Chlorospatha kressii (Araceae), a New Compound-Leaved Species from Chocó Department, Colombia

Abstract

The Andean-centered aroid genus Chlorospatha, belonging to the tribe Caladieae of the subfamily Colocasioideae, was regarded until a decade ago as monotypic, consisting only of C. kolbii Engl. (an enigmatic compound-leaved species still known only from a few century-old illustrations and a single, fragmentary herbarium specimen). In 1981, Madison redefined the genus to include the four species previously comprising Caladiopsis, which differed from Chlorospatha only in having simple rather than compound leaves. Since that time many new species have been described from Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, bringing the total for the genus to 15 by 1986. Grayum (1986) predicted that many more species remained to be discovered and that, judging from intriguing but sterile herbarium specimens, the Choc6 region of Colombia would be a rich source for such novelties. The present paper describes a distinctive new Chlorospatha, not previously represented by sterile material, from Choco Department.