During bryological work in the Nelliampathy hills (Western Ghats, India), we collected an epiphytic Macromitrium with unistratose leaves in which cells in the distal 1/3 of the leaf are bulging but neither tuberculate nor papillose. The specimen did not fit morphologically with any other species of the genus worldwide. We performed a phylogenetic analysis based on trnL-F sequence data, and compared the morphology of this specimen with the related species of Macromitrium. Morphological and molecular evidence support the establishment of a new species of Macromitrium, M. nelliampathyanum Sajitha, Manju & J.Muñoz, which is described and illustrated. The new species can be distinguished from all congeners by the combination of the following morphological characters: (1) branch leaves strongly curled and flexuous along its costa when dry, unistratose, (2) cells in the distal 1/3 of the leaf bulging, with smooth walls, neither papillose distally nor tuberculate proximally, (3) a very small area at the juxtacostal extreme base of cells hyaline and larger, similar to the ‘cancellina’ in calymperoid mosses, (4) basal margins with a long, single row of 12–13 hyaline cells; (5) pleated calyptra covering ¾ of the globose capsule, with a few hairs at the beak, (6) peristome teeth reduced, consisting only of a low irregular papillose outgrowth, or absent, and (7) anisospory.
Hasta ahora el género Williamodendron (Lauraceae) en Colombia estaba representado por una sola especie: W. quadrilocellatum, registrada hace 63 años y conocida únicamente de la colección y localidad tipo de Chigorodó, Departamento de Antioquia. Este trabajo reporta por primera vez la presencia de una segunda especie del género, W. glaucophyllum, en Colombia. Esta especie se conocía previamente solo de Costa Rica. Se proporciona una clave de identificación e imágenes de material de herbario para diferenciar ambas especies. Además, se presentan aclaraciones nomenclaturales y taxonómicas, así como una evaluación preliminar del estado de conservación de la especie en Colombia.
The taxonomic treatment of the Turneraceae species from Maranhão state, Brazil is presented. Twenty-one species distributed in two genera were recognized: Piriqueta, with seven species, and Turnera with 14, of which P. guianensis, T. aurantiaca and T. blanchetiana are new records for the state. Turnera aurantiaca is also a new occurrence for the northeastern region of Brazil. In general, the species were frequently found in the cerrado vegetation, being mainly associated with open and anthropized areas. Identication keys, descriptions, photographs, general comments, conservation status and taxa distribution maps for the Maranhão state are presented.
Twenty-one species distributed in two genera were recognized: Piriqueta, with seven species, and Turnera with 14, of which P. guianensis, T. aurantiaca and T. blanchetiana are new records for the state. Turnera aurantiaca is also a new occurrence for the northeastern region of Brazil. In general, the species were frequently found in the cerrado vegetation, being mainly associated with open and anthropized areas. Identification keys, descriptions, photographs, general comments, conservation status and taxa distribution maps for the Maranh & atilde;o state are presented.
Anew species of Salvia is described from the Central Cordillera of Colombia. It is the second known species of section Tubiflorae with resupinate flowers. Its affinities with similar species from the same section are discussed.
The genus Puya (Bromeliaceae) is highly endemic in Peru. By comparing the morphological characters of several populations located in southern Peru, we report a new species providing data on their ecology, distribution and conservation status. Puya pereae sp. nov. is characterised by retrorse spines towards the base of the leaves, paniculate inflorescence with branches of up to 26 flowers, primary bract margins entire to irregularly denticulate, floral bracts smaller than the length of the sepals, and sepals with tomentose indumentum. The populations studied were previously confused with P. densilora, an eastern Andean species with antrorse spines towards the base of the leaves and cylindrical inflorescence. In addition, the characters of P. pereae are discussed in relation to those of other related species, and the localities of the material studied are mapped.
As a result of intensive field work in remote areas of Carchi, Loja, Orellana, and Zamora-Chinchipe, as well as a revision of herbarium material and bibliography, seven new records for the flora of Ecuador are recorded: Barnadesia corymbosa, Gynoxys callacallana, G. dilloniana, G. tetroici (Compositae), Byrsonima cardenasii (Malpighiaceae), Caperonia zaponzeta (Euphorbiaceae), and Gentianella setipes (Gentianaceae). Moreover, the names Bacasia corymbosa (equivalent to Barnadesia corymbosa) and Barnadesia venosa are lectotypified and Gynoxys cajamarcensis is synonymized with G. callacallana. Taxonomic and morphological notes, pictures of living plants, and distribution maps are provided.
This article reports for the first time on Plantago tenuiflora from the Iberian Peninsula, discusses aspects of its habitat and highlights the important disjunction that our finding represents in relation to the species' known range. Taking into account that the species was not included in the treatment of the genus in Flora iberica, we present an adaptation of the identification key and a description of Plantago tenuiflora based on the Iberian material.
Croton is a predominantly woody pantropical genus that exhibits the so-called ‘Odd Man Out’ pattern, with Africa having the lowest species diversity across the tropics. Previous phylogenetic analyses have shown that all the Old World species of Croton sampled so far form a single clade nested within a New World backbone. Here we focus on a taxonomically challenging group of African Croton characterized by the presence of lepidote indument. Species delimitation within this group has proven difficult due to the lack of strong morphological differentiation and the incompleteness of numerous herbarium specimens from tropical Africa. We sequenced two universal genetic regions (ITS, trnL-F) using multiple accessions per species/morphospecies based on herbarium material to provide a preliminary phylogenetic framework to guide the lineage sampling for a broader phylogenomic study targeting this group and the rest of all African Croton. We also used these molecular data, along with information on geographic occurrences, to aid in the identification of poor, immature or infertile specimens and to detect possible instances of taxonomic misidentification in herbarium collections. Our results show that African lepidote species belong to several separate clades, one of them containing the majority of the lepidote species. Phylogenetic resolution within this largest lepidote clade is low, but several highly supported subclades were recovered. The sampling of these subclades should be considered in any future study aimed at reconstructing a phylogenetic tree of African Croton using phylogenomics.
The orchid genus Pterichis comprises almost 50 species distributed from Costa Rica and Jamaica to Bolivia with the greatest diversity observed in the northern Andes. Recent studies on Pterichis resulted in the description of numerous new species across South America. One of the most interesting findings was P. aragogiana, which is characterized by a spider-like appearance of the flowers. This orchid was described based on material collected in Ecuador and a year later its occurrence was confirmed in Bolivia. Here P. aragogiana is reported for the first time from Peru based on data obtained in USM herbarium. The morphological characteristic of the species is provided together with an illustration and information about its geo-graphical distribution. An updated key for identification of Peruvian representatives of the nominal section of Pterichis is presented.
Several species of lichenicolous fungi from the region of Batman and Siirt provinces in Turkey are recorded here. A new species is described: Rhymbocarpus circinariae on Circinaria sp. A new combination, Muellerella fuscoatrae on Lecidea fuscoatra, is established alongside the selection of a neotype. Three species are reported for the first time in Turkey: Lichenochora epidesertorum, Paralecia pratorum, and Sclerococcum homoclinellum. In addition, Paralecia pratorum is also reported for the first time in Asia.
Callicarpa gonzalezgomezii sp. nov. (Lamiaceae) is described from the ultramafic soils of northern Holguín Province, Cuba. It is closely related to C. gibaroana, from which it differs in its shorter petioles and smaller leaf blades with obtuse to rounded apex and adaxial surface glossy in fresh material; tomentose-ferruginous indumentum on young branches, petioles, peduncles and calyxes; pale magenta to lilac corolla (sometimes with blue hues); and in growing on serpentine soils. Its known distribution is limited to the municipality Rafael Freyre, and it is classified as ‘Critically Endangered’ according to its preliminary IUCN assessment. Illustrations and an identification key to all 24 currently recognized Cuban species of Callicarpa are provided.
We fix the application of the names Carex alpestris All. and C. nigra Bellardi (usually miscited as “C. nigra All.”) through their typification. We chose two specimens housed at TO, each of them collected by the respective nomenclatural author.
Se cita por primera vez Plantago tenuiflora de la península ibérica, comentando los aspectos de su hábitat y destacando la importancia bioge-ográfica de estas poblaciones. Teniendo en cuenta que la especie no está incluida en el tratamiento del género en Flora iberica, se aporta una adaptación de la clave del género Plantago y una descripción basada en el material ibérico.
Se describe una especie nueva de Salvia de la Cordillera Central de Colombia, segunda especie de la sección Tubiflorae con flores resupinadas. Se discuten las afinidades de la nueva especie con las consideradas más cercanas en la sección.
Como resultado de un trabajo de campo extenso realizado en áreas remotas de Carchi, Loja, Orellana y Zamora-Chinchipe, así como de una revisión de material de herbario y bibliografía, se reportan siete nuevos registros para la flora del Ecuador: Barnadesia corymbosa, Gynoxys callacallana, G. dilloniana, G. tetroici (Compositae), Byrsonima cardenasii (Malpighiaceae), Caperonia zaponzeta (Euphorbiaceae) y Gentianella setipes (Gentianaceae). Además, se lectotipifican los nombres Bacasia corymbosa (≡ Barnadesia corymbosa) y Barnadesia venosa y Gynoxys cajamarcensis se sinonimiza a G. callacallana. Se incluyen notas taxonómicas y morfológicas, fotografías de las plantas en su hábitat y mapas de distribución.
El género Puya (Bromeliaceae) muestra una alta endemicidad en el Perú. Al comparar los caracteres morfológicos de varias poblaciones localizadas en el sur del Perú, damos a conocer una nueva especie aportando datos sobre su ecología, distribución y estado de conservación. Puya pereae sp. nov. se caracteriza por las espinas retrorsas hacia la base de las hojas, la inflorescencia paniculada con ramas de hasta 26 flores, el margen de las brácteas primarias de entero a irregularmente denticulado, las brácteas florales menores que la longitud de los sépalos y el indumento tomentoso de los sépalos. Las poblaciones estudiadas fueron anteriormente confundidas con P. densiflora, especie andina oriental con espinas antrorsas hacia la base de las hojas e inflorescencia cilíndrica. Además, discutimos los caracteres de P. pereae en relación con los de otras especies próximas, y se cartografían las localidades del material estudiado.
The Province of Mardin, located in Upper Mesopotamia on the old Silk Road, has hosted 30 civilizations and the amalgamation of various languages and religions. The District of Yeşilli, in Mardin Province, is an important region that shares this cultural richness. The aim of this ethnobotanical study, the first in the district, was to record the plants used for medicinal purposes by the residents of Yeşilli and to achieve which are also used for food purposes. The fieldwork to document the traditional knowledge of plants was carried out in Yeşilli District from March 2017 to April 2022. The data were collected by interviewing 82 informants. Additionally, the data were analyzed based on the Use Value (UV) and Informant Consensus Factor (ICF) to determine both the cultural significance and the knowledge of medicinal plants among the informants. A total of 83 taxa belonging to 34 families were identified in the region. The majority of remedies were prepared by infusion and decoction. Aerial parts were the most frequently used plant parts. The utilization of medicinal plants is still widespread among the residents of Yeşilli. Given the cultural diversity of the region, this study is of invaluable significance for future ethnobotanical and ethnopharmacological research.
During a study of Iberian benthic diatom flora in disconnected Mediterranean pools, some small populations of Planothidium lacustre were found in Andalusia and Extremadura (Spain). Specifically, in seven pools of temporary rivers in the Guadiana and Tajo basins. Since its discovery in a small pond in Doñana (Andalusia, Spain) in 2013, there have been no new clear records of this species. Our detailed morphological analysis based on optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy allowed us to show the morphological variability of the taxon. The specimens of P. lacustre are illustrated with microscopic images, and information on their distribution and ecology is provided. Our findings also suggest that P. engelbrechtii could be a species closely related to P. lacustre. They allow a better understanding of this distinctive Iberian taxon and highlight the need to protect Mediterranean temporary pools and ponds, often forgotten habitats.
