Endemic Families of Madagascar. XIII. New, Restricted Range Species of Eremolaena Baill. and Schizolaena Thouars (Sarcolaenaceae)

Abstract

Lowry II, P. P., L. Nusbaumer, A. Randrianasolo, G. E. Schatz & C. Hong-Wa (2014). Endemic Families of Madagascar. XIII. New, restricted range species of Eremolaena Baill. and Schizolaena Thouars (Sarcolaenaceae). Candollea 69: 183–193. In English, French and English abstracts. One new species of Eremolaena Baill. and two new species of Schizolaena Thouars (belonging to the family Sarcolaenaceae) are described, illustrated and compared with the members of their respective genera they most closely resemble. Eremolaena darainensis Nusb. & Lowry is similar to Eremolaena rotundifolia (F. Gérard) Danguy but differs from it by features of the indument on the leaves and the sepals, and occurs only in the Loky-Manambato (Daraina) region of far north-eastern Madagascar, where it occurs in semi-deciduous forest on granite. Schizolaena charlotteae Lowry & G. E. Schatz resembles Schizolaena milleri Lowry & al. but is distinguished by differences in sepal indument, petal color, the number of stamens, and the length of the processes borne on the involucre in fruit. Schizolaena parvipetala Randrian. & Hong-Wa is similar to Schizolaena gereaui Lowry & al. but differs by petal size, leaf acumen length, the number of stamens, and the number of flowers per involucre. Both new species of Schizolaena Thouars are only known from lowland humid forest in far south-eastern Madagascar, in the vicinity of the city of Tolagnaro. The distribution and ecology of each species are discussed and preliminary IUCN conservation assessments are provided.