Stachytarpheta hirsutissima Link (1821: 19)

Cardoso, Pedro Henrique, Valério, Vanessa Imaculada Dos Reis, Neto, Luiz Menini & Salimena, Fátima Regina Gonçalves, 2021, Verbenaceae in Espírito Santo, Brazil: richness, patterns of geographic distribution and conservation, Phytotaxa 484 (1), pp. 1-43 : 31-32

10.3. Stachytarpheta hirsutissima Link (1821: 19) . (Fig. 3B)

Shrubs 0.4‒1.5 m high, branches tetragonal, not winged, densely hirsute. Leaves opposite, sessile to short-petiolate, blade 2‒8 × 1.2‒5.5 cm, chartaceous, ovate to rotund, apex obtuse or rounded, base truncate to obtuse, margin entire near the base, serrate toward the apex, ciliate, densely hirsute in both surfaces. Inflorescences 11‒50 cm long, lax; bracts 6‒8 mm long, lanceolate, abaxial surface densely hirsute, margin ciliate; calyx 0.8‒1 cm long, immersed in the depressions of the rachis, 4-toothed, 1 sinus adaxial, densely hirsute externally; corolla 1.1‒1.2 cm long, lilac. Fruit 4‒5 mm long, surrounded by the persistent calyx.

Distribution and habitat:— Stachytarpheta hirsutissima is endemic to Brazil, restricted to the restingas of Alagoas, Bahia, Espírito Santo, and Rio de Janeiro states ( Atkins 2005, Cardoso & Salimena 2020c). In Espírito Santo, it occurs in the municipalities of Conceição da Barra, Guarapari, and Vila Velha. This species is found in one SPA of this state: Reserva Estadual de Jacarenema.

Phenology:— Collected with flowers in January, May, August, November, and with fruits in August and November.

Preliminary conservation assessment: —This species is restricted to the restingas, and has an EOO of approximately 62,500 km 2 and AOO of 64 km 2. It is threatened due to the loss of habitat quality because of the degradation of the restingas resulting from anthropogenic activities ( Pereira 2007, Thomazi et al. 2013) and restricted AOO. According to IUCN (2019), S. hirsutissima should be considered “Endangered” (EN). However, it occurs inside PAs in Brazil and, therefore, we adopted a more conservative point of view and considered the species “Vulnerable” VU B2ab(i,ii,iii).

Selected material:— BRAZIL. Espírito Santo: Conceição da Barra , 24 November 1992, fl. and fr., O. J . Pereira 2972 ( CESJ, VIES); Guarapari , 8 November 1985, fl. and fr., O. J . Pereira & V. L. G . Klein s.n. ( CESJ 65307 , VIES 719 ); Vila Velha , 23 August 2009, fl. and fr., R. T . Valadares & V. B . Sarnaglia Júnior 875 ( CESJ, VIES) .

Notes:— Stachytarpheta hirsutissima is characterized by the presence of ovate to rotund leaves, truncate to obtuse base (some specimens that do not occur in the state of Espírito Santo have an attenuated base), and entire plant with indument hirsute. Several specimens of S. hirsutissima were misidentified as S. canescens Kunth (1818: 281) , a species from Bolivia and Peru ( Atkins 2005). These taxa are similar to each other due to the densely hirsute indument, however S. canescens has calyx more profoundly immersed in the depressions of the rachis, adaxial sinus absent and the leaves are oval-elliptical with cuneate base.

Illustrations in Atkins (2005).