Anisophyllea polyneura Floret (1987: 377)

Chen, Xin, He, Hai & Zhang, Li-Bing, 2015, A monograph of the Anisophylleaceae (Cucurbitales) with description of 18 new species of Anisophyllea, Phytotaxa 229 (1), pp. 448-450 : 448-450

52. Anisophyllea polyneura Floret (1987: 377) ( Figure 102 )

Type:— GABON. Estuaire: Monts de Cristal, 13 km along the road Asok to the dam in the Tchimbélé River , ca. 600 m, 20 August 1978, Breteler F. J. & Wilde J. J. F. E. de 173 (holotype WAG-0170320!, isotypes K-H2008/00218153!, MO!, WAG-0170321!) .

Trees more than 30 m tall, crowns wide and dense, boles straight, to 12 m tall, 40 cm in diam., bark rough and flaking off in fine particles; young branches densely sericeous with yellowish-brown hairs 0.6–1.3 mm long, turning glabrescent when mature and in brownish-red color with visible white corky spots, or with reddish corky spots under microscope in some specimens; buds sericeous. Leaves dimorphic, internodes between similar types of leaves 1.2–4.0 cm, between two adjacent different types of leaves 0.5–1.0 cm; small leaves caducous, only leaving very small scars under microscope, sessile, stipuliform, linear or narrowly lanceolate, 8–12 mm long, ca. 2 mm wide, main veins 3, straight or curved towards apex; large leaves petiolate, petiole to 5 mm long, 1.1–2.4 mm in diam., sericeous with hairs slightly shorter than those on branches, glabrescent when mature; leaf blade with a continuous spectrum of variation in shapes and size, sub-symmetrical to asymmetrical, elliptical to rhombic, 6–25 cm long, 2.8–9.5 cm wide, base often strongly oblique, broadly acute, obtuse to rounded and even rarely subcordate, apex acuminate, chartaceous to subcoriaceous, lustrous, moderately green adaxially, and much paler abaxially, and brightly yellowish-green, gray-green, olive, brown, reddish or blackish when dry; main longitudinal veins 5(–7), springing from blade base, with one innermost lateral vein emerging from midrib at 0.2–2.0 cm above blade base, inner veins impressed and glabrous adaxially, distinctly raised and pilose abaxially with ± appressed hairs gradually deciduous when leaves aging, outmost 2 veins very fine, almost merged with blade margins and especially one usually disappearing into blade margin distally, flat adaxially and slightly prominent abaxially; transverse veins parallel, almost perpendicular with main veins (especially midrib), fine, dense and uniform; veinlets often obscure adaxially and slightly prominent on lower surface. Inflorescence a supra-axillary spike, solitary or in 2, 3, or rarely 6 serials; rachis to 11 cm long, ca. 0.8 mm in diam., densely manicate with reddish matted hairs tortuous and ca. 0.3 mm long, with bisexual flowers proximally, male flowers distally and infertile or neutral flowers on apex; bracts narrowly lanceolate, 1.2–2.0 mm long, ca. 0.3 mm wide, hairy as rachis abaxially, each often with 1 or 2 axillary flowers; flower buds completely covered with reddish short hairs; bisexual, male and neutral flowers looks alike, 4–5-merous, 3–4 mm long, to 1.5 mm in diam., receptacle 1.0– 1.6 mm long, cylindric, ± flattened, hairy as rachis outside; sepals deltoid, 2.0– 2.5 mm long, to 1.5 mm wide, subglabrous adaxially, pubescent abaxially; petals alternate with sepals, obtriangular, 2.0– 2.5 mm long, sometimes slightly fleshy, deeply laciniate, laciniae (6–)8–9(–10), filiform, each in appearance resembling a filament and ends in a white globose swelling similar to an anther; stamens 8(–10), irregularly developed, 1.0– 1.5 mm long, ± fleshy threads, attenuate toward apex, anthers orbicular, 0.3–0.5 mm long, some stamens abortive in bisexual flowers (less often in males flowers), all abortive in neutral flowers; disk square (or pentagonal), indented, surface irregular, blunt, white, smooth and glabrous; styles 4 (or 5), free, to 1.5 mm long, base with flexuous long hairs, clavate and gradually attenuate distally and ended into a globular stigma in bisexual flowers, a very short glabrous style in male flowers, and only 4 (or 5) little hairy bumps in neutral flowers. Fruit a drupe with persistent sepals, acuminate at both ends, 3.5–5.0 cm long, 1.8–2.5 cm in diam., surface grayish brown or reddish purple, finely wrinkled longitudinally; pericarp 1.5–3.0 mm thick (at middle), very hard. Seed one, ovoid, to 2.3 cm long, 1.4 cm in diam.

Flowering and fruiting: —?Throughout the year.

Habitat and distribution: — In coastline (to ca. 200 km to the inland, or in rare cases disjointly to much farther away from the coast) dense forests; 150–1000 m. SW Cameroon, Gabon (Estuaire, Ngounié, Nyanga, Ogooué-Ivindo, Ogooué-Maritime, Woleu-Ntem), Nigeria (Cross River) ( Figure 103 ) .

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Vernacular names: — Nzim soureu (dial. Bakélé); Essang afane (dial. Fang).

Taxonomic notes: — Anisophyllea polyneura has leaves with very numerous transverse veins that almost perpendicular to the midrib, which makes it different from all other African species (Floret 1986). It has been misidentified as either A. laurina ( Oliver 1871; Pellegrin 1952) or A. sororia ( Pellegrin 1952) , but is distinguished from the latter two by its swelling apices of petal laciniae, the pattern of its venation, and other more subtle vegetative characters.

Additional specimens examined: — CAMEROON. SW Cameroon: Denis’s bush camp high forest with Protomegabaria, 06°12’N 009°24’E, 200 m, 03 May 1987, D. W . Thomas 6948 ( MO); Forest around Masaka- Batanga , 05°06’N 009°10’E, 500 m, 24 March 1988, D. W . Thomas & F . Namata 7807 ( MO); Steep hillside south of Esukutang village , 05°23’N 009°00’E, 300–500 m, 25 May 1988, D. W . Thomas & et al. 7937 ( MO); Korup National Park, Footpath between Ikenge and Bajo villages, 3–6 kms NE of Ikenge, 05°18’N 009°08’E, 150 m, 07 April 1988, D. W . Thomas & F . Namata 7675 ( MO); Takamanda F. R ., Near Matene, 06°14’N 009°19’E, 21–25 Mar. 1985, D. W . Thomas 4522 ( MO) . GABON. Estuaire: 00°25’00”N 009°29’00”E, 50 m, 6 January 2000, E. L. A. N . Simons & R . Westerduijn 582 ( MO); Mts de Crystal , 1° lat. N , 1862, Mann 1709 ( K); R. P . Klaine 343 ( K); June 1913, C . Countit s.n. ( L). Ngounié: Komi, near Sindara , 01°04’00”S 010°48’00”E, 100–400 m, 17 June 1986, D. W . Thomas & C. M . Wilks 6455 ( MO); 01°01’41”S 011°08’47”E, alt. 415 m, 12 May 2008, E . Ngombou Mamadou, C . Ndjambe Moiya 232 ( MO), 1897, R. P . Klaine 965 ( P). Ngounié (?): Ht. Ngrumyél, 03 May 1928, Le Testu 6078 ( K, MO, P). Nyanga: Monts Doudou , champagne, 02°31’S 010°32.1’E, 450 m, 19 September 2000, H. P . Bourobou 330 ( MO); ca. 40 km of Doussala , chantier CEB ., 02°32’00”S 010°30’00”E, 22 August 1985, J. M . et B. Reitsma 1365 ( NY, MO); SW of Doussala , 02°36’00”S 010°35’00”E, 26 August 1985, J. M . et B. Reitsma 1407 ( MO, NY); SW of Doussala , 02°36’00”S 010°35’00”E, 17 October 1985, J. M . et B. Reitsma 1644 ( NY, P); ca. 40 km of Doussala , chantier CEB ., 02°32’00”S 010°30’00”E, 22 August 1985, J. M . et B. Reitsma 4760 ( MO, NY, P). Ogooué-Ivindo: 18 km ESE of Agnang, 00°22’N 012°28’E, 03 June 1989, Chris Wilks 1947 ( MO); Station D’Études des Gorilles et Chimpanzés , Herbier de la station de SEGC , Flore De La Lopé , 650 m, 29 December 1995, Lee White & K . Abernethy 1557 ( MO); Forêt de Abeilles, 7 km SSE of Booué, 00°09’S 011°58’E, 24 April

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1989, Chris Wilks 1913 ( MO); South of Lopé , near SEGC site in NE of Lopé-Okanda Reserve ; hill SW of station, 00°15’S 011°40’E, 400– 650 m, 04 February 1993, G . McPherson 16153 ( MO). Ogooué-Maritime: Monts Doudou Reserve , ca. 40 miles NW of Doussala, 02°13’00”S 010°24’00”E, 375 m, 27 March 2000, Sosef M. S. M . 1433 ( MO); Rabi. South of Divangui Road, 01°54’S 009°55’E, 27 February 2007, Johanna Choo 756 ( MO), 28 February 2007, Johanna Choo 757 ( MO); Near Rabi, Shell Oil Company’s camp., 01°55’S 009°55’E, 100 m, 26 November 1991, G . McPherson 15590, 15591 ( MO). Woleu-Ntem: Mbe National Park , Monts de Cristal. Kinguele Dam area , Plot 4, 00°28’00”N 010°16’41”E, 200 m, April 2004, Simab 042502 ( MO). NIGERIA. Cross River: Calabar-Manfe road. Between miles 52 & 53, 18 February 1964, M. G . Latilo & H . D. Oyeachusim FHI 53967 ( K); Cross River National Park, Oban Hills. Forest ca. 14 km ENE of Ekonganaku, 005°10’N 08°45’06”E, 7 March 1995, K . Schmitt 526 ( MO); Oban-Group Forest Reserve , 11 March 1973, Latilo & Oguntayo FRI 70556 ( K) .

Figures

FIGURE 102. Anisophyllea polyneura Floret. —A. Portion of flowering branch. —B, C. Leaves. —D. Portion of branch showing axillary inflorescences. —E. Apex of inflorescence. —F. Female flower. —G. Male flower. —H. Petal. —J, K. Stamens. —L. Staminode. —M. Styles of male flower. —N. Styles of female flower. —O. Cross section of ovary. —P. Fruit. —Q. Longitudinal section of seed (Drawn by J.J. Floret & D. Storez; reproduced and modified from Floret in Adansonia 4: 379. 1986).

FIGURE 103. Geographical distribution of Anisophyllea polyneura Floret.