Couepia polyandra (Kunth) Rose, (1899: 196)

Santamaria-Aguilar, Daniel & Lagomarsino, Laura. P., 2015, Synopsis of Couepia (Chrysobalanaceae) in Costa Rica, with a description of two new species, Phytotaxa 233 (1), pp. 69-79 : 77-78

4. Couepia polyandra (Kunth) Rose, (1899: 196) . ( Fig. 5 )

Basionym: Hirtella polyandra Kunth (1823: 246) . Type: –– MEXICO: A. von Humboldt & Bonpland s.n (holotype: P, fide G. Prance). Couepia floccosa Fritsch, (1890: 12) . Type: –– COSTA RICA: Guanacaste. E. R. Friedrichsthal 256 (holotype: W, fide G. Prance;

photograph F, negative 31335 in GH!).

Tree or small tree 4.5–10 × 0.20 m; external bark white or reddish; internal bark reddish. Twigs cylindrical or sometimes slightly angulate, glabrescent, sparsely or densely arachnoid, generally lenticellate, lenticels small and whitish; sap not seen. Stipules linear, persistent or caducous. Leaves with petioles 0.4–1.0 cm long, rugose, eglandular (with or without two small glands in lamina base), pubescent or glabrescent, rounded below, flat or sulcate above; lamina 6.5–13 × 2.6–5.9 cm, oblong to oblong-elliptic, rounded to cuneate at base, acute, rounded or short acuminate at apex, the acumen ca. 0.3–0.4 cm long, glabrous above (sometimes arachnoid in young leaves), densely arachnoid below, trichomes white or whitish-gray when dried, generally with small flat glands along the midrib and lateral veins; midrib flat or inconspicuously elevated above, prominent and rounded below; lateral veins 5–13 per side, flat or weakly impressed above, weakly elevated below; tertiary veins inconspicuous above, distinct or indistinct below. Inflorescences (3.8–) 8.1–13.9 cm long, terminal and axillary, paniculate; rachis and branches more or less rounded or flattened, striate, covered with trichomes white or whitish-gray; bracts suborbicular, pubescent abaxially; bracteoles 1–3.5 mm long, subulate, densely pubescent abaxially, caducous. Flowers with pedicels 1.3–3.0 mm long, densely pubescent, articulated; receptacle 2.5–4.5 mm long, cylindrical or subcylindrical, densely pubescent externally, weakly longitudinally striate, the trichomes white or whitish-gray, glabrous inside, except with hairs around throat; calyx lobes 1.5–3.0 × 1.0–2.0 mm, ovate to widely ovate, rounded at apex, densely pubescent on both surfaces, eglandular, persistent; petals 3.0–3.5 × 1.5–2.0 mm, white or yellowish, similar in shape to calyx lobes, glabrous on both surfaces, but with ciliate margins, caducous; stamens 10–22, inserted in an arc, with few staminodes opposite; ovary densely pubescent; style densely pubescent in the proximal half, trichomes 0.5–1 mm long, whitish-gray, distally glabrous. Fruits (3.2–) 4.0–5.5 × (1.4–) 2.0– 2.4 cm (in herbarium material), ellipsoid to obovoid, yellow, rugose or sometimes smooth; epicarp smooth, glabrous; mesocarp thick and fleshy; endocarp thin and fibrous in texture.

Distribution and Habitat:–– Couepia polyandra is distributed from Mexico to Costa Rica. In Costa Rica, it has been collected in the Alajuela, Cartago, Guanacaste, Limón, and Puntarenas provinces at 0–750 m elevation. It is most frequent in dry forest or at the intersection of dry forest and rainforest on both the Pacific and Caribbean slopes in the Alajuela and Guanacaste provinces. It is known to be cultivated on the Caribbean slope in the Cartago and Limón provinces and is sporadically planted in the neighborhoods of Bijagua and Río Naranjo de Upala, Alajuela (I. Chacón-Gamboa, pers. com., 2014), Puerto Jiménez de Golfito, Puntarenas (R. Aguilar, pers. com., 2014), and Sixaola, Limón (J. González, pers. com., 2014). In the Área de Conservación Guanacaste (ACG), one of the localities from which this species is most well-documented in Costa Rica, it is found only in the vicinity of human populations, usually around houses or where houses once stood (D. Janzen, pers. com., 2014). It is feasible that this species is not native to Costa Rica as it has not been observed in natural, undisturbed habitat; herbarium labels confirm this observation.

Etymology:— The specific epithet is Greek in origin and refers to the many stamens of this species (González, s.d.).

Phenology:— This species has been collected in flower in April, May, September and December, and in fruit in June and August.

Vernacular name:— The Costa Rican common names for this species include olosapo and zapotillo ( Standley 1937; Pittier 1978; Zamora 2003).

Notes:— Couepia polyandra is distinguished by the arachnoid pubescence that covers the underside of the leaf and sometimes the twigs and pedicels; the linear stipules; the leaves with an acute or rounded apex; and usually rugose fruit (although fruits are sometimes smooth in Costa Rican individuals). This species also frequently produces two small glands at the base of the leaf, adjacent to the petiole.

In San Miguel de Bijagua de Upala, Alajuela, the hawkmoth Aellopos titan ( Sphingidae : Macroglossinae ) and the hummingbird Lophornis helenae ( Trochilidae ) have been observed visiting the flowers of C. polyandra (I. Chacón-Gamboa, 2014, pers. obs.). Frugivorous butterflies in the genera Archaeoprepona sp. and Historis sp. in Nymphalidae and Ascalapha sp. and Letis sp. in Erebidae visit and presumably consume fallen fruit (I. Chacón-Gamboa, 2014, pers. obs.). In the Área de Conservación Guanacaste, the caterpillars of Clito Burns 02 ( Hesperiidae ) eat the leaves of C. polyandra ( Janzen & Hallwachs, 2009) .

Additional Specimens Examined:–– COSTA RICA. Cartago: Cantón Turrialba. Cabiria 6. CATIE, 625 m, 25 June 1982 (fr), J. J. Córdoba 2115 ( CR!) . Guanacaste: Cantón Abangares. Colorado. Punta de Piedra , 21 April 1985 (fl), R. Soto 1970 ( CR!) ; Cantón La Cruz. La Cruz. Siguiendo la carretera entre La Cruz y Santa Cecilia, 11°02’25”N, 85°38’10”W, 268 m, 26 September 1994 (fl), G. Herrera 7350 ( CR!, K) ; La Garita. Estación Los Almendros, 11°02’01”N, 85°31’29”W, 300 m, 24 June 1997 (fr), R. Aguilar & N. Zamora 5178 ( CR!, F!, INB!) ; Península de Nicoya. Ostional y montañas aledañas, 10°01’30”N, 85°41’30”W, 100–200 m, 02 August 2004 (fr), R. Kriebel 4784 ( INB!) ; Cantón Nicoya. Autour des habitations à Nicoya , 01–31 April 1890 (fl), A. Tonduz 13858 ( CR!, F!, GH!) ; Filadelfia , 12–14 June 1984 (fr), L. D. Gómez et al. 23057 ( F!; photocopy, LSCR!) ; Tilarán. 750 m, 17 May 1923 (fl), J. Valerio 116 ( CR!) . Puntarenas: Puntarenas. El Roble, 29 December 2002 (fl), R. Kriebel & J. Larraguivel 2172 ( CR!, INB!) .

Figures

FIGURE 5. Couepia polyandra (Kunth) Rose. A. Branch with inflorescence. B. Abaxial leaf surface. C. Fruit. A–B. Photos by A. Guadamuz. C. Photos by I. Chacón-Gamboa.