Ocotea spanantha van der Werff, 2013

Werff, Henk Van Der, 2013, A revision of the genus Ocotea Aubl. (Lauraceae) in Madagascar and the Comoro Islands, Adansonia (3) 35 (2), pp. 235-279 : 268

30. Ocotea spanantha van der Werff , sp. nov.

( Figs 11 , 13 )

Ocoteae ambrensi similis, sed foliis floribusque majoribus, inflorescentiis paucifloris recedit.

TYPUS. — Madagascar, Antsiranana, Réserve spéciale de Manongarivo , à l’est d’Ankaramibe Bekolosy , 14°03’05’’S, 48°17’07’’E, 700-900 m, XII.1993, fls, fr., Rakotomalala & Fernand 92, (holo-, MO [ 2299154 ] ; iso-, P [ P00713427 ]) .

PARATYPE. — Madagascar. Antsiranana, Ambilobe, Beramanja, Anketrabe , forêt de Kalabenono , 818 m, fr., Callmander, Vasaha & Malaza 562 ( MO) .

DISTRIBUTION. — This species is only known from the two collections listed above.

PHENOLOGY. — Flowers: December; fruits: November, December.

DESCRIPTION

Tree, 15 m. Twigs angular, minutely appressed pubescent, soon becoming glabrous; terminal buds densely appressed pubescent with a few persistent bracts at the base. Leaves 7-13 × 2.5-6 cm, elliptic, glabrous,firmly chartaceous, the base acute or obtuse, the apex bluntly acute, venation immersed on the upper surface, weakly raised on the lower surface, lower surface densely and minutely gland-dotted, lateral veins 5-7 on each side, domatia absent. Inflorescences along leafless short shoots, 2-7 cm long, with a few cymes basally, distally racemose; short shoots with pubescent, persistent bracts, these 3-6 mm long. Flowers 6-8 mm in diameter, tepals spreading at anthesis; tepals 2-3 mm long, sparsely pubescent outside, densely pubescent inside; stamens 9, all 4-celled, dorsally pubescent, the outer six 1 mm long, inner three 1.5 mm long, glands present at the base of the inner stamens; staminodia 3, stipitiform, pubescent; pistil glabrous, 2 mm long, with a short style; receptacle deep, glabrous inside. Fruit 2.5 × 2 cm, cupule deeply cup-shaped, 3 cm wide, 1.5 cm high, without remnants of tepals.

REMARKS

Ocotea spanantha sp. nov. shares with Ocotea ambrensis sp. nov. the presence of bracts along the leafless short shoots. It differs from that species in its larger leaves and flowers, in its few-flowered inflorescences and the entire margin of the cupule. The side branches of the inflorescences leave the main axis almost under a 90 degree angle in O. spanantha sp. nov., whereas these branches are ascending, under a sharp angle in O. ambrensis sp. nov. The widespread and variable O. racemosa has often also inflorescences along leafless short shoots, but in that species the somewhat persistent bracts below the terminal buds are lacking.

Figures

Fig. 11. Distribution of Ocotea malcomberi van der Werff (N), O. perforata Kosterm. (p), O. spanantha van der Werff (l) and O. thouvenotii (Danguy) Kosterm. (Ì).

FIG. 13. — Holotype of Ocotea spanantha van der Werff, sp. nov.