Burmeistera pterifolia A. F. Vallejo, A. J. Pérez & N. Muchhala, 2018

Vallejo, Andrea F., Pérez, Álvaro J., Cevallos, Daniela & Muchhala, Nathan, 2018, New species of Burmeistera (Campanulaceae: Lobelioideae) from Ecuador, Phytotaxa 362 (3), pp. 263-270 : 264-267

Burmeistera pterifolia A. F. Vallejo, A. J. Pérez & N. Muchhala , sp. nov. ( Fig. 1 , 2 )

Type:― ECUADOR. Pichincha: Cantón Quito DM, Parroquia Nanegal, Santa Lucia Cloud Forest Reserve. On ‘Loop trail’, near where it joins the principal trail, ca. 2000 m, 00°07’06.5” N, 78°36’30.5” W, 05 June 2016 (fl, fr), A. F. Vallejo 001 (holotype: QCA 236942!, isotype MO!).

Burmeistera pterifolia differs from other species of Burmeistera by having lanceolate leaves with brochidodromous venation and a pinnatilobate margin, and long, narrowly triangular calyx lobes.

Freestanding herb to subshrub, ca. 1 m tall; stems 2.5–5.0 mm diam., hispidulous, pale green; latex white. Leaves alternate, distichous, chartaceous; lamina lanceolate, glabrous, apex acute, base truncate to decurrent, 55–126 × 14– 33 mm, distal leaves gradually smaller than proximal leaves, adaxial leaf green with whitish color along venations and abaxial surface garnet greenish with light green venations; margin pinnatilobate; venation brochidodromous, hispidulous along the nerves at the underside, with 10 to 12 pair of secondary veins; petiole 6–11 mm long × 0.6–1.3 mm diam., hispidulous. Flowers solitary; pedicels 25–65 mm long × 0.5–1.5 mm diam., hispidulous, garnet to green, ascending at anthesis, patent in fruits, ebracteolate. Buds and flowers light green perfused with spinel pink. Hypanthium hemispherical, 5.8–6.1 mm long × 3.8–4.7 mm diam., hispidulous, with color similar to pedicels. Calyx lobes long and narrowly triangular, 13.4–15 × 2.2 mm, hispidulous, with fine reticulate venation, margin almost smooth, with 4–5 inconspicuous denticulate edges; apex acuminate to acute. Exterior of corolla light green suffused with spinel pink, this color could or not be present in the dorsal side of the flower and inside of the corolla, hispidulous, corolla base wider than hypanthium, to 6.5 mm diam., 20 mm long, corolla tube slightly curved, 13–15 mm long dorsally, narrowing from the base to the middle to 6.6–8.0 mm long; the two dorsal lobes lanceolate, falcate, 11–15 × 2–3 mm, acute at apex; the three ventral lobes distended at the base, 0.4–0.8 × 2–4 mm and narrowly triangular, acute at apex. Staminal column long, exerted to ca. 17 mm beyond dorsal lobes; filament tube 23–27 mm long × 1.0– 1.3 mm diam., slightly curved, villous, light green; anther tube curved-cylindrical, 7.0 mm long × 3.0 mm diam., dorsal and ventral anthers barbate, light green suffused with purple between each anther; dorsal anthers 5.0–8.0 mm long; ventral anthers 3.0– 4.6 mm long. Berries globose or ovoid, inflated with 2.0 mm thick walls, dark green when immature, light green to whitish-green when mature, 27–32 mm long × 24–27 mm diam., crowned by persistent calyx lobes; seeds elliptic, 1.0– 1.2 mm.

Etymology: —The epithet derives from the greek pterido or ptéri-s/-dos, which means fern, and folia from fýlla, which means leaves; in reference to the fern-like leaves of the species. In fact B. pterifolia can easily be confused with a fern when only leaves are observed.

Distribution, habitat and ecology:— Burmeistera pterifolia is endemic to the northwestern foothills of the Andes at the Pichincha province. Until now it is only known from the type locality, the Santa Lucia Cloud Forest Reserve ( Fig. 2 ), an area of 800-ha managed and protected by the local community through ecotourism initiatives. It grows in cloud forest between 1870–2000 m, and is often highly abundant, with more than 40 plants in an area of 10 m 2. According to the Ministerio del Ambiente de Ecuador (2013) this locality lies within a much larger zone dominated by bosque siempreverde montano bajo de la cordillera occidental de los Andes (BsBn04) and bosque siempreverde montano de la cordillera occidental de los Andes (BsMn03). Flowers open at night and are pollinated by the Lesser Tailless Bat ( Anoura caudifer ) ( Fig. 1A ).

Phenology:—Flowers and fruits are most abundant from June to July, but fertile plants have been observed throughout the year.

Conservation status:—This species was found in Santa Lucia Cloud Forest Reserve, a privately owned 800 ha area which has been a protected since 1990s. Although the type locality is protected, there is evidence of high human disturbance related to cattle raising and agricultural activities in the surrounding areas. Currently it is impossible to assess its precise conservation status as further exploration into nearby areas is needed. Thus we propose to rank this species as Data Deficient ( DD).

Discussion:— Burmeistera pterifolia is easily distinguishable by its lanceolate leaves with brochidodromous venation and the exceptional pinnatilobate margin, a unique feature among the Ecuadorian species, and its long, narrowly triangular calyx lobes. It is most similar to Burmeistera truncata Zahlbruckner (1915: 531) , a species from the western foothills of Pichincha province in Ecuador and Antioquia Department in Colombia, with which it shares its lanceolate leaves, long calyx lobes and inflated fruit type, but B. truncata lacks the pinnatilobate leaf margin. Three other species of Burmeistera , all endemic to departments of Colombia, also possess pinnatifid leaves: Burmeistera pteridioides McVaugh (1965: 400) from Boyaca Department, Burmeistera pinnatisecta Luteyn (1986: 474) from Cauca Department, and Burmeistera multipinnatisecta Lozano & Galeano (1986: 53) from Choco Department. All have much deeper leaf divisions which reach nearly to the midrib. The latter species is further distinguished by multipinnate (vs. unipinnate) leaves.

Additional specimens examined (paratypes):— ECUADOR. Pichincha: Cantón Quito DM, Parroquia Nanegal, Santa Lucia Cloud Forest Reserve. On ‘Loop trail’, near where it joins the principal trail, ca. 2000 m, 00°07’06.5” N, 78°36’30.5” W, 21 Jul 2014 (fl), N. Muchhala 522, 523 ( QCA!).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Burmeistera pterifolia A.F. Vallejo, A.J. Pérez & N. Muchhala, sp. nov. A. Pollination by Lesser Tailless Bat (Anoura caudifer). B. Side view of leaves and flower in female phase. C. Close-up of flower in male phase. D. Abaxial view of leaves. E. Fruit. Photos by Andrea F. Vallejo.

FIGURE 2. Distribution map of Burmeistera pterifolia (circle, Santa Lucia Cloud Forest Reserve in Pichincha province) and B. draconis (star, Reserva Tapichalaca in Zamora Chinchipe province) in Ecuador.