A New Species of Laplace A, a Controversial Genus of Theaceae, from the Cordillera del Condor, Ecuador

Laplacea plicata G. Moya, N. Miranda, Oleas & C. Ulloa, restricted to the sandstone plateaus of the Cordillera del Condor in southeastern Ecuador, is described as a species new to science, illustrated, and compared with other two morphologically similar species: L. tomentosa (Mart.) G. Don and L. spathulata Kobuski. Additionally, a preliminary conservation status assessment of L. plicata is presented.