Conostegia lasiopoda Benth.

Kriebel, Ricardo, 2016, A Monograph of Conostegia (Melastomataceae, Miconieae), PhytoKeys 67, pp. 1-326 : 130-132

Conostegia lasiopoda Benth. Fig. 123

Conostegia lasiopoda Benth., Bot. Voy. Sulphur 96. 1844. Type: Costa Rica. Puntarenas: Cocos Island, no date, Barclay s.n. (K!).

Conostegia trianaei Cogn., DC. Monog. Phan. 7: 702. 1891. Type: Colombia. Chocó: 1851-1857, J. Triana 3943 (holotype: BR!, isotypes: BM!, NY!, K!, US!, W).

Conostegia sororia Standl., Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Bot. sere 22: 161. 1940. Type: Panama. Darién: Cana-Cuasi trail, Rio Cuasi (camp I), Chepigna, 250 m, 7 March 1940, M. and R. Terry 1414 (holotype: F!, isotypes: A!, MO!).

Description.

Shrubs to small trees 1.5-6 m tall with stems that are first tetragonal then terete and setose with appressed single bristles 1-2 mm long and many minute sessile stellate hairs; nodal line present yet slight. Leaves at a node equal to subequal in size. Petioles 0.7-3.6 cm long, densely hirsute adaxially. Leaves 8.3-30 × 3.6-11.7 cm, 3-5 nerved, ovate to obovate, cuneate to obtuse at the base, the apex acute to rounded and attenuate to abruptly acuminate,the margins entire to undulate-dentate, the adaxial surface glabrous, slightly concave and with deeply impressed tertiary venation, abaxially covered only with a layer of these tiny sessile stellae. Inflorescence terminal, 5-19.1 cm long, accessory branches absent or present, the branches subtended by deciduous, setose linear bracteoles 2-20 mm long, the clusters of flowers subtended by puberulent foliose, persistent to deciduous bracteoles 2-7 mm long. Pedicels of 0.5-2.0 mm. Flowers (5-)6(-8) merous, calyptrate. Floral buds 4-9 × 2-5 mm, ovate to oblong-pyriform, the base rounded, the apex acuminate, constricted below the middle, the upper and lower portions undifferentiated, the hypanthium 3.5-4 × 3.25-3.5 mm, pubescent. Petals 7-8 × 7-8 mm, translucent white, obtriangular, spreading, glabrous, and slightly asymmetrical apically. Stamens 17-25, 4-6 mm, slightly zygomorphic apparently from the movement of the style, the filament 2.5-3 mm, white, anthers 1.5-2 × 0.5-1 mm, linear-oblong, straight or recurved, light yellow., the pore terminal, less than 0.1 mm. Ovary 6-9 locular, inferior, apically glabrous and forming a low collar around the style. Style 5-8 mm, straight for most of its length and bending gently near the apex, vertical distance from the anther to the stigma 2-3 mm, the stigma capitate, 1-1.25 mm wide. Berry 8-10 × 8-10 mm, light purple to purple-black. Seeds 0.3-0.5 mm long, ovoid, the testa smooth to roughened.

Distribution

(Fig. 124 ). Distributed in southeastern Nicaragua, wet forests of Costa Rica, somewhat restricted in Panama to mostly western Colombia, with a few specimens collected in northwestern Ecuador, also in Cocos Island, from sea level to 2100 m in elevation.

Conostegia lasiopoda is usually a quite distinctive species. The leaf veins are elevated and arise exactly at the base ("perfectly nerved"), the petioles are setose adaxially and the flowers have foliaceous bracts covering them. When these bracts fall, distinguishing Conostegia lasiopoda from Conostegia centronioides can be difficult. The latter tends to be at least somewhat plinerved and lack the adaxial setose petioles. Conostegia rubiginosa is also similar but lacks the foliaceous bracts covering the floral bracts and the indument in flower bud is more evident. Also, Conostegia rubiginosa tends to have smaller coriaceous leaves. The stamens of Conostegia lasiopoda have a conspicuous anther shoulder (Figs 49 , 123 ) which has not been confirmed in Conostegia centronioides or Conostegia rubiginosa and the style is exserted (Fig. 123 ) like the latter two taxa and as usual in section Australis . Lastly, the calyptra has been observed to rupture into pieces at anthesis (pers. obs. and photographs by Reinaldo Aguilar).

Specimens examined.

NICARAGUA (fide Schnell). Zelaya: Salto La Oropendula, Rio Rama, Stevens 8962 (MO).

COSTA RICA. Alajuela: San Ramón, R. B. Manuel Alberto Brenes, Estación Rio San Lorenzo , Kriebel 902 (INB) ; Limón: Pococí, P.N. Braulio Carrillo, Estación Quebrada González, Kriebel 203 (INB); Matina, P. N. Barbilla, Cuenca del Matina, Sector Colonia Puriscaleña, Sendero Cerro Azul hasta Rio Surubres , Mora 1162 (INB, MO, NY) . Puntarenas: R.F. Golfo Dulce, Serranías de Golfito, Estación Río Bonito por la Fila que va a Cerro La Gamba , Aguilar and Albertín 5115 (NY); Distrito, Sierpe, Reserva Forestal Golfo Dulce, Mogos 1 km antes de llegar a la entrada del Porvenir a 16 km. de Chacarita, Aguilar 11265 (NY); E.B. Las Cruces, downhill from the greenhouses along the trail to the rio Java , Boyle et al. 6435 (NY); along stream leading into Chatham Bay , Cocos Island , Fournier 303 (CR, NY); Bahia Wafer aguas arriba del Rio Genio , González 1200 (INB, NY); Reserva Forestal innominada 2 K al norte de la entrada de Chacarita por la carretera interamericana, González 3594 (INB, NY); Estacion La Gamba , Kriebel 1078 (INB) .

PANAMA. Panamá: Sendero de Interpretacion , 1 km al este del Campamento de los guardabosques de INRENARE, Correa and Montenegro 11122 (NY) . Veraguas: Parque Nacional Santa Fé, aproximadamente de 3 a 6 km pasando la Escuela Agricola Alto de Piedra , Kriebel and Burke 5722 (NY, PMA) .

COLOMBIA. Antioquia: P.N. Natural Las Orquideas, Vereda Venados Abajo, Pedraza et al. 2323 (NY) . Chocó: Río San Juan, cercanías de Palestina, Cuatrecasas 16938 (NY); area of Baudó, on right bank of river Baudó about 12.5 km upstream of estuary, near estuary of Quebrada Carpio, 1 km upstream of camp site, Quebrada Angueradó, Fuchs and Zanella 21770 (MO, NY); At Rio Iro on Hwy S from Istmina, Juncosa 2484 (MO, NY) . El Valle: Rio Calima ( región del Chocó), entre Malaguita y Palestina, Cuatrecasas 21331 (NY) .

ECUADOR. Esmeraldas: San Lorenzo cantón Ricuarte, Reserva Indígena Awá, Tipaz et al. 2107 (MO, NY).

Figures

Figure 49. Scanning Electron Micrographs of the side view of the stamens of Conostegia. A Conostegia speciosa (R. Kriebel 5489) B Conostegia subcrustulata (R. Kriebel s. n.) C Conostegia xalapensis (R. Kriebel 5555) D Conostegia brenesiana (R. Kriebel 3665) E Conostegia centrosperma (R. Kriebel 5690) F Conostegia dissitinervia (R. Kriebel 5377) G Conostegia friedmaniorum (R. Kriebel 5641) H Conostegia consimilis (R. Kriebel 5323) I Conostegia peltata (R. Kriebel 5658) J Conostegia schlimii (R. Kriebel 515). Scale bar: 100 µm.

Figure 123. Conostegia lasiopoda. A Leaf abaxial surface B Internode C Lateral view of the flower D Fruit E Inflorescence branch showing bracteoles covering flower buds F Longitudinal section of a flower bud G Flower H Longitudinal section of a flower with petals removed I Petal J Stamen Photographs A, B by Reinaldo Aguilar and vouchered R. Aguilar 11265 C-J vouchered from specimen R. Kriebel 5651.

Figure 124. Distribution of Conostegia lasiopoda.