Microlicia lutea Markgr.

Romero, Rosana, Versiane, Ana Flávia Alves & Woodgyer, Elizabeth M., 2022, Miscellaneous taxonomic and nomenclatural notes on Microlicia D. Don (Melastomataceae), Phytotaxa 559 (2), pp. 99-131 : 117-118

Microlicia lutea Markgr. in Pilger (1927: 46).

Brasilien [ BRAZIL]. Bahia, Minas de Contas, Carrasco (blühend und fruchtend Juni 1914, v. Luetzelburg n. 89 [in the protologue]. Lectotype (designated here):—[ BRAZIL]. Carrasco, Central-Bahia, Minas de Contas, Luetzelburg n. 89 [sheet] (M0032623!, isolectotypes K000530565!, M0032638!, M0032639!, NY00229462! with photo at US [ US 00120263]).

Remaining syntype: Brasilien [ BRAZIL]. Bahia, Serra Marsalina , blühend 29 Juli 1914, v. Luetzelburg s.n. (not found) .

= Microlicia semiriana Koschnitzke & Martins (2007: 474) . ≡ Chaetostoma luetzelburgii Markgr. in Pilger (1927: 43). [ BRAZIL]. Bahia: Almas , im Carrasco-Gebiet , 1400 m ü. d. M. (blühend und fruchtend, v. Luetzelburg n. 263 - Original der Art [in the protologue]. Lectotype (designated here):— Brasilia [ BRAZIL]. Bahia: Almas, Carrasco – Gebiet, 1913, P. von Luetzelburg 263 [sheet] (M0110862!, isolectotypes, K000002866!, M0165373!, M0165374!, NY01551910 !), syn. nov.

Remaining syntypes: [ BRAZIL]. Minas de Contas , Caatinga-Gebiet (Juli 1914 – v. Luetzelburg n. 82) (not found); Rio de Contas, Carrapatos, Bom Jesus, August 1913 – v. Luetzelburg n. 326 (not found) .

Notes:—There are three sheets at M: Luetzelburg 89 from “Minas de Contas”, Luetzelburg [89b] from “Serra Marselina formada (?)”, and Luetzelburg 89 [c] without any indication of locality (the number 89b and the letter “c” were added later). The sheet Luetzelburg 89 [c] is undoubtedly a duplicate of the collection Luetzelburg 89, while the sheet Luetzelburg [89b] is a duplicate of the collection Luetzelburg s.n. (collected in July 1914). The sheet Luetzelburg 89 was chosen as lectotype since it agrees perfectly with the protologue description and is in good condition.

The collection type of M. semiriana has discolorous, ascending, and sessile leaves, ovate to ovate-oblong leaf blades with acute apices, and entire margins. The hypanthium is campanulate, the triangular sepals are shorter than the hypanthium length, with acute apices, and the flowers have a short pedicel ca. 0.5 mm long. The petals and the stamens are yellow. The type material of M. semiriana matches M. lutea , so it is here considered as a synonym.

Microlicia lutea is a much-branched subshrub, 0.5–1 m tall with quadrangular branches. The branches, leaves, hypanthium, and sepals have an indumentum of spherical golden glands, giving a glutinous aspect to the whole plant. The leaves are sessile, ascending, small 2–6 × 0.8–3 mm, rarely larger 8–9 × 5–6 mm, and often imbricate but can vary between populations. The leaf blades are elliptical, lanceolate, ovate-oblong or ovate, with rounded to cordate bases (Mori & Benton 13527), acute, obtuse to short acuminate apices, and commonly with one vein, rarely three. The flowers are sessile or have short pedicels (ca. 0.5 mm long) with cylindrical, campanulate, smooth and light green hypanthium, triangular sepals shorter than the hypanthium length. The petals and the dimorphic (in size) stamens are yellow. The polysporangiate anthers are ovate-oblong to oblong, with rostrate apices (beak ca. 0.2 mm long). All stamens have a pedoconnective with a ventral appendage 0.2–1 mm long.

Microlicia lutea resembles M. parvula (Markgr. in Pilger [1927: 44]) Koschnitzke & Martins (2007: 472), which occurs sympatrically in Rio de Contas, Piatã, Mucugê, Abaíra, and Seabra, Bahia state. Both have small leaves covered with spherical, golden glands, sessile or short pedicellate flowers, with yellow petals and stamens, campanulate hypanthium, and sepals shorter than the hypanthium length. However, in M. parvula the stamens are isomorphic, the pedoconnective is 1.5–2 mm long, and the ventral appendage is inconspicuous, not exceeding 0.2 mm long.

More than 50 collections from Bahia state were examined, and we noticed an enormous variation in M. lutea , mainly related to the leaf blades, as previously mentioned by Woodgyer (2005). Despite this variation, we can recognize M. lutea by sessile or short pedicellate flowers, yellow petals and stamens, campanulate hypanthium with short sepals, and dimorphic stamens with polysporangiate anthers.