Solanum amorimii S.Knapp & Giacomin, 2015

Knapp, Sandra, Stehmann, Joao Renato & Giacomin, Leandro L., 2015, New species, additions and a key to the Brazilian species of the Geminata clade of Solanum L. (Solanaceae) in Brazil, PhytoKeys 47, pp. 1-48 : 4

Solanum amorimii S.Knapp & Giacomin sp. nov. Figures 1A, B, 2

Diagnosis.

Like Solanum restingae S.Knapp but differing in smaller flowers with narrowly deltate to long-triangular calyx lobes, unwinged stems and usually somewhat auriculate leaves.

Type.

Brazil. Bahia: Mun. Tancredo Neves, Estrada para os distritos de Água Branca e Julião, ca. 14. 1 km de Tancredo Neves, 554 m, 13°26'36"S, 39°30'40"W, 12 Sep 2005 (fl), A.M. Amorim, J. Jardim, J. Paixåo, S. Sant’Ana & E. dos Santos 5210 (holotype: CEPEC [CEPEC-110253]; isotypes: BHCB [BHCB002643, BHCB019062]).

Description.

Shrub to small treelet 0.5-3 m tall; young stems terete, glabrous or minutely puberulent with simple uniseriate trichomes to 0.5 mm long; new growth glabrous; bark of older stems smooth, greenish brown. Sympodial units difoliate, geminate; leaves of a pair not differing in shape. Leaves simple, the major leaves 8-10(-15) cm long, 2-3(-5) cm wide, elliptic to obovate, usually widest near the middle or in the distal half, glabrous on both surfaces, fleshy in texture; primary veins 8 pairs, usually paler than the lamina; base sessile and more or less auriculate; margins entire; apex attenuate; petiole absent or <0.1 cm long; minor leaves 3-5 cm long, 1-2 cm wide, differing from the majors only in size. Inflorescence 0.1-0.3 cm long, opposite the leaves, unbranched, with 4-7 flowers, glabrous; peduncle <0.1 cm long; pedicels ca. 0.8 cm long, 0.5 mm in diameter at the base and apex, filiform, nodding at anthesis, glabrous, articulated at the base; pedicel scars tightly packed and almost overlapping. Buds ellipsoid to rounded, the corolla exserted ca. halfway from the calyx tube just before anthesis. Flowers 5-merous, perfect. Calyx tube 1.5-2 mm long, conical, the lobes 2-3 mm long, ca. 1 mm wide, narrowly deltate to long-triangular with a 1-1.5 mm long projection that in live plants is a fleshy knob, glabrous. Corolla 0.8-1 cm in diameter, white, stellate, lobed ½ to 2/3 of the way to the base, the lobes ca. 0.4 cm long, 0.2 cm wide, planar at anthesis, minutely puberlent at the tips and along margins. Stamens 3-4 mm long; filament tube ca. 0.5 mm long, the free portion of the filaments <0.5 mm long, glabrous; anthers 2.5-3.5 mm long, ca. 1 mm wide, ellipsoid, yellow, poricidal at the tips, the pores elongating to longitudinal slits with age. Ovary glabrous; style 4-5 mm long, glabrous; stigma minutely capitate, the surface minutely papillose. Fruit a globose or depressed globose berry, ca. 1 cm in diameter, green or pale whitish green, glabrous, the pericarp thick, not markedly shiny; fruiting pedicels ca. 1.5 cm long, ca. 3 mm in diameter at the apex, woody, deflexed; calyx lobes in fruit persistent and slightly elongating, occasionally breaking off but always with> 1 mm remnants. Seeds ca. 30 per berry, not known from mature fruit.

Distribution.

Endemic to eastern Brazil in the states of Minas Gerais and Bahia, known from northernmost Minas Gerais and southern Bahia (Figure 3).

Ecology.

Solanum amorimii is found in the understory of wet Atlantic forests (Floresta Ombrófila Densa, Mata Atlântica; IBGE 2012) from 50-1000 m, most commonly found at around 500-900 m elevation in very preserved sites.

Phenology.

Flowering specimens have been collected from July to October but appears to peak in August; fruiting specimens have been collected from September to April.

Etymology.

The species epithet honours André M. Amorim, curator of the herbarium at CEPEC in Ilhéus, Bahia, and collector of the type specimen, whose knowledge of the flora of Bahia has helped many botanists in the region and beyond.

Preliminary conservation status ( IUCN 2014).

Near-threatened (NT) B1, 2a, b (ii, iii); EOO 20,663 km2 (NT); AOO 40 km2 (EN). Although the large extent of occurrence (> 20,000 km2) places Solanum amorimii out of the vulnerable category, the small number of locations (5-10) and the fragmentation of its forest habitat mean it is of some conservation concern. Populations occur within several private protected areas (in Minas Gerais the only population is within a private reserve) so the species is afforded some protection. On the other hand, the known collections suggest the species is restricted to pristine sites, which are becoming increasingly rare. As with all Geminata species, it is possible that more populations remain to be collected; these plants are inconspicuous in the deep forest understory and usually occur in small, sparsely distributed populations.

Notes.

Solanum amorimii is morphologically very similar to the sympatric Solanum restingae , but can be distinguished by its much smaller flowers with long-triangular calyx lobes and by its unwinged stem. Both species grow in the understory of mostly undisturbed forests and can be small shrubs or treelets. Solanum restingae has markedly cucullate corolla lobes, and the calyx lobes are so small as to be almost non-existent, especially in fruit. Bud shape also differs between the two species, with those of Solanum amorimii being globose to somewhat ellipsoid and those of Solanum restingae more elongate with a distinct “nipple” from the cucullate corolla tips. In fruit the two species can be difficult to distinguish, but the winged stems of Solanum restingae and the presence of calyx lobes in Solanum amorimii should enable identification.

Leaves of Solanum amorimii are usually somewhat auriculate at the base, with the base not surrounding the stem but enlarged to a very short petiole. Plants grow in forest understory, sometimes in open places such as treefall gaps. From overall morphology this species would belong to the Solanum arboreum species group of Knapp (2002a), but its relationships have not been tested using molecular sequences.

Specimens examined.

BRAZIL. Bahia: Mun. Arataca, RPPN Caminho das Pedras, Serra do Peito-de-Moça, entrada a 9.5 km no Assent. Santo Antonio, mais 8.9 km ate a sede da RPPN, trilha de acesso ao topo da serra, após a Mormaço, 15°10'27"S, 38°20'22"W, 900-936 m, 26 Nov 2006 (fr), A.M. Amorim et al. 6608 (CEPEC); Mun. Arataca, Serra do Peito-de Moça, estrada que liga Arataca a Una, ramal ca 22.4 km de Arataca com entrada do Assentiamento Santo Antonio, RPPN Caminho das Pedras, 15°10'25"S, 39°20'30"W, 1000 m, 20 Jan 2007 (fr), A.M. Amorim et al. 6730 (CEPEC); Mun. Arataca, Serra do Peito-de Moça, RPPN do IESB, rodovia Arataca/Una, entrada a 9.5 km de cidade, mais 8.9 km de entrada, trilha do mormaço, 15°10'27"S, 39°20'22"W, 700-900 m, 12 Aug 2009 (fl), L. Daneu et al. 81 (CEPEC); Mun. Arataca, Serra Novo Javi, RPPN do IESB, rodovia Arataca/Una, entrada a 9.5 km N, mais 8.9 km até a sede da RPPN, trilha da Serra, acesso ca. 1.5 km NE da sede, Topo da Serra, 15°10'42"S, 39°20'09"W, 12 Sep 2009 (fl), L. Daneu et al. 96 (CEPEC); Mun. Arataca, Serra Novo Javi, RPPN do IESB, rod. Una/Arataca, entrada 9.5 km N, mais 8.9 km até a sede da RPPN, trilha da serra, acesso ca. 1.5 km NE da sede, topo da serra, 15°10'42"S, 39°20'09"W, 759 m, 12 Sep 2009 (fl), L. Daneu et al. 121 (CEPEC); Mun. Camacan, RPPN Serra Bonita, trilha da pousada, 15°23'26"S, 39°33'55"W, 835-1000 m, 25 Aug 2007 (fl), F.M. Ferreira et al. 1326 (CEPEC); Mun. Arataca, Serra do Peito-de Moça, Serra do Peito-de Moça-Serra das Lontras, estrada Arataca-Una, ramal 22.4 km de Arataca, assentamento Sto. Antonio, RPPN Caminho das Pedras, 15°10'25"S, 39°20'30"W, 1000 m, 23 Sep 2007 (fl), F.M. Ferreira et al. 1452 (CEPEC); Reserva Pratigi, 28 km de Itamarati, 6 km no ramal a direita, sentido Gandu, 13°53'52"S, 39°27'26"W, 670 m, 22 Oct 2007 (fl), F.M. Ferreira et al. 1563 (CEPEC); Mun. Uruçuca, estrada de Itacaré para Serra grande, pouco após km 43, ramal à direta após acesso para a cachoeira do Tijuipe, área explorada do plano de manejo, 14°23'12"S, 39°04'45"W, 4 Apr 2004 (fr), P. Fiaschi et al. 2249 (CEPEC); Mun. Arataca, Serra Novo Javi, RPPN do IESB, Rod. Una/Arataca, entrada 9.5 km N, mais 8.9 km até a sede da RPPN, trilha da Serra acesso ca. 1.5 km NE do sede, Topo da Serra, 15°10'42"S, 39°20'09"W, 759 m, 12 Oct 2008 (fr), J.G. Jardim et al. 5408 (CEPEC); Mun. Una, Rodovia BA-265, a 23 km de Una, 50-75 m, 26 Feb 1978 (fr), S.A. Mori et al. 9299 (CEPEC, MO, NY); Mun. Almadina, Serra do Concavado, Rod. Almadina/Coaraci, ca. 5 km, 14°42'13"S, 39°36'09"W, 300 m, 19 Mar 2006 (fr), J.L. Paixão et al. 838 (CEPEC);. Mun. Wenceslau Guimarães, ca. 3 km W of Nova Esperança, W edge of Reserva Wenceslau Guimarães, 13°36' S, 39°43' W, 500-600 m, 14 May 1992 (fr), W.W. Thomas et al. 9244 (CEPEC, MO, NY, RB); Mun. Camacan, RPPN Serra Bonita, 9.6 km NNW of Camacan on road to Jacaraci and Jussari, then 6 km up road to Serra Bonita, 820 m, 21 Sep 2004 (fr), W.W. Thomas et al. 14224 (NY). Minas Gerais: Mun. Santa Maria do Salto, Distrito de Talismã, RPPN Loredano Aleixo (Fazenda Duas Barras), 16°24'01"S, 40°03'24"W, 873 m, 31 Oct 2013 (fl, fr), L.L. Giacomin et al. 1962 (BHCB, BM, UT); Mun. Santa Maria do Salto, RPPN Duas Barras, ca. 27 km do distrito de Talismã, trilha em direçåo a divisa com a Bahia, 16°14'56"S, 40°08'58"W, 8 Sep 2008 (fl), R.P. Oliveira et al. 1636 (HUEFS).