Pauridia curculigoides (Bolus) Snijman & Kocyan (2013: 26)

Snijman, Deirdre A., 2014, A taxonomic revision of the genus Pauridia (Hypoxidaceae) in southern Africa, Phytotaxa 182 (1), pp. 1-114 : 91-92

25. Pauridia curculigoides (Bolus) Snijman & Kocyan (2013: 26) . Fig. 3G

Bas.:— Hypoxis curculigoides Bolus (1893: 2259) ≡ Ianthe curculigoides (Bolus) Williams (1901: 292) ≡ Spiloxene curculigoides (Bolus) Garside (1936: 269) . Type (lectotype designated by Snijman & Kocyan 2013: 26):— SOUTH AFRICA. [Western Cape], prope Kenilworth [QDS: 3318DC], 80 ft [24 m], May, R. Schlechter 627 (K! No. K000255993 [image], isolectotypes B! No. 100088700 [image], ZT!)

= Ianthe declinata Nel (1914b: 298) ≡ Hypoxis declinata (Nel) Geerinck (1969: 78) ≡ Spiloxene declinata (Nel) Garside (1936: 269) , syn. nov. Type (lectotype designated here):— SOUTH AFRICA. [Western Cape], Elim [QDS: 3419DA], 300 ft [91 m], 22 April 1896, R. Schlechter 7675 (K! [image]; isolectotypes GRA!, PRE!, S! [image]). This specimen has been annotated by Nel himself as being Ianthe declinata .

Plants 4–18(–30) cm tall. Corm almost conical, 6–10 × 10–18 mm, covered with numerous, finely to heavily reticulate, brown fibrous tunics, old corms persisting as flattened discs; fibres detaching from broad base, drawn upwards into a neck of thick, rigid, blunt bristles 5–55 mm long; roots arising from near corm base. Cataphylls present at onset of flowering, up to (15–) 30–65 mm long, membranous, tipped with reddish-brown. Leaves 1–5, not sheathing above cataphylls, suberect, linear, up to 160(–250) × 1.5–2.0 mm, somewhat triangular to shallowly carinate, with obtuse midrib, dark green, firm-textured, margin entire. Inflorescences 1(2) in flower at a time, 1- flowered, exceeding leaves; scape up to 80 × ca. 1 mm, terete, pale reddish green; bract 1, incompletely sheathing pedicel almost up to apex, lanceolate, involute, 20–50 mm long, keeled distally, green, leathery, margin somewhat translucent distally, apex acuminate, entire. Flower pedicellate, stellate, yellow, backed with green in outer whorl, often reddish brown on midrib and margin, lightly scented; pedicel suberect, laterally deflexed in fruit, terete, 20–125 × ca. 1.0 mm, pale green; tepals 6, lanceolate, 6–17(–23) mmlong, outer 3.0–5.0 mmwide, minutely mucronate, inner 2.0– 3.5 mm wide. Stamens 6, slightly spreading, subequal or outer slightly shorter than inner, yellow; filaments inserted on ovary rim, slender, outer 1.0– 2.5 mm long, inner 1.5–3.0 mm long, both whorls shorter than anthers; anthers linear, latrorse, 5–7 × 0.5 mm, basal lobes up to 0.5 mm long; pollen yellow. Ovary narrowly obconical, 4–7 × 1.7–2.0 mm, 3-locular; style 1.5–3.0 mm long; stigma branches erect, oblong, 3–6 × 0.7 mm, shorter than stamens, yellow, densely papillose. Capsule narrowly obconical, 6–7 × 2.5–3.0 mm, dehiscence circumscissile. Seeds depressed ovoid, ca. 0.62 × 0.52 mm; testa shiny black, of ca. 27 closely arranged longitudinal rows of cells, outer periclinal walls colliculate with a narrow, flat rim. Flowering period: April–June(–early August).

Distribution and habitat:—The Western Cape Pauridia curculigoides is found from the mountains near Tulbagh to the Hottentots Holland Mountains, the Cape Peninsula, and eastwards to the Agulhas Plain ( Fig. 39B ). Small populations are commonly found in fynbos, often on south facing slopes in deep sand or gravel and on shale bands, usually in seasonally moist habitats. In the first season after fire the plants are locally abundant, but at other times only a few, scattered flowering plants make an appearance.

Diagnostic features:— Pauridia curculigoides is distinguished by a combination of unusual features. Narrowing upwards from a flat-based corm, the tunics are frequently protracted into a neck of thick, rigid, blunt, brown fibres that partially cover two distinctive long, membranous cataphylls present in the early stages of flowering. Only later in the growing season are the cataphylls less obvious after splitting open. Specimens collected at this growth stage were described as Spiloxene declinata , which Iregard as conspecific with P. curculigoides . Each inflorescence is one-flowered with the pedicel incompletely sheathed by a conspicuous, long, leathery bract. The typically narrow (3–5 mm across) tepals are plain yellow with pale green backs on the outer tepals and reminiscent of those in Empodium plicatum ( Thunberg 1779: 29) Garside (1950: 214) , previously Curculigo plicata (Thunb.) Dryand. ex Aiton (1811: 253) , thus prompting the choice of epithet ( Bolus 1893).

To date, P. curculigoides and P. capensis are the only species known to have an additional vascular bundle below the central vascular strand of the leaf. In addition, both species have similar, partially sheathing bracts and shiny, black seeds in which the outer periclinal cell walls of the testa are colliculate and surrounded by a narrow, flat rim. Unlike P. curculigoides , the flowers in P. capensis vary considerably in size and colour, ranging from yellow to white and rarely cream or pale pink, often with contrasting colours in the centre. Despite this variability P. capensis has consistently short filaments (ca. 2 mm) in both whorls, unlike the unequal staminal filaments in P. curculigoides , 1.0– 2.5 mm long in the outer whorl and slightly longer (1.5–3.0 mm) in the inner whorl. In addition, P. capensis lacks a pronounced cataphyll when flowering, most often a few months later in the year than for P. curculigoides .

Additional specimens examined:— SOUTH AFRICA. Western Cape: Kalabaskraal (QDS: 3318 DA) , 8 June 1065, Thompson 102 ( NBG!) ; Stellenbosch flats, on highest river terrace (QDS: 3318 DD) , 30 May 1918, Garside 1083 ( BOL!) ; Stellenbosch flats, on Eerste River terrace (QDS: 3318 DD) , 10 May 1939, Garside 4936 ( BOL!, SAM!) ; Stellenbosch (QDS: 3318 DD) , 26 May 1918, Garside s.n. ( BOL 16078!) ; J.N. Briers Louw Reserve , Wof Paarl (QDS: 3318 DD) , 2 June 2008, Snijman 2225 ( NBG!) ; Elandsberg Private Nature Reserve, Wellington (QDS: 3319 AC) , 20 June 1999, Parker s.n. ( NBG!) ; Tulbagh waterfall (QDS: 3319 AC) , 29 April 1966, Thompson 187 ( NBG!) ; Happy Valley, Bains Kloof (QDS: 3319 CA) , 30 April 1964, Thompson 16 ( NBG!) ; Fransch Hoek Pass (QDS: 3319 CC) , 30 May 1963, Taylor 4846a ( NBG!) ; Blokkop, Wof Villiersdorp (QDS: 3319 CD) , 1 May 2002, Snijman 1887 ( NBG!) ; Scarborough, Cape Peninsula (QDS: 3418 AB) , 16 May 1982, Hugo 3081 ( NBG!) ; above road half way between Constantia Nek and Hout Bay (QDS: 3418 AB) , 31 May 1942, Pillans s.n. ( BOL 62785!) ; Bergvliet Farm (QDS: 3418 AB) , May 1916, Purcell 158 ( SAM!) ; ibidem, May 1919, Purcell s.n. ( SAM 91279!, 91280!, 91281!) ; Cape Peninsula, Red Hill (QDS: 3418 AB) , 9 May 1940, Salter 8396 ( BOL!) ; prope Wynberg (QDS: 3418 AB) , May 1892, Schlechter 1383 ( B!, K!, SAM!, ZT!) ; Red Hill, ca. 1500 m from Kleinplaas Dam (QDS: 3418 AB) , 25 May 2006, Snijman 2041 ( NBG!) ; Red Hill, Simonstown District (QDS: 3418 AB) , 3 June 1963, Taylor 4856 ( NBG!) ; Wslopes, Orange Kloof (QDS: 3418 AB) , 4 July 1897, Wolley Dod 2745 ( BOL!) ; Smitswinkel (QDS: 3418 AD) , 9 May 1940, Salter 8400 ( BOL!) ; Sirkelsvlei, Cape Peninsula (QDS: 3418 AD) , 1 June 1964, Thompson s.n. ( NBG 77270!) ; Boland Trail, between Sir Lowry’s Pass and Verkykerskop (QDS: 3418 BB) , 2 May 1982, Burman 778 ( BOL!) ; Stellenbosch Division, Lourensford (QDS: 3418 BB) , 1 June 1942, Esterhuysen 7842 ( BOL!) ; top of Sir Lowry’s Pass (QDS: 3418 BB) , 19 May 1938, Lewis 137 ( SAM!) ; Somerset West, Helderberg Nature Reserve (QDS: 3418 BB) , 10 May 1993, Runnalls 492 ( NBG!) ; Haasvlakte, Houwhoek (QDS: 3419 AA) , 19 August 1988, Boucher 5440 ( NBG!) ; Houhoekberg, Houhoek Forest Reserve (QDS: 3419 AA) , 29 May 1963, Taylor 4832 ( NBG!, PRE!) ; Kleinmond (QDS: 3419 AC) , 22 May 1948, de Vos 1005 ( NBG!) ; near Babilonstoring (QDS: 3419 AC) , 31 May 2008, Johns s.n. ( NBG 267841 !) ; Shaws Mountain (QDS: 3419 AD) , May 1939, Lewis 10 ( SAM!) ; Vogelgat Xmas Camp (QDS: 3419 AD) , 9 April 1986, Williams 3654 ( NBG!) ; Happy Valley, Caledon (QDS: 3419 BA) , 12 April 1941, Barker 1448 ( NBG!) ; Napier Mountain (QDS: 3419 BC) , 6 June 2008, McMaster 123 ( NBG!) ; Baardskeerdersbos — Uilenskraal road, turnoff to Awila (QDS: 3419 CB) , 21 May 1971, Thompson 1193 ( NBG!) ; Caledon, Koude Rivier (QDS: 3419 DA) , 15 April 1897, Schlechter 10458 ( BOL!, GRA!, PRE!) ; Farm Coetzeeskraal, Wof Bredasdorp (QDS: 3419 DB) , 7 June 1995, Paterson-Jones 381 ( NBG!) ; De Hoop, Buffelsfontein (QDS: 3420 CB) , 21 June 1984, Fellingham 670 ( NBG!) .

Figures

FIGURE 3. Flower diversity in Pauridia. A, P. trifurcillata; B, P. umbraticola; C, P. pusilla; D, P. longituba; E, P. linearis; F, P. gracilipes subsp. speciosa; G, P. curculigoides; H, P. monophylla; I, P.capensis; J, P. canaliculata; K, P. alticola. Photographs by J.C. Paterson-Jones.

FIGURE 39. Distribution maps for A, Pauridia monophylla from Western Cape; B, P. curculigoides from Western Cape, South Africa.