Rourea barbata C. Toledo, Phytotaxa 408(2): 118. 2019.

Toledo, Cassio A. P., Souza, Vinicius Castro & Lucas, Eve J., 2020, Nomenclatural and taxonomic updates in Rourea subgen. Rourea sect. Multifoliolatae (Connaraceae), PhytoKeys 169, pp. 137-175 : 137

Rourea barbata C. Toledo, Phytotaxa 408(2): 118. 2019. Illustration: Forero (2003) and Toledo and Souza (2019)

Type.

Brazil. Minas Gerais: Grão Mogol, cerrado na estrada para o rio Ventania, ca. 16°32'S-42°49'W, ca. 900 m alt., 5 Nov 1990 (fl.), J. R. Pirani CFCR13358 (Holotype: SPF barcode SPF 69503!; isotypes: ESA!, NY!).

Description.

Shrubs, ca. 1.5 m tall; branchlets glabrous or subglabrous, lenticels absent. Leaves 7-11-foliolate, congested; petiole 0.8-1.7 cm long, glabrous or subglabrous, eglandular; rachis 3.5-4.4 cm long, glabrous or subglabrous, eglandular; leaflets opposite to subopposite, subsessile; blade of the basal pair of leaflets 1-1.6 × 0.6-0.9 cm, ovate, others 1.3-3.2 × 0.8-1.4 cm, narrowly ovate or narrowly elliptic, chartaceous, discolorous, glabrous on both surfaces, abaxially vinaceous, adaxially greyish, slightly shining, base symmetric or slightly asymmetric, subcordate, apex obtuse, rounded or narrowly rounded, margin slightly revolute, glabrous; midvein abaxially prominent, adaxially slightly impressed, secondary veins 5-7 pairs, slightly prominent on both surfaces, tertiary veins slightly prominent on both surfaces. Inflorescences in axillary or pseudoterminal cymes; bracts 2-3 mm long; peduncle 0.2-3.5 cm long, glabrous or subglabrous, eglandular; rachis 0.7-1.8 cm long, glabrous or subglabrous, eglandular. Flowers loosely disposed or congested apically; buds 4-3 × 3 mm, orbicular; pedicel 6-12 mm long, eglandular, 2 bracteoles located up to the lower half, persistent; sepals 4-4.5 × 2 mm, chartaceous, ovate or narrowly ovate, outer surface subglabrous, eglandular, inner surface glabrous or subglabrous, margin ciliate, more densely at the apex; petals 5.5-6 × 2 mm, oblong or narrowly obovate, glabrous on both surfaces; stamens connate at base by ca. 1 mm, shorter series ca. 3.5 mm long, longer series 5-5.5 mm long, glabrous; ovary 1-1.2 mm long, densely hirsute only on one side, glabrous or almost so elsewhere, style ca. 2 mm long, sparsely hirsute at base, glabrescent towards the apex, stigma peltate, bilobate. Fruits unknown.

Distribution, habitat and phenology.

This species is only known from the type location (Fig. 3 ). It has a shrubby habit and grows in areas of cerrado, at ca. 900 m altitude. The only flowering specimen was collected in November.

Recognition and notes.

Rourea barbata is mainly recognised by the glabrous leaflets and the ovary, which is hairy only on one side of the structure. It is similar to R. martiana due to the number, size and shape of leaflets, but these are glabrous in R. barbata and hirsute or villous in the latter.

Forero (2003) identified the type of R. barbata as R. discolor ; however, the former differs by the leaves 7-11-foliolate, inflorescence rachis 0.7-1.8 cm long and the ovary with a tuft of trichomes, while the latter has leaves 9-29-foliolate, inflorescence rachis 3.5-11.5 long and ovary completely hirsute.

Figures

Figure 3. Geographic distribution of Rourea bahiensis (circles), R. barbata (triangles) and R. blanchetiana (squares).