Abstract
Abstract This work is a part of the Flora do Espírito Santo project. The aim was to morphologically characterize the species of Commelinaceae occurring in the state of Espírito Santo and provide data on their geographical distribution, phenology, and comments. Fieldwork and herbarium studies were carried out. A total of 38 species, arranged in 10 genera, were recorded. Dichorisandra is the richest genus (17 species), followed by Commelina (seven spp.), Tradescantia (four spp.), Siderasis (three spp.), Tripogandra (two spp.), and Aneilema, Callisia, Floscopa, Gibasis and Tinantia (one species each). Two species are herein described as new to science, and the synonymization of D. albomarginata is proposed under the older D. procera. Inflorescence (type and position), stamens (number, color, and anther dehiscence), fruit (shape and ornamentation), and seeds (ornamentation, the position of the embryotega, and hilum shape) are the key diagnostic morphological characters for genus and species delimitation. Most of the species richness and abundance are concentrated in the mountain region of Espírito Santo, one of the largest forest areas in the state, showing the importance of conserving the remaining Atlantic Forest’s fragments.
Highlights
Commelinaceae comprises 41 genera and 720 species (Govaerts & Faden 2011), divided into two subfamilies: Cartonematoideae with only two genera, the Australian Cartonema with 11 species, and the monospecific Triceratella from South Africa; and Commelinoideae, with 39 genera and the remaining species, being Pantropical (Faden & Hunt 1991)
As part of the Flora do Espírito Santo project, we provide a floristic treatment for Commelinaceae in the state of Espírito Santo, aiming to clarify the number, identity and delimitation of accepted taxa
This study was based on fieldwork and analysis of material from the following herbaria: ALCB, BHCB, CEPEC, CESJ, CVRD, ESA, FLOR, HB, HRCB, HUEFS, HUEM, HURB, MBM, MBML, MO, NY, P, R, Ribeiro 1222 (RB), RBR, RFA, SAMES, SP, SPF, SPSF, U, UEC, UPCB, US, VIC, and VIES
Summary
Commelinaceae comprises 41 genera and 720 species (Govaerts & Faden 2011), divided into two subfamilies: Cartonematoideae with only two genera, the Australian Cartonema with 11 species, and the monospecific Triceratella from South Africa; and Commelinoideae, with 39 genera and the remaining species, being Pantropical (Faden & Hunt 1991). The family presents considerable morphological variation, especially regarding its inflorescences, flowers, and seeds (Faden 1998). This wide variation makes morphological characters relatively tricky to interpret and has led to many taxonomic and systematic issues (Evans et al 2003; Pellegrini 2019). Characters such as habit, inflorescence architecture, the number, color and ornamentation of stamens, anther dehiscence, and fruit and seed morphology are some of the most taxonomically relevant characters in the family (Pellegrini 2019). Dichorisandra is the most diverse in the state (13 spp.), followed by Commelina (six spp.) and Tradescantia (three spp.) (Dutra et al 2015; Aona et al 2020). Identification keys, comments, phenological information, distribution maps, and illustrations for all taxa
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