Schizanthus laetus Phil., Fl. Atacam.: 45. 1860

Morales-Fierro, Vanezza, Munoz-Schick, Melica & Moreira-Munoz, Andres, 2020, Synopsis of Schizanthus Ruiz & Pav. (Solanaceae), a genus endemic to the southern Andes, PhytoKeys 154, pp. 57-102 : 57

6. Schizanthus laetus Phil., Fl. Atacam.: 45. 1860 Fig. 3E-H

Schizanthus fallax I.M.Johnst., Contr. Gray Herb. 85: 160. 1929.

Type.

Chile. Antofagasta: Cachinal, R.A. Philippi s.n. (lectotype designated by Grau and Gronbach 1984, pg. 146 [as type]: SGO! [SGO000004526 acc. #055389]).

Taxonomic notes.

Johnston (1929) characterised S. fallax as representing the northern-most distribution of the genus and having the upper lateral lobes of the corolla larger and not deeply lobed as in S. laetus . Grau and Gronbach (1984: 146) considered the characters of S. fallax as part of the variability and their broad concept of S. laetus , citing the name by Johnston (1929) as a synonym. We have revised the type material of S. fallax through Global Plants JSTOR (https://plants.jstor.org/) (Chile. Antofagasta: Tocopilla, steep hillside ca. 6 km. north of port and about opposite Caleta Duendes, 18 Oct 1925, I.M. Johnston 3626 (holotype: GH! [00077406]; isotypes: F! [F0073042F acc. #625799], K! [K000585355, photo at IND! [IND-0107172]], S! [acc. #S04-3140], US! [00028096 acc. #1473978]). Some of these specimens suggest that S. fallax may represent a distinct species, but we do not have access to additional material and prefer to maintain the synonymy pending further study.

Key characters.

Flowers dark violet or paler, upper middle lobe without a distinctive yellow area, but white and dotted with dark spots at the base. Lower lip of the corolla of similar length as the upper lip.

Distribution.

Endemic to Chile, in the coast of the Regions of Tarapacá (Province of Iquique, 20°40' lat. S) and Antofagasta (Province of Antofagasta, 26°0' lat. S). 20-900 m a.s.l.

Habitat.

Schizanthus laetus grows in the fog (camanchaca) zone, on steep hillsides, in watercourse and alluvial fans; between rocks and in sandy and gravel soil (coarse sand). Within these places, it prefers wet areas with organic material. Forms part of Lomas vegetation where it can be associated with Echinopsis deserticola (Werderm.) H.Friedrich and G.D.Rowley ( Cactaceae ) and Euphorbia lactiflua Phil. ( Euphorbiaceae ).

Conservation.

Chile. Antofagasta: Paposo Norte Natural Monument, Pan de Azúcar National Park ( Rundel et al. 1996).

Selected specimens examined.

Chile. Tarapacá: [Iquique Province] Camino Iquique a Patillos, cumbres de los cerros frente al km 22, 17 Oct 1965, M. Ricardi, C. Marticorena & O. Matthei 1343 (CONC); Alto Punta Lobos, 21°2'S, 70°9'W, 430 m a.s.l., 1 Nov 1997, R. Pinto s.n. (SGO); Antofagasta: [Tocopilla Province] Tocopilla, steep hillside ca. 6 km north of port and approximately opposite Caleta Duendes, 18 Oct 1925, I.M. Johnston 3626 (F, GH, IND, K, US); 1 km al N de la Planta Mantos de La Luna, a lo largo de la ruta costanera, ca. 5 km al N de caleta Buena, 22°22'27"S, 70°13'73"W, 150-300 m a.s.l., 18 Oct 2002, J.V. Schneider & M.L. Huertas 2851 (CONC); Cobija, Quebrada Aguada Cañas, 500-800 m a.s.l., 4 Dec 1949, W. Biese 3080 (SGO); [Antofagasta Province] Quebrada de Miguel Díaz, en Punta Miguel Díaz, suelo arenoso, ca. 350 m a.s.l., 12 Oct 1941, E. Pisano & R. Bravo 453 (CONC); Quebrada Miguel Díaz, en Punta Miguel Díaz, 350 m a.s.l., 12 Oct 1941, E. Pisano & R. Bravo 453 (SGO); Quebrada Guanillo (10 km al N del Cachinal de la costa), 50-500 m a.s.l., 14 Dec 1949, W. Biese 3303 (SGO); Paposo, entrada a la Qda. Los Peralitos, 25°1'57"S, 70°26'30.3"W, 490 m a.s.l., 30 Sep 2005, M. Muñoz 4606 (SGO).

Figures

Figure 3. A distribution of Schizanthus alpestris B examples of S. alpestris in Cuesta Pajonales C Cordillera El Melon D Las Chinchillas National Reserve E distribution of Schizanthus laetus F examples of S. laetus in Quebrada Los Yales G Quebrada Peralito H Taltal I distribution of Schizanthus pinnatus J illustration of S. pinnatus published with the description of the species (Ruiz and Pavon 1798) K examples of S. pinnatus on road from Los Angeles to Antuco L Cerro Poqui. Photos by A Moreira-Munoz (B-D), M. T. Eyzaguirre (F, G, L), M. Aldunate (H), S. Moreira (K).