Funastrum saganii (Apocynaceae; Asclepiadoideae; Asclepiadeae; Oxypetalinae), a new species endemic to Veracruz, Mexico

Lucio Lozada-Pérez,Leonardo Osvaldo Alvarado-Cárdenas,María Guadalupe Chávez-Hernández

doi:10.1590/0102-33062020abb0372

Lucio Lozada-Pérez, Leonardo Osvaldo Alvarado-Cárdenas + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1590/0102-33062020abb0372

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Abstract

A new species of Funastrum is described from Veracruz, Mexico. Although Funastrum saganii sp. nov. is morphologically similar to F. elegans and F. lindenianum, there are differences in leaf and flower morphology and geographic distribution. Descriptions, illustrations and the geographic distribution of this species are provided, and its conservation status discussed. Morphological leaf analysis was performed using geometric morphometrics. This discovery highlights Mexico as center of diversity for the genus Funastrum, with 14 of its 19 species located in the country. This finding is important because it is the first new species of Funastrum to be described from Mexico in 127 years.

Highlights

Funastrum derives from the Latin funis, which means “rope” and the suffix astrum, which means “star” or “similar”
Funastrum is morphologically different from other groups in Oxypetalinae given the presence of a stipitate or sessile gynostegium, a gynostegial corona with five vesicular lobes, asymmetric, erect and free, and a fleshy ring attached to the corolla tube and the base of the gynostegium (Stevens 2009)
Funastrum saganii represents an important discovery in the knowledge of the group

Summary

Introduction

Funastrum derives from the Latin funis, which means “rope” and the suffix astrum, which means “star” or “similar”. The name refers to its twining stems and its flower morphology (Austin 2010). This group belongs to the Apocynaceae, Asclepiadoideae, Asclepiadeae and Oxypetalinae (Endress et al 2014; 2018), and has been considered as monophyletic in several analysis based on morphological and molecular data (Liede 1996; Liede & Täuber 2000; Liede & Meve 2003; Rapini et al 2003; Liede-Schumann et al 2005). Funastrum is currently recognized as a taxon endemic to the Americas, with a distribution from southern United States to northern Argentina that includes between 16 and 19 species (Endress et al 2018; Fishbein & Gandhi 2018)

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