Uvariodendron fuscum (Benth.) R.E.Fr., Acta Horti Berg. 10: 61 (1930)

Dagallier, Leo-Paul M. J., Mbago, Frank M., Couderc, Marie, Gaudeul, Myriam, Grall, Aurelie, Loup, Caroline, Wieringa, Jan J., Sonke, Bonaventure & Couvreur, Thomas L. P., 2023, Phylogenomic inference of the African tribe Monodoreae (Annonaceae) and taxonomic revision of Dennettia, Uvariodendron and Uvariopsis, PhytoKeys 233, pp. 1-200 : 1

publication ID

https://dx.doi.org/10.3897/phytokeys.233.103096

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/2F7D5D1D-08BB-81A6-4108-0BA5AB701EBB

treatment provided by

PhytoKeys by Pensoft

scientific name

Uvariodendron fuscum (Benth.) R.E.Fr., Acta Horti Berg. 10: 61 (1930)
status

 

Uvariodendron fuscum (Benth.) R.E.Fr., Acta Horti Berg. 10: 61 (1930) View in CoL

Figs 4 View Figure 4 , 19 View Figure 19 , 20 View Figure 20 , 21 View Figure 21 , 22 View Figure 22 , 23 View Figure 23

≡ Uvaria fusca Benth., Trans. Linn. Soc. London 23(3): 466 (1862); Uva fusca Kuntze, Revis. Gen. Pl. 1: 8 (1891). Type. Equatorial Guinea - Bioko Sur - G. Mann 308 (holotype: K! (K000198801); isotype: P! (P00362657)); 3°30'N, 8°40'E; alt. 396 m; 1860.

= Uvariodendron mirabile R.E.Fr., Acta Horti Berg. 10: 59 (1930). Type. Cameroon - South-West Region • P.R. Preuss 1378 (lectotype: P! (P00315830), designated by Couvreur et al. (2022), B destroyed), zwischen Victoria und Bimbia; 3°58'58.55"N, 9°15'19.17"E; 15 Mar. 1898.

= Uvaria gigantea Engl.; Uva gigantea Kuntze; Uvariodendron giganteum (Engl.) R.E.Fr.; concerning Uvariodendron fuscum var. giganteum (see details under this variety).

= Uvariodendron magnificum Verdc.; syn. nov. concerning Uvariodendron fuscum var. magnificum (see details under this variety).

Description.

Tree 3-15 m tall, D.B.H. 5-35 cm; young branches with long soft hairs producing a whitish appearance quickly falling off to glabrous, old branches glabrous. Petiole 4-35 mm long, 2-8 mm wide, pilose to glabrous. Leaf lamina 160-750 mm long, 43-225 (250) mm wide, length:width ratio (2.1) 2.5-4, narrowly elliptic to elliptic to narrowly obovate, coriaceous, base acute to cuneate to rounded, apex rounded to acuminate, acumen 1-23 mm long; surface above glabrous, surface below pilose to glabrous when young, glabrous when old; midrib impressed above, raised below, glabrous above, pilose to glabrous below; secondary veins 15-33 pairs, weakly brochidodromous, impressed above, raised below; tertiary veins reticulate. Inflorescences borne on trunk and branches, composed of 1-2 (sub)sessile to pedicellate flowers. Flower pedicel 0-15 mm long, 3-6 mm in diameter, velutinous. Flowers bisexual, buds globose, sessile, 6-15 mm high, 6.5-15 mm in diameter, velutinous. Bracts 1 to 6, upper bract 8-35 mm long, 10-50 mm wide, broadly ovate, clasping the pedicel, enclosing the sepals, pubescent outside, glabrous inside. Sepals 3, 11-55 mm long, 13-43 mm wide, ovate, fused at base over 20-50% of their length, velutinous outside, glabrous inside, brown. Outer petals 3, 20-70 mm long, 17-47 mm wide, length:width ratio 1.1-1.7, elliptic to broadly ovate, velutinous outside, glabrous inside, cream to greenish outside, cream with a dark red streak from base up to 75% of the petal length inside. Inner petals 3, 20-53 mm long, 15-38 mm wide, length:width ratio 1.1-2.1, elliptic to broadly obovate to obovate, puberulent outside, glabrous inside, cream outside, dark red to dark purplish red with cream margins inside. Stamens around 2500, 3.5-5 mm long, 0.1-0.5 mm wide, anthers linear, connective prolongation truncate, pale yellow. Carpels 20 to 160, 4-7 mm long, 0.5-2.2 mm wide, velutinous, free; stigma 1-2 mm long, 0.8-1.1 mm wide, coiled, glabrous to velutinous, covered with an exudate at anthesis. Fruiting pedicel 5-18 mm long, 5-8 mm in diameter, pubescent. Monocarps 6 to 80, 20-60 mm long, 11-32 mm wide, length:width ratio 1.7-2.5, cylindrical, curved, acuminate, puberulent, green to brown; sessile to shortly stipitate, stipe 0-4 mm long, 2-5 mm wide, pubescent to glabrate. Seeds 1-16 per monocarp, biseriate, 14 to 23 mm long, 7-11 mm wide, semicircular, orange-brown.

Distribution.

Element of the Lower Guinean Domain and Congolia Domain of the Guineo-Congolian Region and Zambezian Region: Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea (Bioko Island), Nigeria, Uganda.

Habitat and ecology.

Lowland and submontane to mountain mature or old secondary rain forests. Altitude: 100-1400 m a.s.l.

Phenology.

Flowers collected from January to April. Fruits collected from March to April.

Vernacular names.

Cameroon: ‘Limboto’ in Bakweri (van Andel 3761), 'Obom Ossoé’ in Yaoundé (Biholong 279). Gabon: ‘Inkaca’ in Bakota ( Hallé 3156).

Uses.

The young leaves are boiled and used for soup (Cheek 5145) and the ripe fruits are eaten (van Andel 3761).

Notes.

From now on, the name Ud. fuscum encompasses the synonyms Ud. mirabile , Ud. giganteum and Ud. magnificum . Ud. fuscum consists of a large morphological variation of the leaf and flower size, with var. Uvariodendron fuscum magnificum having the largest dimensions, followed by var. Uvariodendron fuscum giganteum and then the type variety being the smallest (Fig. 4 View Figure 4 , Table 4 View Table 4 ). Although this variation seems to form a continuum, we recognize three different morphological groups described as varieties (see notes under the varieties). This species resembles Ud. calophyllum , Ud. connivens and Ud. usambarense in having large elliptic to obovate leaves. It differs from Ud. calophyllum and Ud. connivens in having pilose to glabrous young branches and petioles (vs. tomentose in Ud. calophyllum and completely glabrous in Ud. connivens ). It differs from Ud. connivens in having flower pedicels between 0 and 15 mm long (vs. between 10 and 40 mm long) and in having cream petals with dark red streak within the flower (vs. wine red petals both inside and outside).

Preliminary conservation status.

This species is widespread, distributed from Nigeria to Uganda. A previous assessment listed it as Near Threatened NT ( Cheek and Cable 2000). However, the assessment was made on what is now Ud. fuscum var. fuscum and thus needs to be updated. Here, the EOO is estimated at 755,899 km2 and its AOO at 152 km2. Based solely on AOO value, it would qualify for Endangered EN, but none of the other B2 subcriterion are met. Following IUCN criterion B, it is assigned a preliminary conservation updated status of Least Concern LC.

Kingdom

Plantae

Phylum

Tracheophyta

Class

Magnoliopsida

Order

Magnoliales

Family

Annonaceae

Tribe

Ophrypetaleae

Genus

Uvariodendron

Loc

Uvariodendron fuscum (Benth.) R.E.Fr., Acta Horti Berg. 10: 61 (1930)

Dagallier, Leo-Paul M. J., Mbago, Frank M., Couderc, Marie, Gaudeul, Myriam, Grall, Aurelie, Loup, Caroline, Wieringa, Jan J., Sonke, Bonaventure & Couvreur, Thomas L. P. 2023
2023
Loc

= Uvariodendron magnificum

Dagallier & Mbago & Couderc & Gaudeul & Grall & Loup & Wieringa & Sonké & Couvreur 2023
2023
Loc

Uvariodendron fuscum var. magnificum

Dagallier & Couvreur, comb. et 2023
2023
Loc

Uvariodendron fuscum var. giganteum

Dagallier & Couvreur, PhytoKeys 207: 423 2022
2022
Loc

= Uvariodendron mirabile

R.E.Fries 1930
1930
Loc

Uvariodendron giganteum

R.E.Fries 1930
1930
Loc

Uva gigantea

Kuntze 1903
1903