Tillandsia bandensis Baker (1887: 234) subsp. bandensis

Rossado, Andrés J., Donadío, Sabina & Bonifacino, José M., 2024, A taxonomic revision of Tillandsia (Tillandsioideae, Bromeliaceae) from Uruguay, Phytotaxa 667 (1), pp. 1-90 : 1-90

3a. Tillandsia bandensis Baker (1887: 234) subsp. bandensis . Figs. 12A , 13 , and 14.

= Tillandsia recurvata ( Linnaeus 1753: 287) Linnaeus (1762: 410) var. majuscula Mez (1894: 611) . Type (lectotype designated by Rossado et al. 2019: 17):— URUGUAY. “ San José, sobre los árboles”, 10 January 1876, Arechavaleta 2612 (ZT00071400 [online image!]; isolectotype: MVM!).

Plants mainly epiphytic, forming dense to generally very dense globose or semiglobose clumps. Stems short, 25–70 mm long. Peduncles of the inflorescence 0.5–0.8 mm in diameter (live), apical portion glabrous; floral bracts glabrous, or the basal ones occasionally with some trichomes at the margin and/or apex; basal floral bracts (7–)8–12(–14) mm long. Flowers 11–18 mm long, softly fragrant; sepals 7.5–11.4 mm long, glabrous; petals 14–18 mm long; limbs (4–)4.4–6.6(–7) mm wide, reflexed, widely elliptic to nearly orbicular. Capsules 20–35 × 1.2–1.9 mm, narrowly cylindrical-prismatic.

Vernacular names:— Clavel del aire azul, Flor del aire ( Herter 1949 –1956).

Distribution and habitat:— Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay. In Bolivia, Paraguay, and Argentina Tillandsia bandensis subsp. bandensis has a wide distribution, mainly inhabiting open dry forests of the Chaco and Espinal phytogeographic provinces (or other habitats influenced by them). In Brazil, it is very rare, with only one population reported in Rio Grande do Sul state ( Büneker et al. 2015).

In Uruguay, T. bandensis subsp. bandensis is restricted to western Uruguay along the Uruguay River and northern Río de la Plata estuary (Artigas, Salto, Río Negro, Soriano and Colonia departments; Fig. 14 ), growing exclusively as epiphyte in open areas of riverside forests, and open forests, both xeric (open thorn forests) and hydrophilous. Further, it has been found growing on trees in parks and street trees of urban areas. The southern limit of this subspecies distribution lies in southwestern Uruguay and central-eastern Argentina (northern Buenos Aires province; Fig. 14 ) .

Phenology:—In Uruguay, Tillandsia bandensis subsp. bandensis flowers from late spring to early summer (mostly in December and January; Fig. 4 ). Fruits begin to develop in January, and they continue growing in length until February-March when they stop growing for several months until seed dispersal, which takes place between August and October (winter and early spring). The development of the inflorescence takes approximately two months, and the complete reproductive cycle (from the onset of inflorescence emergence to the dehiscence of capsules) lasts between 10 and 13 months.

Conservation:— We consider Tillandsia bandensis subsp. bandensis as Not Threatened in Uruguay. This subspecies is absent from national protected areas and some of its populations occur in habitats threatened by human activities. However, we think that T. bandensis subsp. bandensis is not endangered in Uruguay as it has also been observed growing in disturbed habitats.

Representative specimens examined:— URUGUAY. Artigas: blanqueal cerca del Arroyo Mandiyú , 27 September 2014 (cultivated in Montevideo, pressed December 2014), Rossado et al. 369 ( MVFA) . Colonia: Islas dos hermanas, Carmelo , 2 February 1922, Schroeder s.n. ( MVM – Herb. Osten 16442) . Rio Negro: Balneario Las Cañas , 21 December 1965, Del Puerto & Marchesi s.n. ( MVFA 5654 ) . Salto: Isla de Belén , 13 December 1905, Berro 4179 ( MVFA) . San José: without exact locality, 10 January 1876, Arechavaleta 2612 ( MVM) . Soriano: Playa Agraciada , 9 May 1964, Marchesi 1223 ( MVFA) .

Figures

FIGURE 4. Phenology of Tillandsia species occurring in Uruguay. Divisions within each month indicate intervals of approximately 10 days, identified as the beginning, middle, and end of each month. Tillandsia loliacea is excluded due to lack of enough information. * Denotes species with cleistogamous flowers. ** Denotes species with insufficient data to ascertain the timing of fruiting or fruit dehiscence.

FIGURE 12. Illustrations of floral parts. A. Tillandsia bandensis subsp. bandensis. B. T. bandensis subsp. grandipetala. C. T. duratii. D. T. myosura. From left to right: floral bract (stretched view), sepals (stretched view; adaxial sepals to the right), petal (stretched view), and pistil. A based on Rossado et al. 369 (MVFA); B based on Rossado et al. 408 (MVFA; floral bract and petal) and Rossado et al. 407 (MVJB; sepals and pistil); C based on Rossado et al. 365 (MVFA); D based on Mai 76 (MVJB) and on a cultivated plant from Arequita Hill (petal and pistil).

FIGURE 13. Tillandsia bandensis subsp. bandensis. A. Habitat; open thorn forest near the Mandiyú River (Artigas, Uruguay). B. Habit (Montevideo, Uruguay). C. Tillandsia bandensis subsp. bandensis (foreground) and T. recurvata (background) growing on the same branch (Carmelo, Colonia, Uruguay). Notice the morphological similarity between them when not in bloom. D. Inflorescences. E. Close up of the fertile part of the inflorescence. F. Front view of the flower.G. Lateral view of the flower with its floral bract. H. Capsule. Photos by Andrés Rossado.

FIGURE 14. Distribution map of Tillandsia bandensis subsp. bandensis (red circles) and T. bandensis subsp. grandipetala (green circles) in Uruguay and neighboring areas.