Pauridia maryae Snijman, 2014

Snijman, Deirdre A., 2014, A taxonomic revision of the genus Pauridia (Hypoxidaceae) in southern Africa, Phytotaxa 182 (1), pp. 1-114 : 30-32

4. Pauridia maryae Snijman , sp. nov. Fig. 11

Closely related to Pauridia flaccida but distinguished by the leaves forming a smooth, brown, papery or leathery neck proximally, a corm in which the fibres are soft and short, rather than firm with spreading tips, by oblong, shorter stigma branches (2.0– 3.5 mm versus 2.5–5.5(–6.5) mm long), and by the outer filaments shorter than the inner by 0.5–1.5 mm (versus equally long or rarely up to 0.5 mm shorter).

Type: — SOUTH AFRICA. Eastern Cape: Kouga Mountains , neck Nof Smutsberg (QDS: 3323 DB), 18 September 1973, M.F. Thompson 1974 (holotype, NBG!; isotypes, K!, MO!, PRE!) .

Plants 5–19 cm tall. Corm ovoid, 10–13 mm diam., covered with mostly fine, brown, fibrous tunics; fibres densely reticulate, fused to basal disc, not extended into a neck; roots spreading from near corm base. Cataphylls persisting as a papery or leathery, brown, slender neck up to 20 mm long. Leaves 3–7, sheathing up to 30 mm from base, suberect to spreading, linear, 20–190 × 1.0–1.5(–3.0) mm, shallowly carinate, pale green; epidermis large-celled, margin entire; apex turning black when cut. Inflorescences 1 or 2 in flower at a time, 2-flowered, rarely 1 remaining rudimentary, shorter than or as long as leaves; scape 20–90 × ca. 1 mm, somewhat compressed laterally, greenish red; bracts 2, clasping pedicels at base, narrowly lanceolate, 10–16 × 2–3 mm, thin-textured, greenish red, with narrow, translucent edges, occasionally 1 bract shorter and much narrower. Flowers pedicellate, stellate, yellow, backed with pale green, midrib occasionally reddish brown, unscented; pedicels suberect, terete, 56–80 × 1 mm, remaining suberect when fruiting, reddish green; tepals 6, lanceolate to narrowly elliptical, 5.5–8.5 mm long, outer 2–4 mm wide, mucronate, inner 1.5–2.0 mm wide. Stamens 6, unequal, outer nearly half as long as inner, suberect to slightly spreading, yellow; filaments inserted on ovary rim, outer 1–2 mm long, slightly shorter than anthers, inner 1.5–3.5 mm long, as long as or longer than anthers; anthers somewhat oblong, latrorse, 1.2–2.5 mm long, basal lobes up to 0.2 mm long, apex shallowly notched; pollen yellow. Ovary obconical, 2–4 × 1.7–2.0 mm, 3-locular; style 1.0– 1.2 mm long; stigma branches suberect, oblong, often unequal, 1.7–4.0 × 0.5–1.0 mm, slightly shorter than stamens, yellow, densely papillose. Capsules obconical, ca. 4.5 × 3.5 mm, dehiscence circumscissile. Seeds ovoid, ca. 0.5 × 0.4 mm, dark brown to matt black, epidermal cells densely colliculate, in ca. 35 longitudinal rows, anticlinal walls isodiametric, outer periclinal walls almost entirely convex and finely pitted. Flowering period: (June–)August–October(–November).

Distribution and habitat:— Pauridia maryae is known from the Langeberg near Swellendam, Western Cape, eastwards along the Cape Fold Mountains to Van Staadens Gorge near Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape ( Fig. 10B ). Small populations are found scattered on south-facing slopes, in wet or seasonally moist places, most often on peatcovered rocks or in peaty depressions amongst fynbos.

Diagnostic features:—Until now most collections of Pauridia maryae have been identified as P. flaccida , following the treatments in Goldblatt & Manning (2000) and Manning & Goldblatt (2012). Unlike P. flaccida , P. maryae has leaves enclosed by smooth brown, papery or leathery sheaths proximally and a corm in which the tips of the soft fibres remain short. In contrast to the broadly sagittate stigma branches of P. flaccida , those of P. maryae are oblong and shorter (2.0– 3.5 mm versus 2.5–5.5(–6.5) mm long). In addition, the outer filaments are consistently shorter than the inner ones by 0.5–1.5 mm, rather than equally long or rarely up to 0.5 mm shorter as in P. flaccida . The distinctly biseriate stamens also suggest an alliance with P. aemulans which differs in having a solitary-flowered inflorescence with a short, linear bract (1.5–7.5 mm long), unlike the two-flowered inflorescence in P. maryae with longer, narrowly lanceolate bracts (10–16 mm long).

Discussion:—The small habit and generally soft appearance of most specimens of Pauridia maryae may lead to confusion with the similar looking P. trifurcillata . Nel (1914b) himself mistakenly cited a specimen of P. maryae under P. trifurcillata , namely Burchell 5495 (K!). P. trifurcillata , however, flowers in autumn and is distinguished by its unique style in which the downturned basal lobes appear as three prominent extensions protruding between the stamen filaments. Moreover, only the bases and rounded apices of the style branches are stigmatic.

Etymology:—The name Pauridia maryae honours the late Mary Thompson who provided the morphological groundwork for this revision ( Thompson 1972 a, 1976, 1978, 1979) and a rich gathering of material, amongst which is the type for this species.

Additional specimens examined (paratypes):— SOUTH AFRICA. Western Cape: edge of Poortjieskloof Dam, Wof Barrydale (QDS: 3320 CD), 6 September 2004, Harrower 2240 ( NBG!) ; Swellendam State Forest, Marloth Nature Reserve (QDS: 3320 CD), 20 June 1972, Haynes 633 ( NBG!) ; Tradouw Pass (QDS: 3320 DC), October 1927, Levyns 617 ( NBG!) ; 7 miles from Barrydale into Tradouws Pass (QDS: 3320 DC), 18 September 1968, Marsh 685 ( NBG!, PRE!) ; Seven Weeks Poort (QDS: 3321 AD) , September, Rennie s.n. ( BOL 62792!) ; ridge between Rooiberg and Bailey Peak (QDS: 3321 CB), 11 November 1974, Oliver 5431 ( K!, NBG!, PRE!) ; Riversdale District, Garcias Pass (QDS: 3321 CC), October 1904, H. Bolus s.n. ( BOL 62719!) ; Riversdale District , between Garcias Pass and Muiskraal (QDS: 3321 CC), October 1904, H. Bolus s.n. ( BOL 31838!) ; Muiskraal, near Garcias Pass (QDS: 3321 CC), 3 October 1897, Galpin 4734 ( PRE!) ; Langfontein, Mossel Bay Division (QDS: 3321 DD), 15 May 1915, Muir 2158 ( BOL!, PRE!) ; Cango Caves parking lot (QDS: 3322 AC), 8 September 2001, Goldblatt and Porter 11843 ( NBG!) ; Meiringspoort (QDS: 3322 BC), October 1949, Stokoe s.n. ( SAM 63776!) ; Knysna River (QDS: 3322 CC), 1 September 1997, Baard 190A ( PRE!) ; Buffelsrivier, below Kammanassieberg (QDS: 3322 DB), 3 October 1971, Thompson 1377 ( NBG!) ; Wilderness-George (QDS: 3322 DC), July 1923, Levyns 4284 ( BOL!) ; July 1935, Levyns 5027 ( BOL!) ; Wilderness Heights, overlooking Wilderness Lagoon (QDS: 3322 DC), 28 August 1999, Snijman 1710 ( NBG!) ; Uniondale Division, Mtns Sof Avontuur (QDS: 3323 CA), October 1921, Fourcade 1685 ( BOL!, GRA!, NBG!, PRE!, ZT!) ; Potjieshoogte (QDS: 3323 CA), 1 October 1971, Thompson 1334 ( NBG!) ; Bo Kouga (QDS: 3323 CB), 14 September 1973, Bayliss 6041 ( NBG!) ; Prince Alfred's Pass, 2.3 miles [3.6 km] from Avontuur (QDS: 3323 CC), 26 September 1967, Thompson 574 ( NBG!, PRE!) ; George Division, Keurbooms River, Long Kloof (QDS: 3323 CD), September 1936, Fourcade 5233 ( BOL!) ; Outeniqua Mtns , between Herold and George, top of Montagu Pass (QDS: 3323 CD), 22 November 1999, Snijman 1719 ( NBG!) ; Uniondale Division, Joubertinia , De Hoek, N side of Zitzikamma Mtns (QDS: 3323 DC), 18 Nov. 1944, Esterhuysen 10671 ( BOL!) ; Kromme River, Heights (QDS: 3323 DD), August 1923, Fourcade 2901 ( NBG!) ; Skaapkop River Mouth (QDS: 3422 AB), 25 May 1984, O'Callaghan, Fellingham & Van Wyk 151 ( NBG!, PRE!) ; George District , headlands along coastline Sof Pacaltsdorp, above Rooiklip (QDS: 3422 AB), 13 August 1993, Victor 207 ( PRE!) ; George Region, Gwaing River estuary (QDS: 3422 AB), 16 August 1993, Victor 335 ( PRE!) ; Knysna, Noetzie (QDS: 3423 AA), 14 September 1960, Acocks 21511 ( NBG!, PRE!) ; near Mellville, Knysna Division (QDS: 3423 AA), 29 June 1814, Burchell 5495 ( K!, [image only]) ; Knysna (QDS: 3423 AA) , August , Tyson. s.n. ( GRA!) ; Plettenberg Bay (QDS: 3423 AB), September 1921, Smart s.n. sub Transvaal Museum 22828 ( PRE!) . Eastern Cape: Cockscomb , side of blast-dump (QDS: 3324 BD), 6 September 1954, Noel s.n. ( GRA!) ; Kouga Mtns (QDS: 3324 CA), 30 July 1973, Bayliss 5821 ( NBG!) ; Kouga between Ziewefontein and Joubertskraal (QDS: 3324 CB), September1925, Fourcade 3124 ( NBG!, PRE!) ; Baviaanskloof Mtns between Smitskraal and Wilgerhof (QDS: 3324 CB) , 17 September 1073, Thompson 1965 ( NBG!, PRE!) ; Companies Drift (QDS: 3324 CC), September 1922, Fourcade 2315 ( NBG!) ; Vanstadens Mtns NW end of watershed in kloof runnnng down to Vanstadens River (QDS: 3324 CC), 18 September 1973, Thompson 1863 ( NBG!, PRE!) ; Assegaaibosch (QDS: 3324 CD) , 1930, Thode A2576 ( NH!, PRE!) ; Van Staadens Gorge, Port Elizabeth (QDS: 3325 DC), 31 July 1932, Long 632 ( GRA!, PRE!) ; Witte Els Bosch (QDS: 3424 AA), September 1920, Fourcade 896 ( BOL!, GRA!) .

Figures

FIGURE 10. Distribution maps for A, Pauridia flaccida from Western Cape; B, P. maryae from Western and Eastern Cape, South Africa.

FIGURE 11. Pauridia maryae. Holotype, Thompson 1974 (NBG!), collected on Kouga Mountains, Eastern Cape, South Africa.