Lepidocupania Buerki, Callm., Munzinger & Lowry, 2020

Buerki, Sven, Munzinger, Jérôme, Lowry Ii, Porter P. & Callmander, Martin W., 2020, Two new genera of Sapindaceae (Cupanieae) from the southern Pacific: Lepidocupania and Neoarytera, Candollea 75 (2), pp. 269-284 : 273-274

Lepidocupania Buerki, Callm., Munzinger & Lowry , gen. nov. ( Fig. 3A–C ).

Type: Lepidocupania lepidota (Radlk.) Buerki, Callm., Munzinger & Lowry (≡ Arytera lepidota Radlk. ).

= Cupaniopsis sect. Mizopetalum Radlk. in Sitzungsber. Math.-Phys. Cl. Königl. Bayer. Akad. Wiss. München 9: 588. 1879.

Type: Cupaniopsis fruticosa Radlk. (≡ Lepidocupania fruticosa (Radlk.) Buerki, Callm., Munzinger & Lowry ) (lectotype designated by ADEMA, 1991: 60).

= Arytera sect. Azarytera Radlk. in Sitzungsber. Math.- Phys. Cl. Königl. Bayer. Akad. Wiss. München 9: 554. 1879.

Type: Arytera arcuata Radlk. (≡ Lepidocupania arcuata (Radlk.) Buerki, Callm., Munzinger & Lowry ) (lectotype designated by TURNER, 1995: 151).

Trees or shrubs. Indument of short, straight, patent or appressed trichomes; glandular scales present on vegetative parts, inflorescence axes, pedicels, abaxial surface of calyx, pistil, and fruits; buds “varnished”. Leaves alternate, 1– 12-jugate; leaflets opposite to alternate, subsessile to petiolulate, margin entire to coarsely dentate. Inflorescences axillary or pseudo-terminal. Flowers zygomorphic or actinomorphic (in L. arcuata , L. brackenridgei , L. gracilipes , and L. lepidota ), functionally unisexual; sepals (4 –)5(– 6), free and imbricate or united (in L. arcuata , L. brackenridgei , L. gracilipes , and L. lepidota ) to form a dentate calyx cup; petals 5 (4 in L. glomeriflora ), with 2 distinct scales; disc lobed or not (in L. arcuata , L. brackenridgei , L. gracilipes , and L. lepidota ), rim glabrous to pilose; stamens (6–)8–9, anthers basifixed; ovary 2–3-locular. Fruit a capsule, with 2–3 well developed lobes, rarely 1 (in L. concolor , L. guillauminii , and L. samoensis ), dehiscence loculicidal, glabrous to puberulous and rugose to verrucose outside, glabrous to pilose inside; seed ellipsoid or ovoid to globose, sarcotesta covering half to all of the seed, flesh-membranaceous.

Distribution. – Lepidocupania comprises 21 species occurring in the Caroline Islands, Fiji, New Caledonia, Samoa, the Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu ( Fig. 4 ).

Notes. – Lepidocupania shares the presence of lepidote scales on its vegetative and reproductive organs with Lepiderema . However, Lepidocupania can easily be distinguished from Lepiderema by the presence (vs. absence) of petal and ovary scales, and it differs from Cupaniopsis by the presence (vs. absence) of glandular scales on its vegetative and fertile organs.

Figures

Fig. 3. – A. Lepidocupania glomeriflora (Radlk.) Buerki, Callm., Munzinger & Lowry (New Caledonia); B. Lepidocupania brackenridgei (A. Gray) Buerki, Callm., Munzinger & Lowry (Vanua Levu, Fiji); C. Lepidocupania lepidota (Radlk.) Buerki, Callm., Munzinger & Lowry (New Caledonia); D. Neoarytera collina (Pancher & Sebert) Callm., Buerki, Munzinger & Lowry (New Caledonia); E. Neoarytera neoebudensis (Guillaumin) Callm., Buerki, Munzinger & Lowry (New Caledonia); F. Neoarytera chartacea (Radlk.) Callm., Buerki, Munzinger & Lowry (New Caledonia). [A: Callmander et 788; B: Munzinger 379; C: Munzinger 7700; D: Munzinger 7395; E: Munzinger 7404; F: Hequet 3525] [Photos: A–B, D– E: P. Lowry; C: J. Munzinger; F: V. Hequet]

Fig. 4. – Distribution map of Lepidocupania Buerki, Callm., Munzinger & Lowry (black line) and Neoarytera Callm., Buerki, Munzinger & Lowry (white line) in the southern Pacific. [Oceania Region Map by Vemaps.com]