Passiflora brauliensis Kuethe, R. Barboza, L. Alvarez, 2023

Kuethe, J. R., Rodríguez-Barboza, Gared & Álvarez-Alcázar, Leonardo, 2023, Passiflora brauliensis, a new species of Passiflora supersection Laurifoliae (Passifloraceae) from the volcanic forest of Costa Rica, Phytotaxa 584 (2), pp. 121-129 : 122-126

Passiflora brauliensis Kuethe, R. Barboza, L. Alvarez sp. nov. ( Figures 1 , 2 (A–C), 3)

TYPE:— COSTA RICA. Heredia province: Sarapiquí, comunidad de Cacho Negro, 350 m, 10º14’23” N, 83º58’06” W, 3 October 2022 (fl., fr.), Gared Rodríguez-Barboza & L. Alvarez 19 (holotype USJ!; isotype CR!).

Diagnosis: —This new species is similar to Passiflora nitida and Passiflora fissurosa , from which it differs by the deep pink colour of the corona and operculum (vs. blue-with-white in P. nitida or purple in P. fissurosa ), the reduction of glands on the bracts (vs.glandular in P. nitida ), and the texture of the older stems (sub-fissurose opposed to woody in P. nitida or deeply fissurose in P. fissurosa ). This species is further distinct by its distribution being restricted to the volcanic forest of Costa Rica (vs. Amazonian regions for P. nitida and P. fissurosa ).

Description: — Plant large woody liana with tendrils, glabrous throughout; stems becoming woody to sub-fissurose when mature, terete, green, younger shoots green, occasionally reddish; stipules linear, 1–1.5 cm long, glandular towards the apex, soon deciduous, green; petioles 1–2 cm long, green-reddish, reddish above, slightly ribbed, with a single pair of ovate, sessile, green glands positioned 3/4 th the length to near of the base of the leaf, occasionally slightly closer towards the middle of the petiole, glands 1.6–2.1 mm wide, non-producing; leaves simple, ovate-lanceolate to ovate-elliptic, 8–17.5 × 3–6 cm, obtuse at the base, acute to acuminate at the apex, penninerved with a 8–10 pairs of secondary veins, foliar margins glandular serrate, glabrous throughout, mildly coriaceous to membranous, green and glossy on both the adaxial and abaxial surface, most notable at younger stems; inflorescence solitary, borne at the younger stems, pendulous, 6–11 cm long; peduncles solitary, terete, 2.2–5.3 cm long, green or sometimes reddish in colour, pendent; pedicel white, terete, 0.5–1 cm long; bracts 3, persistent, light green, broadly elliptic to obovate, 3–5.7 × 2.1–4.5 cm, margin smooth, eglandular or with few small greenish glands towards the apex, slightly concave; flowers very showy, 10–13.5 cm in diameter, white with red to pinkish red, very sweetly scented with a citrus-like fragrance; hypanthium campanulate, white, about 1.2–1.5 cm high, 2–2.4 cm wide, glabrous; sepals white, rather fleshy in texture, oblong-ovate, 4.3–5.6 × 1.6–2.1 cm, obtuse at apex, dorsally corniculate just below apex with a hooked awn 3–5 mm long; petals subequal to sepals, white, narrowly oblong-ovate, 4.1–5.3 × 1.1–1.8 cm, acute-obtuse apex, membranous; corona filaments in 5–6 series, reddish pink with multiple white bands; the outer two series the most prominent, stout at the base becoming wavy in upper half, ligulate, 4–6 cm long, reddish-pink proximally becoming more reddish-purple to whitish distally, presenting 4–6 of lighter pinkish to whitish bands in lower half, second series subequal in length and size to the outer series, conspicuously more intense in colour than the outer series, third to fifth series filiform, 0.3–0.8 cm long, reddish-pink with few white bands, slightly curved outwards; operculum filamentose, intense pink, erect-linear or slightly inclined towards the androgynophore, noticeably longer than preceding filaments, 0.7–1.3 cm long, becoming very slightly darker in colour towards the base, inner operculum membranous, becoming slightly filamentose towards the apex, lighter pink, 3–4.5 mm long; limen membranous, recurved, 2–3 mm high, white; androgynophore white to whitish-pink without speckles, 12–15 mm long; staminal filaments greenish brown, mottled with red dots distally, 0.9–1.2 cm long; anthers white, 1.1 cm long; ovary ovoid to ellipsoid, whitish pink, glabrous, ellipsoid to obovoid, 0.5–0.7 cm long; styles pink, 0.9–1.2 cm long; stigma white, 0.4–0.5 cm; fruit obovoid, 8–10.3 cm long, green with white shades when immature, completely yellow to yellowish green when mature, edible; seeds black, triangular-ovate, base truncate, apex acute, inconspicuously striated, 0.8 × 1.1 cm, covered with a transparent aril.

Phenology: —This new species has been observed with flowers in July, March and October and with fruits from September to July.

Distribution and habitat: — Passiflora brauliensis is known only from the Caribbean slope of the Cordillera Volcánica Central in Costa Rica, where it is found primarily within the Heredia and north-western Limón provinces. This large species grows in primary and secondary forest, at an altitude between 50 and 550 meters of elevation. According to Holdridge (1967), this species occurs in two different life zones, which are tropical wet forest (bmh-t) dominated by Pentaclethra macroloba (Willd.) Kuntze (1891: 201) and transitional to premontane volcanic forest with cloud forest-like conditions. Notable populations have been sighted in the La Selva Biological Station and environs, as well as from various transitional regions where it was found in the premontane wet forest within the protectorate of the Braulio Carrillo National Park. This species was observed reaching maturity from subcanopy to canopy in the forest, with the flowers appearing mostly high up within the canopy. It was also found growing along the forest edges and roadsides, but most of the observations came from plants growing near rivers.

Etymology: —This species is named after the Braulio Carrillo National Park in Costa Rica, location where it was first sighted.

Conservation notes: —This new species is presently known from 15 collections (10 of which recorded from herbarium), which plot to an Area of Occupancy (AOO) of about 28 km 2 and an Extent of Occurrence (EOO) of 251 km 2. This scales Passiflora brauliensis EN (Endangered) under criteria B1ab(i, iii) and B2a(ii) of the IUCN (2022). Its restricted and endemic distribution to the Caribbean slope of the Cordillera Volcánica Central in Costa Rica, and the extensive loss of habitat due to the rapid change of land use from mostly the period between 1950 to 1990 ( Sader & Joyce 1988, Evans 2010), fully testifies this outcome. Although the species is present in land which is currently part of the protected San Juan-La Selva Biological Corridor, there remains high levels of ongoing illegal logging within in the area and the populations presently reported are scattered and discontinuous or fragmented.

Paratypes: — COSTA RICA. Heredia: Sarapiquí, Finca La Selva, 15 September 1980, James mallet 6 ( CR) ; Heredia: Sarapiquí, Horquetas, 400 m, 28 November 1983 (fr.), N . Zamora 409 (CR); Heredia: Sarapiquí, Reserva Ecológica Gavián Blanco. 26 November 2004 (fr.), O . Vargas 1127 (LSCR); Heredia: Finca La Selva, the OTS Field Station on the Rio Puerto Viejo , just E of its junction with the Rio Sarapiqui, 100 m. 7 April 1982, Hammel 11602 ( MO) ; Heredia: Puerto Viejo de Sarapiquí, La Selva Field Station, central trail line 3000. 10°25’N, 84°00’W, July 12 1979, John smiley 10 ( IRCV) ; Heredia: Sarapiqui, Near Puerto Viejo , March 1979, L. E . Gilbert s.n. (TEX); Heredia: Sarapiqui, Finca La Selva, The OTS Field Station on the Río Puerto Viejo just E of its junction with the Río Sarapiquí , banks of El Salto, 2800 line of S boundary, elevation just about 100 m, 14 april 1981 (fr.), James Folsom 9763 ( DUKE) ; Limón: Pococí, Guápiles, PN. Braulio Carrillo, Sector Quebrada González, 500 m, 10°10’0”N, 79°27’00.0”W, 26 May 2001 (fr.), A. Estrada 3025 (CR) ; Limón: Pococí, Guápiles, Área no protegida, Teleférico del Bosque Lluvioso , 500 m, 10°11’0”N, 83°55’0”W, 28 May 2001 (fr.), A. Estrada 3030 (CR).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Passiflora brauliensis sp.nov. Compilation of floral and vegetative morphology. Here deduced from Rodríguez-Barboza & L. Alvarez 19.

FIGURE 2. Direct comparison between Passiflora brauliensis (A–C) and Passiflora nitida (D–F). The material for Passiflora nitida taken from near the Type location in Venezuela. The material for P. brauliensis taken from Cacho Necho—Costa Rica. Photo courtesy of Miguel Molinari, Martin Wettges, Leonardo Alvarez Alcazar and Gared Rodriguez-Barboza.