Vanilla appendiculata Rolfe (1895:178)

Barona-Colmenares, Andrés A., 2018, Two new records in Orchidaceae (Vanillinae) from southernmost Colombian Amazonia: Vanilla javieri, a new species, and Vanilla appendiculata, Phytotaxa 375 (4), pp. 261-273 : 269-271

Vanilla appendiculata Rolfe (1895:178) ( Figs. 4 , 5 & Table 1)

Hemiepiphyte understory vine, up to 4 m high. Aerial roots 46–111 mm long and 2–3 mm in diameter, greenish-white when young turning greenish-grey when mature, flattened, with a villose ventral surface; stems 4–5 mm in diameter, pale green, cylindrical, smooth, flexuous, thicker towards the nodes; internodes 29–57 mm long. Leaves 140–177 × 42–49 mm, alternate, fleshy, shiny pale green when young, turning to deep emerald green when mature; petiole 1.2–1.3 mm long × 5–6 mm wide, canaliculate; blade longer than the internodes, spatulate with an abruptly mucronate apex. Inflorescence terminal, racemose, with 8–30 successive flowers, with generally one flower open at once; scape 30–80 mm long and 5–7 mm in diameter, pale green, erect, slightly sinuous and stouter than the stem; floral bracts 4–6 mm long × 4–6 mm wide, small, triangular-ovate, coriaceous, canaliculate, patent, pale green with whitish margins, the basal distichous and non-floriferous and the distal floriferous and arranged spirally. Flowers resupinate, medium-sized, 6–8 cm in diameter, with spreading segments, white, pedicellate and scentless. Ovary 25–26 mm long and 3–4 mm in diameter, slightly arcuate towards the base, white fading to green towards the apex, slightly dorsiventrally compressed and obscurely calyculate. Sepals free, oblanceolate, narrow, merged at base with column for ca. 6 mm, white with the apex tinged with green abaxially, concave with involute margins and acute apex; dorsal sepal 78 × 8 mm, white with the apex tinged with green abaxially, symmetric, smooth and with ca. 11 veins; lateral sepals 75 × 11 mm, asymmetric, smooth and with ca. 14 veins. Petals 76-77 × 7-8 mm, merged at base with column for ca. 6 mm, white with the apex tinged with green abaxially, narrow lanceolate, asymmetric, basally concave and convex towards apex, with ca. 15 veins, a conspicuous externally prominent central rib and acute apex. Labellum long unguiculate, inner surface of the claw warty; labellum blade 38 × 29 mm when spread out, oval-shaped, white, concave, obscurely trilobed, mid lobe slightly rounded. Lateral lobes white, very slightly cream-colored, rounded, with ca. 12 yellowish veins; lateral lobe margins entire, very slightly undulate, united to the column along the whole of its length (ca. 54 mm) and forming a flattened process at the column apex. Apical lobe narrow, acute-triangular, deeply recurved lip apex adorned with yellowish, flattened, foliaceous appendages covering most of the area along an inconspicuous, elevated, cushion-like, triangular apical keel. Penicillate callus 4 mm long × 4 mm wide, well-defined at 22 mm from the apex, yellowish-cream, made up by ca. 7 rows of flattened laciniae; the two most basal rows made up by few, separate, laciniate scales; the rest of the rows with laciniae united to each other on the lateral margins, with the apical row made up of multiple lines of grouped laciniae, forming a tuft. Column 61 mm long × 3 mm in diameter, whitish, merged at base with sepals and petals for ca. 6 mm, thicker towards the apex and slightly sinuous, united to the labellum margins for the whole of its length (ca. 54 mm) and with a smooth ventral surface. Stigma 1 mm long × 2.5 mm wide, bilobed, each lobe rectangular shaped, stigmatic region with digitiform lateral wings. Rostellum 1.5 × 4 mm, convex, yellowish-cream, quadrate, with rounded ends. Anther 4 mm long × 3 mm wide, saddle-shaped, versatile, yellowish-cream, with yellowish pollen grains aggregated in monads. Fruits 120–140 mm long × 12–15 mm in diameter, erect, pale green, cylindrical, basally recurved, swollen towards the apex and obscurely calyculate when fully developed.

COLOMBIA, Departamento de Amazonas: Leticia, km 15 on the road from Leticia to Tarapacá, 86 m elev., 4° 06’ S, 69° 59’ W, 10 April 2015, fl. & fr., A.A. Barona-Colmenares & L. Pinedo 3102 (COAH!).

Distribution and habitat: — Vanilla appendiculata occurs in Guyana, Surinam, Brazil and Peru, as a small understory hemiepiphyte vine ( Soto Arenas and Cribb 2010). This species is reported to occur in the state of Loreto, Peru, and the state of Amazonas, Brazil, adjacent to the Colombian border. Based on the revision of the associated data in herbarium specimens, this species occurs in igapó and várzea floodplain forests, temporally flooded forests along small streams, around Mauritia palm wetlands, as well as in terra firme forests on sandy outcrops.

Additional specimens examined: Type: — GUYANA (British Guiana), Corentyne River , fr., October 1879, im Thurn s.n. (holo. K 463748) ; BRAZIL, Amazonas, road margins Camanaus-Uaupés road near Camanaus. Caatinga on white sand, terra firme, fr., 1 November 1971, Prance, Maas, Woolcott, Monteiro & Ramos 15950 ( NY 2695608 ) ; idem, Amazonas, Rio Negro, Ilha das Flores , caatinga alta, fl. & fr., 10 November 1953, Rodrigues 100 ( IAN 102121 ) ; idem, Amazonas, Municipio de São Paulo de Olivença, estrada Bomfim , vegetação tipo campinarana, solo arenoso, fl., 16 March 1981, Monteiro & Lima 133 ( INPA 99080 ) ; idem, Mato Grosso, Juará, proximidade do Río Arinos em floresta ombrófila, 11° 05’ 01.0’’ S, 57° 45’ 03.0’’ W, fr., 12 August 2014, Saddi, Samor & Gomes 1007 ( RB 612505 ) ; idem, Roraima, Caracaraí, Parque Nacional do Viruá , 1° 28’ 07.0’’ N, 61° 00’ 27.0’’ W, fl. & fr., 17 September 2011, Pessoa, Melo & Vasconselos 639 ( INPA 241015 ) ; idem, Roraima, Caracaraí, Parque Nacional do Viruá, Río Barauana , 1° 20’ 50.0’’ N, 60° 51’ 01.0’’ W, fl. & fr., 21 September 2011, Pessoa, Melo & Vasconselos 696 ( INPA 241058 ) ; idem, Roraima, Caracaraí, Parque Nacional do Viruá, Río Barauana , mata de várzea, fl., 26 July 2010, Pessoa, Delgado Junior, Melo & Cavalcanti 356 ( INPA 235120 ) ; PERU, Departamento de Loreto, Provincia Maynas, Mishana Río Nanay , fl. & fr., 19 November 1981, Ruiz & Murphy 255 (K) .

Comments: —In the original description of the type specimen from Guyana, Rolfe (1895: 178) mentions that V. appendiculata is “…remarkable for its narrow sepals and petals, and long narrow lip which terminates in a narrow recurved apex, covered with linear foliaceous appendages. The specimens were gathered in 1879 and both the fruits have opened, yet they retain a distinct aromatic perfume…”. The holotype at Kew exhibits two mature, fully open, calyculate fruits and it is not evident whether they were erect or pendant. Conversely, voucher specimens at RB and INPA herbaria clearly exhibit immature fruits that are erect, basally recurved, cylindrical, swollen towards the apex and calyculate. The associated data on herbarium tags confirms other observed characteristics such as the understory vine habit, white ovaries with a greenish apex, white flowers and lip with yellow appendages. Furthermore, the voucher specimens confirm other diagnostic characteristics such as terminal inflorescences and triangular-ovate, acute, canaliculate, coriaceous, patent bracts. Due to the numerous fruit sets observed, both in situ and in voucher specimens, self-pollination is not improbable.

Figures

FIGURE 4. Stereomicroscope photographs of Vanilla javieri Barona-Colmenares (A, B, C, D) and Vanilla appendiculata (E, F, G, H). A. Labellum claw. The inner surface of the labellum claw of V. javieri is lanuginose (A) versus warty in V. appendiculata (E). B. Penicillate callus. The callus of V. javieri (B) is less congested than the callus of V. appendiculata (F), with thicker and less numerous laciniae forming a tuft. Additionally, the veins in V. javieri are sinuous and contrast against the parallel veins in V. appendiculata. C. Vanilla javieri lacks appendages between the penicillate callus and the lip apex (C) versus few warty appendages connecting both in V. appendiculata (G). D. Ornamentation of the lip apex. Vanilla javieri exhibits few, small, digitiform papillae (D) versus longer and more numerous foliaceous appendages in V. appendiculata (H). Photographs:A.A. Barona-Colmenares & N. Oviedo (V. javieri) and A.A. Barona-Colmenares & J. Potosí (V. appendiculata).

FIGURE 5. Vanilla appendiculata Rolfe. A. Flower buds, showing white ovaries with a greenish apex. B. Flower and immature fruit. C. Lateral view of lip apex ornamentation with yellowish, barbellate, foliaceous appendages. D. The erect nature of the fruits. Photographs: A.A. Barona-Colmenares (A, B & D) and Goran Mihaijlovic (C).