Syzygium stelechanthoides (Kaneh.) M. Tornabene & W.L. Wagner, 2013

Tornabene, Michael W. & Wagner, Warren L., 2013, New combinations for Pacific endemic species: Marquesan Poaceae, and Micronesian Myrtaceae, PhytoKeys 28, pp. 1-7 : 4

1. Syzygium stelechanthoides (Kaneh.) M. Tornabene & W.L. Wagner comb. nov.

Eugenia stelechanthoides (Basionym) Kaneh. Bot. Mag. (Tokyo). 46: 669. 1932. Jambosa stelechanthoides (Kaneh.) Hosok. J. Jap. Bot. 16: 544. 1940. Type. CAROLINE ISLANDS: Kosrae: In a Horsfieldia forest at the middle altitudes on Mt. Matante, 29 Jul 1933, T. Hosokawa 6219 (Holotype: TAI).

Distribution.

Caroline Islands, known only from the island of Kosrae.

Note.

In the recently published World Checklist of Myrtaceae , Eugenia stelechanthoides Kaneh. was placed into synonymy with Syzygium stelechantha (Diels) Glassman. In his original publication, Kanehira acknowledges the close relationship of the two species, but also notes two major differences that correlate with distribution. Specimens from Kosrae ( Syzygium stelechanthoides ) have much larger leaves, as well as winged branchlets, while the specimens from Pohnpei ( Syzygium stelechantha ) do not. Upon examination of specimens of both species from Pohnpei, and Kosrae, as well as additional islands in the Caroline archipelago at US, only specimens from Kosrae exhibited the characteristics of Syzygium stelechanthoides described by Kanehira. Therefore, until a more in depth study can be performed on the Syzygium of the area, we find it best to maintain Syzygium stelechanthoides as a separate species.