Lycianthes amatitlanensis (J.M.Coult. & Donn.Sm.) Bitter, Abh. Naturwiss. Verein Bremen 24 [preprint]: 441. 1919

Dean, Ellen, Poore, Jennifer, Anguiano-Constante, Marco Antonio, Nee, Michael H., Kang, Hannah, Starbuck, Thomas, Rodrigues, Annamarie & Conner, Matthew, 2020, The genus Lycianthes (Solanaceae, Capsiceae) in Mexico and Guatemala, PhytoKeys 168, pp. 1-333 : 1

2 Lycianthes amatitlanensis (J.M.Coult. & Donn.Sm.) Bitter, Abh. Naturwiss. Verein Bremen 24 [preprint]: 441. 1919 Fig. 8

Solanum amatitlanense J.M.Coult. & Donn.Sm., Bot. Gaz. 37: 420. 1904. Type: Guatemala. Alta Verapaz: Cubilqüitz [Cubilhuitz], [15.6675, -90.4293], 350 m, Feb 1903, H. von Tuerkheim 8488 (lectotype designated by Dean and Reyes 2018a, pg. 40: US [01269192]; isolectotypes: F [0073066F, acc. # 185826], M [M-0171813], NY [00138963, 00138964], US [01014253]).

Solanum sylvicola Brandegee, Univ. Calif. Publ. Bot. 6: 373. 1917. Type: Mexico. Chiapas: Finca Irlanda, Jun 1914, C. Purpus 7315 (holotype: UC [acc. # 173378]; isotypes: HBG [HBG-511491], M [M-0171815]).

Type.

Based on Solanum amatitlanense J.M.Coult. & Donn.Sm.

Description.

Perennial herb to shrub, 0.4-4 m tall. Indument of off-white, tan or purplish (reddish), uniseriate, multicellular, simple, acute, straight to curved, eglandular, spreading or ascending trichomes 0.5-3 mm long. Stems green when young, moderately to densely pubescent, somewhat compressed upon drying in a plant press, light brown and woody with age; upper sympodial branching points usually monochasial with a few dichasial branching points. Leaves simple, the leaves of the upper sympodia usually paired and unequal in size, the larger ones with blades 6.5-26 × 1.5-8.5 cm, ovate, elliptic, or obovate, the smaller ones with blades 0.3-4 (7) × 0.2-2 (3.5) cm, usually ovate, the leaf pairs similar in texture, chartaceous, sparsely to densely pubescent, the trichomes along the midvein of the abaxial side spreading (at a 90 degree angle) to ascending (at a 45 degree angle), the base cuneate (sometimes rounded in the smaller leaves), usually oblique, the margin entire, usually delicately undulate, the apex acute to acuminate, the petiole 0.1-1.5 cm long, sometimes absent, the large leaf blades with (7) 10-22 primary veins on each side of the midvein. Flowers solitary, axillary, oriented horizontally to nodding; peduncles usually absent, sometimes present as a 1-3 mm long peg with overlapping pedicel scars; pedicels 4-12 mm and arching in flower, 6-16 mm long and erect to arching in fruit, moderately to densely pubescent; calyx 1-2 mm long, 2-3 mm in diameter, obconic to narrowly campanulate, moderately pubescent, the margin truncate to undulate, with 5-10 narrow, linear, spreading to reflexed appendages 0.8-4 mm long emerging 0.25-0.5 mm below the calyx rim; fruiting calyx slightly enlarged, widely bowl-shaped to plate-shaped, 1-2.5 mm long, 3.5-6 mm in diameter, the appendages very narrow and weak, to 5 mm long, sometimes withering in age; corolla 0.5-0.8 cm long, campanulate to reflexed in orientation, stellate in outline, divided 1/2 to 2/3 of the way to the base, interpetalar tissue present, white to pale yellow, adaxial markings unknown, moderately pubescent on abaxial surface with tuft of trichomes on distal end of lobe; stamens equal, straight, the filaments 1-2 mm long, glabrous, the anthers 2.5-3 mm long, lanceolate, free of one another, yellowish, glabrous, attenuate and abruptly narrowed at the tip, the narrowed portion ca. 0.5 mm long, poricidal at the tip, the pores ovate, dehiscing distally, not opening into longitudinal slits; pistil with glabrous ovary, the style 4-6 mm long, linear, straight, glabrous, widened distally into the stigma, the stigma capitate, decurrent down two sides. Fruit a berry, 5-8 mm long, 5-8 mm in diameter, globose, orange to red at maturity, glabrous, lacking sclerotic granules. Seeds 25-80 per fruit, 0.9-1.1 × 0.75-1 mm, compressed but not flat, sometimes with one shallow ridge, semi-circular, depressed ovate, triangular, or rhombic in outline, orange, the surface reticulum with tight, shallow serpentine pattern with shallow luminae.

Chromosome number.

Unknown.

Distribution and habitat.

Southern Mexico (Chiapas, Tabasco, Veracruz), Guatemala (Alta Verapaz, Escuintla, Guatemala, Huehuetenango, Petén), south to Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, and possibly South America. Tall forest, tropical rain forest, tropical moist forest, wet premontane forest, and cloud forest, in shady canyons, slopes, drainages (often near rivers or streams), sometimes in disturbed areas or coffee plantations, sometimes on limestone, usually 100-1000 m in elevation, rarely up to 1800 m (Fig. 9 ).

Common names and uses.

Guatemala: Alta Verapaz: kaki saki maï (I. Kunkel 186, 398); same location: maï (I. Kunkel 211).

Phenology.

Flowering specimens have been collected March through November; fruiting specimens have been collected May through February. De Nevers (1986) documented the pollination of L. amatitlanensis in eastern Panama. He described the flowers as being pendulous, positioned below the leaves. Pollinators (halictid bees) were observed visiting the flowers early morning to late afternoon and at 1 a.m. at night. No floral scents, nectar, or diurnal movements were noted. The flowers on most herbarium specimens are open, indicating that if there are diurnal movements, the flowers close for a very short time or only at night.

Preliminary conservation status.

Lycianthes amatitlanensis is a widespread species ranging from eastern Mexico to Panama, represented by 48 collections and occurring in nine protected areas. The EOO is 687,839.069 km2, and the AOO is 192 km2. Following the IUCN (2019) criteria, the preliminary assessment category is Least Concern (LC).

Discussion.

Lycianthes amatitlanensis is a wide ranging species with small white to pale yellow flowers (pubescent on the abaxial side of the corolla lobes and with tufted trichomes at the lobe tips) and long, coarse trichomes that spread away from the midvein on the abaxial side of the leaf (usually with some trichomes at an angle close to ninety degrees). Lycianthes amatitlanensis is morphologically similar and perhaps closely related to three other species occurring in Mexico and/or Central America: L. glabripetala (endemic to Mexico); L. inconspicua (Central America); and L. inaequilatera (Rusby) Bitter (Costa Rica, Panama and South America). Lycianthes inconspicua differs from L. amatitlanensis in having longer pedicels (15-30 mm in flower and 30-35 mm in fruit), appressed trichomes along the midvein of the abaxial side of the leaf, and ovate anthers with a shorter attenuate portion at the tip (ca. 0.25 mm long). Lycianthes inaequilatera has pedicels of similar length to those of L. amatitlanensis , but it has short, soft, appressed trichomes along the midvein on the abaxial side of the leaf. The Mexican species Lycianthes glabripetala has larger, nearly glabrous corollas and appressed, wavy trichomes along the midvein on the abaxial side of the leaf blade; L. glabripetala does not overlap in distribution with L. amatitlanensis . Where the distribution of L. amatitlanensis overlaps with L. inconspicua and L. inaequilatera , L. amatitlanensis tends to occur at lower elevations than the other two species. Intermediates between L. inaequilatera and L. amatitlanensis occur in Costa Rica and Panama, and these two species may eventually be treated as a single entity. Lycianthes inaequilatera is a South American species, originally described from Bolivia that has not been reported further north than Costa Rica. Lycianthes amatitlanensis is a Mexican and Central American species, originally described from Guatemala but reported in South America. Further study is needed to understand the ranges and variation of the two species. If united, L. inaequilatera is the earlier and correct name.

Representative specimens examined.

Guatemala. Alta Verapaz: Cubilquitz [Cubilhuitz], [15.6675, -90.4293], 350 m, July 1907, H. von Tuerkheim 153 (US). Escuintla: Río Guacalate, 600 m, 16 Dec 1938, P.C. Standley 60200 (US). Guatemala: Barranca de Eminencia, 1400 ft, Feb 1892, J. Donnell Smith 1457 (US). Huehuetenango: between Ixcan and Finca San Rafael, Sierra des los Cuchumatanes, 200-800 m, 24 Jul 1942, J.A. Steyermark 49396, (NY). Izabal: Cerro San Gil, 15.6333, -88.8167, 803 m, 8 Feb 2012, M. Véliz 23523 (BIGU). Petén: La Cumbre, in zapotal, on parcela de José León, 3 km east, 14 Aug 1976, C.L. Lundell 20140 (LL). Mexico. Chiapas: Ejido Tres Picos, 16.2272, -93.5808, 1780 m, 19 Apr 2002, A. Reyes-García 4437 (MEXU). Tabasco: vicinity of Teapa, along road between Teapan and Tacotalpa, 3.1 m. E of Teapa along stream and limestone cliffs ca 1/4 mi S of Hwy, 17.55, -92.9833, 150 m, 19 Feb 1987, T.B. Croat 65349 (MO). Veracruz: Mpio. Jesús Carranza, lomas al S de Pob. 2 (ca. 3 km al S de entronque de terracería La Laguna-Sarabia con camino al N a Pob. 2), 17.2, -94.65, 150 m, 8 Jul 1988, T. Wendt 6064 (MO).

Figures

Figure 8. Image of herbarium specimen of L. amatitlanensis, Breedlove 55371 (MO). Specimen used with permission from the Missouri Botanical Garden (http: // www. tropicos. org).

Figure 9. Map of geographic distribution of L. amatitlanensis from Mexico to Honduras based on herbarium specimen data.