Cestrum haberii A.K.Monro, 2012

Monro, Alex K., 2012, Eight new species of Cestrum (Solanaceae) from Mesoamerica, PhytoKeys 8, pp. 49-82 : 61-64

Cestrum haberii A.K.Monro sp. nov. Fig. 6 A-D

Diagnosis.

Most similar to Cestrum poasanum Donn.Sm. from which it can be distinguished by the broader leaves and the shorter pedunculate or sessile inflorescences bearing flowers with usually shorter pedicels.

Type.

Costa Rica. Cantón de Puntarenas, Monteverde, Pacific slope wet forest, 10°18'N, 84°48'W (DMS), 1400-1500 m, 12 Mar 1992, W. A. Haber 11049 (holotype: MO-3930789).

Description.

Trees or shrubs, where shrubs occasionally lax, 1-5 m. Leaf-bearing stems drying pale brown to dark brown, grey-brown, green-grey or grey, the internodes 7-60 × 1.5-8.0 mm; young stems glabrous, sparsely pubescent or moderatley pubescent, where pubescent the hairs 0.25-0.50 mm, branched, erect, dendritic, eglandular. Axillary buds 0.75-2.50 mm, drying pale brown to dark brown or red-brown or dark grey-brown, densely pubescent to regularly pubescent, not subtended by a minor leaf. Lamina 55-250 × 19-110 mm, length width ratio 1.8-3.3(4.1), ovate-oblong, oblong-obovate, ovate, obovate, or oblong, chartaceous to subcoriaceous, drying olive green, brown or yellow-brown, upper surface glabrous or sparsely pubescent, minutely pusticulate, where pubescent the hairs 0.250-0.375 mm, branched or simple, appressed, dendritic where branched, straight where simple; primary and secondary veins clearly visible to the naked eye, the primary and secondary raised; lower surface sparsely to very sparsely pubescent, the hairs 0.25-0.50 mm, branched, erect, weakly appressed, dendritic where branched, glandular where simple, dark walled, orange-brown to brown in colour; primary to quarternary veins clearly visible to the naked eye, primary and secondary only or primary to tertiary veins raised, veinlets not visible, secondary veins 6-13 pairs, borne 45-75° to the midrib, curved to weakly curved, strongly ascending; base decurrent or cuneate or asymmetrically obtuse / decurrent or cuneate / decurrent; margin entire, very irregularly and weakly crenate; apex subcuspidate, cuspidate or acute; petioles frequently borne on a crescent shaped short woody spur, 11-43 × 0.75-2.25 mm, brown to very dark brown, sparsely pubescent or glabrous, where pubescent the hairs 0.125-0.50 mm. Inflorescences 3-9 per herbarium sheet, axillary and terminal, solitary, borne along the full length of the leaf-bearing stem, 25-300 mm, panicle occasionally branched to its base, bearing 7-120 flowers in 2-25 clusters, each cluster bearing 1-8 flowers; sessile or peduculate, where pedunculate the peduncle 2-25 × 0.675-1.25 mm, brown to dark brown, densely pubescent or moderatley pubescent, the hairs 0.250-0.675 mm, branched, dendritic, eglandular; bracts (1.5)10-46 × 1.25-14.0 mm, leaf-like; bracteoles 0.5-5.0 mm, frequently caducous, linear, moderatley pubescent or densely pubescent. Flowers pedicellate or subsessile, where pedicellate the pedicels 0.375-0.750 mm; flowers yellow-green, pale yellow, cream, white or dull pink, the lobes occasionally lilac coloured, nocturnally fragrant; calyx 2.75-6.0 × 1.675-2.0 mm long, the tube 11-21 mm long, the outer surface glabrous, the lobes 3-5(6-7), 0.50-2.0 mm, erect; corolla 15-24 mm, 2.0-3.75 mm in diameter at the mouth, 0.5-1.5 mm at the base, glabrous, the lobes 5, 2.5-4.5 mm; stamens 5, the filaments 13.5-19.0 mm long, subequal, adnate for 12.0-16.5 mm, with a lobe-like or bilobed appendage present at insertion point, pubescent from appendage to base, anthers 0.675-1.250 × 0.675-1.0 mm; style 14-20 mm, the stigma 0.675-0.750 × 0.675-1.0 mm. Infructescences 32-100 mm long, bearing 3-15 fruit; fruiting calyx 3.0-4.5 × 4-6 mm; fruit 7.5-10.0 × 5-8 mm, white or cream when ripe. Seeds 7-10, 2.5-4.5 × 1.5-2.0 × 1.5-2.0 mm, the surface minutely verrucate.

Etymology.

This species is named after William Haber, US botanist (1946-), who collected the holotype and six of the paratype collections.

Distribution.

Wet, cloud and montane forest from (100) 900 to 2200 m. Collection notes indicate that this species is known from undisturbed and disturbed forest. Existing collection localities suggest that the species’ Extent of Occurrence is 30,950 km2 running along the Pacific coast of Costa Rica (Guanacaste, Alajuela, Heredia, Cartago, San José, Puntarenas) and Panama ( Chiriquí) ( Google Earth, accessed Dec 16 2010, images 2001, 2006).

Discussion.

Of the 29 known collections of Cestrum haberii most had previously been determined as Cestrum poasanum Donn. Sm. A comparison of the holotype and paratype material with type specimens from the herbaria listed in the Materials and methods section recovered Cestrum haberii as most similar to Cestrum poasanum and Cestrum rugulosum Francey. The two species can be distinguished based on leaf, inflorescence and flower morphology as summarised in Tables 9 & 10 .

Conservation status.

Using IUCN criteria ( IUCN 2001) Cestrum haberii is considered Vulnerable (VU, A1c) under criteria A1(decline in Extent of Occurrence). A current decline in Extent of Occurrence of 27% is inferred from a projection of the locality coordinates on Google Earth ( Google Earth, accessed Dec 16 2010, images 2001, 2006). Of the 15 point localities for this species, five remain as undisturbed forest, four (27%) are pasture or crop fields and eight are remnant forest patches. Collection notes indicate that Cestrum haberii persists in disturbed or secondary vegetation indicating a tolerance to disturbance. It is therefore assumed that this species will only be lost from a locality where vegetation cover is removed. Using this assumption the extent of decline is estimated at 27% and is assessed as ongoing. It is therefore highly likely that the decline in Extent of Occurrence will exceed 30% in the near future, meeting criteria A1c.

Paratypes.

COSTA RICA. Alajuela: Cantón San Ramón, La Palma de San Ramón, 10°07'12"N, 084°33'00"W (DMS), 1300 m, 30 May 1927, A. M. Brenes 5542 (F); Cantón San Ramón, La Palma de San Ramón, 10°07'12"N, 084°33'00"W (DMS), 1100 m, 27 Jun 1927, A. M. Brenes 5560 (F); Cantón San Ramón, Los Angeles de San Ramón, Finca Johanson, 10°12'36"N, 084°34'48"W (DMS), 1000 m, 14 Apr 1928, A. M. Brenes 6130 (F); Cantón San Ramón, Los Angeles de San Ramón, Finca Johanson, 10°12'36"N, 084°34'48"W (DMS), 1000 m, 4 May 1928, A. M. Brenes 6157 (F); Cantón San Ramón, Piedades Norte, Los Angeles de San Ramón, 10°12'36"N, 084°34'48"W (DMS), 1000 m, 6 Mar 1929, A. M. Brenes 6713 (F); Cantón San Ramón, Piedades Norte, Los Angeles de San Ramón, 10°12'36"N, 084°34'48"W (DMS), 1000 m, 6 Mar 1929, A. M. Brenes 6726 (F); Cantón San Ramón, Piedades Sur, 1100 m, 8 Mar 1933, A. M. Brenes 17167 (F); along road between San Ramón and Balsa, at Angeles Norte, 10°08'24"N, 084°28'48"W (DMS), 1250 m, 2 Feb 1979, T. B. Croat 46848 (MO); Monteverde Reserve, Atlantic slope, Río Peñas Blancas valley, 10°17'41"N, 084°46'50"W (DMS), 1400 m, 20 Oct 1984, W. A. Haber 710 (MO); Reserva Biológica Monteverede Río Peñas Blancas, 10°19'N, 84°44'W (DMS), 900 m, 15 Apr 1988, W. A. Haber & E. Bello C. 8361 (MO); Cantón San Ramón, Rancho La Paz, 10°08'51"N, 084°31'54"W (DMS), 1100 m, 15 Nov 1973, L. J. Poveda 772 (MO); Cantón Alfaro Ruiz, La Peña de Zarcero, 1400 m, 6 May 1938, A. Smith H488 (F); Cantón Alfaro Ruiz, La Peña de Zarcero, 1450 m, 11 May 1938, A. Smith NY568 (F); Cantón San Carlos, Zapote, 22 Apr 1938, 1500 m, A. Smith H649 (F); Cantón Alfaro Ruiz, El Silencio de Zarcero, 1400 m, 11 Jan 1939, A. Smith NY1439 (F); Cordillera Central near San Juan de Laja ca. 15 km N of Zarcero, 10°15'00"N, 084°24'36"W (DMS), 1350 m, 7 Feb 1965, L. O. Williams, A. Molina R., T. P. Williams & D. N. Gibson 29022 (F, MO); Cartago: Cantón de Cartago, Llano Grande, junto a la carretera, cerca del Río Tiribí, 09°57'00"N, 083°55'48"W (DMS), 1400 m, 17 Mar 1993, Q. Jiménez & L. Poveda 1195 (BM, INB). Guanacaste: Cantón de Tilarán, Zona Protectora Tenorio, Cordillera Tilarán, Tierras Morenas, Río San Lorenzo, 10°36'36"N, 084°59'24"W (DMS), 1000 m, 23 Mar 1993, G. Rodríguez & Q. Jiménez 123 (BM, INB, MO); Heredia: above San José de la Montaña on W slope of Volcán Barba, 2100 m, 17 May 1966, F. R. Fosberg, W. H. Hatheway & D. H. Nicolson 47832 (US). Puntarenas: ca. 2 km SE of Monteverde, on the Pacific watershed, 1500-1550 m, 18-21 Mar 1973, J. L. Gentry & W. C. Burger 2680 (F); San Vito, 08°40'N, 082°59'W (DMS), 1400 m, Jun 1974, W. A. Haber SV#14 (MO); Monteverde Reserve, 10°18'34"N, 084°48'15"W (DMS), 1500 m, 1 Jun 1985, W. A. Haber & E. Bello C. 1603 (MO); Cantón de Puntarenas, Monteverde, on Pacific slope, 10°18'N, 84°48'W (DMS), 1400-1500 m, 5 Mar 1992, W. A. Haber 11036 (MO); Cantón de Golfito, Parque Nacional Corcovado, Finca Alajuela, Piedras Blancas, Sector Esquinas, 08°46'N, 083°15'W (DMS), 100 m, 19 Jun 1994, F. Quesada 939 (BM, INB); San José: N Cordillera Talamanca, region of Cerro de la Muerte, Carretera Nacional 2, 13.5 km N of San Isidro, 09°27'36"N, 083°42'00"W (DMS), 1600 m, 4 Apr 1978, C. Davidson 7220 (US); Santo Domingo de Vara Blanca, 2200 m, 22 Feb 1937, M. Valerio 1552 (F). PANAMA. Chiriquí: Bajo Chorro, 08°51'N, 082°31'W (DMS), 1900-2200 m, 21 Mar 1977, W.G. D'Arcy 10926 (MO); Boquete District, Chiquero, 08°39'N, 082°20'W (DMS), 1700 m, 11 Apr 1938, M. E. Davidson 558 (A, F).

Figures

Figure 6. Cestrum haberii A. K. Monro A Flowering stem B Style C. Longitudinal section through the corolla showing stamen arrangement D Flower. Drawn from W. A. Haber 11049 (MO).