Licania palcazuensis Prance, 2014

Prance, Ghillean T., 2014, Three new species of Licania (Chrysobalanaceae) from Peru, PhytoKeys 42, pp. 1-10 : 2

Licania palcazuensis Prance sp. nov. Figs 1, 2

Ab omnibus speciebus Licaniae inflorescentibus multi-ramificantibus, pseudopedicellis 1-3 floribus instructis, pilis bracteolium glandulosis differt.

Description.

Tree to 25 m tall, young branches sparsely tomentellous, conspicuously lenticellate with age. Leaves with small triangular to linear stipules to 1.0 mm long, early caducous; petioles 4-7 mm long, terete, rugose, sparsely tomentellous; lamina oblong to oblong-lanceolate, subcoriaceous, 4-8.5 × 1.5-3 cm, cuneate at base, acuminate at apex, the acumen 4-8 mm long, glabrous above, densely rufous lanate-tomentose beneath, with scattered palisade glands mainly near to midrib; midrib plane above, prominent beneath; veins 10-12 pairs, plane above, prominulous beneath. Inflorescence terminal and axillary much-branched panicles with many short branches bearing 1-3 flowers, the rachis and branches rufous-brown tomentose. Bracts and bracteoles membraneous, triangular-acute, c 1 mm long, borne at base and on pseudopedicels, the ciliate margins with glandular hairs; pedicels 0-5 mm long, flowers articulate just below receptacle base where upper bracteoles are borne 2-7 mm below articulations. Receptacle campanulate, rufous-tomentose on exterior. Flowers seen only in young fruiting condition; calyx lobes 5, markedly triangular, tomentose on exterior, interior glabrous towards base, tomentellous towards apex. Petals triangular, margins ciliate. Stamens 12-14, inserted around complete circle, slightly exceeding calyx lobes in length. Style basal; ovary of young developing fruit densely rufous-tomentose becoming less so with age, unilocular with 2 ovules. Mature fruit not seen.

Peru. Pasco: Oxapampa, Palcazu District, Parque Nacional Yanachaga-Chemillén, Cerro Panjil-Ozuz, Permanent plot tree 24, 10°10'S, 75°10'W, 850 m, 12 May 2005, A Monteagudo, A Peña, R. Francis et al. 8250 (holotype, K; isotypes, AMAZ, HUT, MO, MOL, USM).

Additional material seen.

Same locality, Tree 347, 10 June 2005, 15 May 2005, A. Monteagudo, A Peña, R. Francis et al. 8585 (AMAZ, HUT, K, MO, MOL, USM), Tree 171, 15 May 2005, A. Monteagudo, A Peña, R. Francis et al. 8418 (K, MO USM).

Differs from all other species of Licania in the inflorescence branching with pseudopedicels bearing one or several flowers that articulate from it, and the bracteoles have marginal hairs that terminate in tiny glands. This species belongs to subgenus Moquilea on account of the number of exserted stamens and the presence of petals, but the inflorescence distinguishes it from all the other species of the subgenus. The field notes mention that the flowers are white and that the fruit has yellow spots.