Eugenia melanogyna (D. Legrand 1961: 324 ) Sobral (1995: 35)

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 : 48-49

28. Eugenia melanogyna (D. Legrand 1961: 324) Sobral (1995: 35) . ( Fig. 19C .)

Shrubs and trees 5–15 m tall. Twigs glabrous when young. Young leaves glabrous. Leaves with petioles 2.5–11 mm long, terete, plane or slightly canaliculate, glabrous; blades 45–140 × 22–65 mm, elliptic or narrow-elliptic, discolorous when dry, not glaucous and glabrous on both surfaces; bases obtuse or attenuate; apices obtuse, sometimes acute; midvein plane or raised, sometimes biconvex, adaxially and raised abaxially, glabrous on both surfaces; secondary veins 8–12 at each side, slightly raised or inconspicuous adaxially and raised abaxially, the first pair confluent with the marginal vein; marginal veins two, the innermost 2–2.5 mm from the revolute and without thickening margin; oil glands slightly raised or inconspicuous adaxially and inconspicuous abaxially. Inflorescences ramiflorous, rare axillary, fascicle, peduncles up to 1 mm long, rachis up to 1 mm long, glabrous; bracts not seen; 2–6 flowers; pedicels 2.5–7 mm long, glabrous; bracteoles 0.5–1.5 mm long, free, ovate, apices obtuse, puberulent, not reflexed, deciduous after anthesis; trichomes brownish. Flower buds 4–4.5 mm in diameter. Flowers with smooth or slightly glandular, glabrate or glabrous hypanthia; calyx lobes 4, free, 3–5 × 3.5–5 mm, ovate, apices obtuse or rounded, glabrous; petals 4, obovate, oil glands inconspicuous; staminal ring pubescent; stamens with filaments 3–7 mm, anthers oblong; style 5–10 mm, glabrous, stigma punctiform; ovary 2–locular, ovules 10–13 per locule, locule internally glabrous. Fruits 20–37.5 × 12–21.5 mm, ellipsoid, smooth or slightly glandular, glabrous, purple when ripe; seeds 1 per fruit, 19–25 × 15–17 mm, ellipsoid, testa smooth.

Specimens examined: — BRAZIL. Espírito Santo: Linhares, Reserva Natural Vale –Aceiro Aracruz Sta.Terezinha , 30 March 2012, fr., G.S. Siqueira 726 (CVRD!, SORO!) ; ibid., Aceiro Calimã , 03 January 2005, fl., D.A. Folli 5018 (CVRD!, SORO!) ; ibid., 27 April 2004, fr., D.A. Folli 4832 (CVRD!, SORO!) ; ibid., Aceiro com Lasa , 26 April 2004, fr., G.S. Siqueira 144 (CVRD!, SORO!) ; ibid., Aceiro do Viveiro , 16 April 2004, fr., D.A. Folli 4823 (CVRD!, SORO!) ; ibid., Aceiro Lasa / Sta Terezinha , 05 September 2002, fr., D.A. Folli 4345 (CVRD!, SORO!) ; ibid., Aceiro Nativo do Parajú , 17 November 1998, fl., D.A. Folli 3283 (CVRD!, SORO!) ; ibid., Estrada Boleira , 08 May 2007, fr., A.A. da Luz 413 (CVRD!, SORO!) ; ibid., Estrada Flamengo , 12 February 1990, fr., D.A. Folli 1092 (CVRD!, SORO!) ; ibid., Estrada Gávea , 13 May 2004, fr., D.A. Folli 4843 (CVRD!, SORO!) ; ibid., 25 March 2004, fr., D.A. Folli 4799 (CVRD!, HUFSJ!, SORO!) ; ibid., logo após estrada Murici , 26 January 2017, fr., K.S. Valdemarin 892 (ESA!) ; ibid., logo após estrada Murici , 26 January 2017, fl. and fr., K.S. Valdemarin 893 (ESA!) ; ibid., 26 January de 2017, fr., K.S. Valdemarin 877 (ESA!) ; ibid., Estrada do Louro , 23 May 2017, fr., G.S. Siqueira 1163 (RB!) ; ibid., Estrada Mantegueira , 11 December 2016, fl., K.S. Valdemarin 391 (ESA!) ; ibid., Estrada Municipal , 14 March 1991, fr., D.A. Folli 1313 (CVRD!, SORO!) ; ibid., RFL 134, 24 September 2002, fl., D.A. Folli 4363 (CVRD!, HUFSJ!, SORO!) ; ibid., Estrada Nativo , 23 May 1990, fr., G.L. Farias 368 (CVRD!, RB!, SORO!) ; ibid., Estrada Orelha de Onça , 02 April 2008, fr., M.C. Souza 648 (CVRD!, HUFSJ!, MBML!, RB!, SORO!) ; ibid., Estrada Paraju , 02 December 2006, fl., E.J. Lucas 934 (BHCB!, ESA!, K!) ; ibid., 31 January 2017, fr., K.S. Valdemarin 970 (ESA!) .

Distribution and habitat: — Eugenia melanogyna is known from collections from the state of Espírito Santo to Santa Caratina in the Atlantic rainforest of Brazil. In the RNV, the species is found in the Mata Alta and Muçununga vegetation, sometimes also near to periodically flooded areas.

Phenology: —Flowering in September and November through January; fruiting in December through May and September ( Fig. 5 ).

Taxonomic comments: —The species is assigned to Eugenia sect. Umbellatae . Eugenia melanogyna is morphologically similar to E. fusca due to their absence of indumentum in the almost entire plant (except by their puberulent staminal ring), fascicle inflorescence generally ramiflorous, bracteoles deciduous after anthesis and ellipsoid fruits. They are distinguished by the features present in the comments under E. fusca . Additionally, a study approaching the morphological variation of E. melanogyna in a wider scenario is here recommended to clarify its morphological limits since a group of specimens with secondary veins raised adaxially and young twigs purple were observed.

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 19. A. Flowering branch of Eugenia macrantha (G. Siqueira, Vale S.A.), B. Flowering branch of Eugenia macrosperma (K.S. Valdemarin 796), C. Flowering branch of Eugenia melanogyna (K.S. Valdemarin 391), D. Fruiting branch of Eugenia moritziana (G. Siqueira, Vale S.A.).