Three unpublished letters by Felix de Avelar Brotero reveal new information on his herbarium and types

Abstract

Three unpublished letters written to A.P. de Candolle and C.H. Persoon by Felix de Avelar Brotero (1744–1828), in many ways the doyen of Portuguese botany, indicate that the personal herbarium that he established early in his career was destroyed after his death. The correspondence also gives an indication of the whereabouts of material that could possibly serve as the types of names that Brotero published. Information on herbaria that hold specimens collected by Brotero is updated and presented. A lectotype is designated for Callicocca ipecacuanha Brot.