Werauhia fibrosa (L.B.Sm.) Kessous

Kessous, Igor M. & Costa, Andrea F., 2023, Novelties in “ incertae sedis ” Vriesea (Bromeliaceae: Tillandsioideae): Redescriptions, new combinations and nomenclatural revision, Phytotaxa 585 (2), pp. 71-101 : 94

4.1 Werauhia fibrosa (L.B.Sm.) Kessous & A.F.Costa. comb nov. ( Fig. 8 )

Basionym: — Vriesea fibrosa Smith (1957: 315) . Type: — VENEZUELA. Amazonas: Cerro Sipapo (Paraque), frequent along open banks of lower Cano Negro, 25 December 1948, Maguire & Politi 27912 (lectotype US!, isolectotype NY!—Designated by Smith & Downs 1977: 1163).

Description:—Plant terrestrial, with straight fibers at the base of the rosette (the remains of the veins of the decayed leaf sheath), flowering 60−65 cm high. Leaves 10−20 in number, forming an open utriculate rosette; sheath ovatetriangular, 4.5−6 × 3−4 cm, densely lepidote on both faces; blade very narrowly subtriangular, 21−37 × 8−18 mm, apex long attenuately acute. Inflorescence simple, 5–9 flowered, 45–55 cm long, lax, erect; peduncle erect, 35−40 cm long and 4–4.7 mm in diameter, glabrous; peduncle bracts erect, imbricate at the base to remote distally, narrowly elliptic, 30−45 × 13−14 mm, lepidote on adaxial surface; rachis straight to slightly flexuous, ca. 8 cm long, 3.2–3.9 mm in diameter. Floral bracts orbicular, apex rounded, ca. 20 × 20 mm, slightly carinate at the apex, much shorter than the sepals, with a yellowish mucilage, lepidote on the adaxial surface. Flowers ca. 35 mm long, 12–18 mm apart, distichous, suberect, secund; sepals ovate, 23–25 × 12 mm, free, slightly carinate at the apex, symmetric, lepidote on the margins of the abaxial surface, the adaxial surface with gland-like indument; petals narrowly elliptic, obtuse, ca. 32 × 10 mm, greenish-white, reddish towards the apex, free; petal appendages ca. 5.5 mm, adnate at the base of the petals for 3 mm, entire, with free lobe spatulate, reduced dactyloid one-fingered; stamens equaling the petals (in sicco); filament ca. 15 mm long, adnate to the petals for ca. 1.7 mm; anther ca. 6 × 1.9 mm; ovary ellipsoid, ca. 10 × 6 mm; style ca. 20 mm long; stigma cupulate. Fruits unknown. Distribution: —This species occurs terrestrially on sand, in the region of the state of Amazonas, Venezuela, ca. 1,400 m above sea level.

Taxonomic and nomenclatural notes: —Despite the lack of detailed information in the protologue and few available specimens, we observed a cupulate stigma in the type specimen (Maguire & Politi 27912) ( Fig. 8D ). Within Tillandsioideae , only members of the genus Werauhia have this type of stigma ( Grant 1995a, Barfuss et al. 2016), leading us to propose this new combination in Werauhia .

Vriesea has a convolute-bladed stigma, which is the most important distinguishing feature between these two genera. In addition, we observed the presence of dactyloid petal appendages (one-fingered) ( Fig. 8D ), typical for Werauhia . Furthermore, W. fibrosa fits the geographical distribution of other species in this genus (northern South America). This species is closely related to Werauhia graminifolia (Mez & Werckl.) Grant (1995a: 32) , particularly in the graminoid rosette and the shape of the inflorescence.

Etymology: —The specific epithet “ fibrosa ” refers to the fibers at the base of the rosette (the remains of the veins of the decayed leaf sheath).

Representative Specimen Examined: — VENEZUELA. Amazonas, Cerro Sipapo ( Paráque ), 1 January 1949, Maguire & Politi 28108 (US, NY) .

Figures

FIGURE 8. Werauhia fibrosa (L.B.Sm.) Kessous & A.F.Costa. A. Holotype Maguire & Politi 27912 (US; Courtesy of the United States National Herbarium). B. Detail of the inflorescence (adapted from Smith, 1957:317). C. Stigma cupulate (Photo: I.M. Kessous). D. Illustration of the outline of one petal appendage (I.M. Kessous).