Rubiacearum Americanarum Magna Hama Pars VII. New Species of Palicourea (Psychotrieae) from Central America and Western South America

Abstract

Six new species of Palicourea Aublet are described and illustrated: P. calophlebioides from Costa Rica differs from P. calophlebia Standley of the Andes in part by its purple inflorescences; P ianthina from western Panama differs from P. chiriquina Standley of the same region in part by its purple inflorescences and longer calyx limbs; P. premontana from Ecuador differs from P. semirasa Standley of Venezuela and Bolivia in part by its glabrous corollas; P. quinquepyrena from northern Peru is closely related to P ulloana C. M. Taylor of Ecuador but differs from that species in part by its larger, subsessile leaves: P. roseofaucis from western Panama differs from P sulphurea (Ruiz & Pav6n) DC. of the Andes in part by its white to pink corollas; and P. stellata from eastcentral Colombia, with yellow flowers, is unusual in its well-developed fleshy appendages on the corolla lobes. Key uwords: Neotropics, Palicourea, Psychotrieae, Rubiaceae. As circumscribed by Taylor (1997), Palicourea (Psychotrieae) is distinguished within the Rubiaceae by its persistent stipules that are interpetiolar to usually united around the stems into a continuous sheath and usually bilobed in their interpetiolar portions; generally brightly colored inflorescences-blue, purple, red, orange, or yellow-with the flowers usually pedicellate; corollas that are usually similarly brightly colored, five-lobed, and with welldeveloped tubes that are somewhat swollen at the base and glabrous internally except for a dense ring of pubescence situated just above this basal swelling; and drupaceous fruits with usually two pyrenes. This neotropical genus includes about 200 species of shrubs and small trees found from sea level to montane forests. The species are typically distylous and generally pollinated by hummingbirds. Pa icourea calophlebioides C. M. Taylor, sp. nov. TYPE: Costa Rica. Lim6n: Cant6n de Talamanca, Parque Nacional Cordillera de Talamanca, Rfo Lori, 300 m aguas arriba uni6n Quebrada Kuisa, entre Ujarris y San Jose Cabecar, 9021'35N, 83013'45W, 1800 m, 23 Mar. 1993, G. Herrera 5994 (holotype, CR5952; isotype, MO-4999475). Figure lA, B. Haec species a Palicourea calophlebia (ex Aequatoria et Colombia occidentali) foliorum ampliorum petiolis plerumque longioribus, stipulis brevioribus atque inflorescentia corollisque purpureis lilacinisve distinguitur. Shrubs flowering at 2.5 m tall, to 3 m tall; stems quadrate and often becoming channeled, tomentellous to glabrescent. Leaves opposite; blades broadly elliptic to elliptic-obovate, 25-26 X 14-16 cm, at apex rather abruptly acuminate with tips 5-12 mm long, at base acute to obtuse, drying papyraceous, adaxially glabrous, abaxially pilosulous; secondary veins 26 to 29 pairs, usually looping to interconnect at least in distal 1/2 of blade, without or with 1(to 3) very weak intersecondary vein(s) present between pairs of secondary veins, adaxially costa and secondary veins prominulous and remaining venation plane, abaxially costa prominent, secondary veins prominulous, and reticulated higher-order venation plane to thickened; margins thinly to distinctly cartilaginous, entire; petioles 2.5-3.5 cm long, tomentellous to velutinous; stipules pilosulous to tomentellous, persistent at least with leaves, united around stem into a continuous truncate sheath 5-8 mm long, lobes 2 on each side, narrowly triangular to deltate, 4-6 mm long, acute, entire. Inflorescences terminal, erect; peduncles 2.5-10.5 cm long; panicles narrowly pyramidal, 10-24 X 3.5-6.5 cm, with 20+ pairs of developed secondary axes, with flowers pedicellate in cymules of 3 to 7; bracts entire, those subtending secondary axes narrowly triangular to lanceolate, 6-20 X 4-7 mm, acute, those subtending pedicels lanceolate to ligulate, 4-7 X 1-2 mm, acute to obtuse; pedicels 16 mm long; peduncle, axes, bracts, and pedicels NovoN 12: 272-280. 2002. This content downloaded from 157.55.39.223 on Wed, 24 Aug 2016 05:48:24 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms