccentric, inconspicuous, stigmatic remain. Endosperm homogeneous, embryo basal. Seedling with undivided eophyll. Differs from other Cryosophileae in the lack of deep abaxial splits besides the medial one, the unisexual flowers, the large, persistent rachis bracts that hide the pistillate flowers, and the tightly packed fruits hidden among the leaf bases. Most closely resembles Itaya , from which it differs in the unisexual flowers with the sepals connate with the petals at one single place, the large rachis bracts that hide the basal portion of the rachillae, and the tightly packed fruits.

Description. Medium-sized, solitary, unarmed, pleonanthic, monoecious arborescent palm. Stem erect, with inconspicuous leaf scars. Leaves numerous, induplicate, palmate; sheath medially split below the petiole, the margins without fibres; petiole slender, long, biconvex, with sharp margins; adaxial hastula well developed, truncate, abaxial hastula a low rim; blade medially divided almost to base by an abaxial split into two symmetrical or slightly asymmetrical halves, these divided to ca. 1/10 their length into single fold segments that are slightly bifid at apex; segments with inconspicuous cross-veins, the undersurface silvery-whitish. Inflorescence interfoliar, branched to one order, basal rachillae sometimes with a few second-order rachillae; prophyll bicarinate; peduncular bracts at least 5, large and inflated; rachis bracts similar to the peduncular bracts, persistent and tightly appressed to the proximal portion of the rachilla and hiding the pistillate flowers; rachillae straight, cylindrical. Flowers borne on a short pedicel and subtended by a small and narrow triangular bract, mostly unisexual, pistillate ones on the proximal portion of proximal rachillae, the remaining staminate, a few pistillate flowers sometimes bearing 1–2 anthers. Staminate flowers with three connate sepals, these fused with the corolla at a single place on the margin; petals three, connate into a tubular corolla, sometimes two of the petals completely free to base; stamens 20–23, exserted at anthesis, the filaments connate by their fleshy bases into several irregular groups of 1–6, these in turn connate further below with each other and basally adnate with the corolla, filiform at the apex; anthers oblong, dorsifixed, versatile, bifid at base and apex. Pistillate flowers similar to the staminate ones; staminodes similar to the stamens but lacking the anthers and the thin portion of the filament; gynoecium unicarpellate, eccentrically ovoid, narrowed to a slender curved style and an oblique papillose stigma. Fruit obovoid to turbinate or subglobose, uniseminate, with eccentric inconspicuous stigmatic remain; epicarp minutely tuberculate with sparse perforations, smooth with the naked eye; mesocarp thick, endocarp not differentiated. Seed ovoid to subglobose, with homogeneous endosperm; embryo basal. Seedling with lanceolate eophylls, whitish below.

Type species: Sabinaria magnifica Galeano & R. Bernal

Etymology: —Named after our daughter Sabina Bernal Galeano , with the suffix – ria arbitrarily chosen, in accordance with Art. 20 of the International Code of Nomenclature ( McNeill et al. 2012).