Eugenia punicifolia ( Kunth 1823: 146 ) De Candolle (1828: 267)

Valdemarin, Karinne Sampaio, Mazine, Fiorella F. & Souza, Vinicius Castro, 2024, Eugenia (Myrtaceae) from Reserva Natural Vale, Espírito Santo, a center of plant endemism in the Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest, Phytotaxa 651 (1), pp. 1-79 : 69

43. Eugenia punicifolia ( Kunth 1823: 146) De Candolle (1828: 267) . ( Fig. 26C .)

Shrubs or trees 2–6 m tall. Twigs glabrous when young. Young leaves glabrous. Leaves with petioles 1.5–6.5 mm long, canaliculate, glabrous; blades 35–80 × 20–40 mm, elliptic or wide-elliptic, concolorous when dry, not glaucous and glabrous on both surfaces; bases obtuse or rounded; apices obtuse or attenuate; midvein sulcate adaxially and raised abaxially, glabrous on both surfaces; secondary veins 7–10 at each side, slightly raised on both surfaces, the first pair confluent with the marginal vein; marginal veins two, the innermost 1–2 mm from the revolute and without thickening margin; oil glands inconspicuous adaxially and slightly raised abaxially. Inflorescences axillary, fascicle, sessile or with peduncle up to 0.5 mm long, rachis up to 0.5 mm long, glabrous; bracts ca. 0.5 mm long, puberulent, persistent at anthesis; 2–6 flowers; pedicels 4–16 mm long, glabrous; bracteoles 0.5–1 mm long, free, ovate, apices obtuse or acute, ciliate, not reflexed, persistent in the fruit; trichomes brownish. Flower buds 2–4.5 mm in diameter. Flowers with smooth, glabrous hypanthium; calyx lobes 4, free, 2–3 × 2–2.5 mm, ovate, apices obtuse or rounded, glabrous; petals 4, ovate or obovate, oil glands inconspicuous; staminal ring puberulent; stamens with filaments 3–3.5 mm, anthers oblong; style ca. 4 mm, glabrous, stigma punctiform and papillose; ovary 2-locular, ovules 12–15 per locule, locule internally glabrous. Fruits 6–8.5 × 4.5–7 mm, ellipsoid, smooth, glabrous, red when ripe; seeds 1–2 per fruit, 6–7.5 × 3.5–6.5 mm, ellipsoid, testa smooth.

Specimens examined: — BRAZIL. Espírito Santo: Linhares, Reserva Natural Vale – Estrada Bomba d’água, 13 August 2015, fr., F.F. Mazine 1287 (SORO!) ; ibid., 20 June 2000, fl., C.B. Costa 333 (CVRD!, SORO!, SP!) ; ibid., Estrada Flamengo , 17 September 2012, fl., D.A. Folli 6911 (CVRD!, SORO!) ; ibid., 31 July 2008, fl., G.S. Siqueira 425 (CVRD!, SORO!) ; ibid., Estrada Mantegueira , lado direito, próximo à entrada da estrada flamengo, 13 August 2015, fr., F.F. Mazine 1288 (SORO!) ; ibid., Estrada Municipal do MME, 19 August 1988, fr., D.A. Folli 781 (CVRD!, RBR!, SORO!) ; ibid., Estrada Paraju , 19 September 1993, fr., D. Sucre 11428 (CVRD!, SORO!) ; ibid., Estrada Quarentena , 25 July 1991, fl., D.A. Folli 1385 (CVRD!, SORO!); no locality, 13 October 1990, fr., M.S. Menandro 275 (CVRD!, SORO!); no locality, 20 October 1989, fr., G.L. Farias 318 (CVRD!, SORO!); no locality, 19 September 1987, fr., O.J. Pereira 1074 (VIES!) .

Distribution and habitat: — Eugenia punicifolia is a widespread species known from collections in the whole Brazilian territory and surrounding countries. In the RNV, the species is found in the Muçununga, where it grows in the understory and can reach the canopy, and Campo Nativo vegetation, predominantly grassy vegetation.

Phenology: —Flowering in June through September; fruiting in August through October ( Fig. 5 ).

Taxonomic comments: —The species is assigned to the Eugenia sect. Umbellatae . Eugenia punicifolia is morphologically similar to E. arenaria due to its size of leaf blades and floral features, and lack of indumentum (except on its staminal disk). The diagnostic features between both can be see in the comment under E. arenaria . Although the specimen D.A. Folli 6911 is morphologically identical to the others, it presents 23 m of height, a discordant value from which is commonly found among the records for the RNV (up to 6 m high). As the Muçununga ’s canopy usually reaches 10 m of height, being unusual plants emerging from it ( Simonelli et al. 2008), we believe that a field misannotation could have happened. Therefore, this variation was not included in the description herein presented.

Figures

FIGURE 5. Phenological diagram of Eugenia species from Reserva Natural Vale, Espírito Santo, Brazil. Flowering periods are represented by dark red border triangles, fruiting in grey filled triangles, and “n” is the number of observations.

FIGURE 26. A. Fruiting branch of Eugenia pruinosa (G. Siqueira, Vale S.A.), B. Flowering branch of Eugenia pruniformis (G. Siqueira, Vale S.A.), C. Flowering branch of Eugenia punicifolia (F.F. Mazine 1288), D. Fruiting branch of Eugenia repanda (K.S. Valdemarin s.n.)