Ceratozamia rosea Pérez-Farr., Gut.Ortega & Vovides, 2023

González, José García, Pérez-Farrera, Miguel Á., Gutiérrez-Ortega, José Said, Vovides, Andrew P. & Jimenez, Pedro Díaz, 2023, Ceratozamia rosea (Zamiaceae): A new species from the Northern Mountains of Chiapas, Mexico, Phytotaxa 595 (1), pp. 73-88 : 79-84

Ceratozamia rosea Pérez-Farr., Gut.Ortega & Vovides sp. nov. ( Figs. 6–11 ).

Holotype: — MEXICO. Chiapas, Camino a Salto de Agua, Tila , Montañas del Norte , 5 May 2022, García-González J. & José Pérez A.F. 832, ♁ (holotype HEM!, isotypes CHIP!, XAL!)

Ceratozamia rosea is distinguished from all other species in the genus by having Mexican pink (purplish-pink) emerging leaves, arched mature leaves, reddish leaflet articulations on the adaxial side, thin and elongated trunk when mature, erect light yellow to green male and female cones, and male cone with reddish tomentum.

Plant rupicolous, unbranched, stem short or thin and elongated, becoming cylindrical, erect, decumbent with age, 12.5–23 cm tall, 10–14 cm in diameter, covered with persistent leaf bases. Cataphylls persistent, brown and densely tomentose at emergence, triangular, apex acuminate. Leaves pinnate, 5–15 per crown, forming an open crown, erect, ascending when young, descending with age, 102–231.5 cm long, 49.5–73 cm wide, Mexican pink, pruinose at emergence, circinate vernation, maturing olive green. Eophylls with two leaflets (one pair). Petiole terete, 48–118 cm long, armed with thin prickles. Rachis pink when immature, green when mature, terete, 52.5–117 cm long, erect, with sparse prickles diminishing into the distal end of the rachis. Leaflets 11–45 pairs, linear, long oblanceolate or rarely oblong, coriaceous, basally alternate, medially subopposite to alternate, apically opposite to subopposite, basally and medially subfalcate, margin entire; apex acute to acuminate, asymmetric; base broad attenuate, articulation reddish abaxially and light yellow to light green adaxially, 0.8–1.4 cm wide; veins 25–34, parallel, inconspicuous; median leaflets 25–39 cm long, 4–6.5 cm wide, 3.7–8.6 cm between leaflets. Microstrobilus solitary, conical, erect, base green and trichomes reddish when mature, 14.5–19.3 cm long, 2.3–2.8 cm diameter, peduncle densely tomentose, reddish, 4.2–5.2 cm long, 0.85–1.03 cm diameter. Microsporophyll cuneiform, 8.42–9.43 mm long, 7.01–7.86 mm wide, distal face bicornate, with reddish color at the center, sporangia zone on abaxial surface 3.83–4.42 mm long, microsporangia grouped in 3–4 per sorus. Megastrobilus solitary, cylindrical, erect, 9.2–19.5 cm long, 5.9–6.3 cm diameter; apex apiculate, green base color and reddish pubescent at maturity, peduncle densely tomentose, short, reddish, 3.7–6.9 cm long, 1.01–1.56 cm in diameter. Megasporophylls peltate, bicornate, 2.5–3.7 cm wide, 0.9–1.5 cm tall, distal face pubescent reddish when mature, with several ridges between the two horns at the center, which fades to reddish in the margins. Seed ovoid, sarcotesta cream-colored when immature and beige when mature, 20.7–22.5 mm long, 17.3–19 mm wide with micropylar ridges.

Habitat: — Ceratozamia rosea is found in tropical rainforest, according to the classification of Breedlove (1981). It grows between 400–600 m a.s.l. with Bursera simaruba (Linnaeus) Sargent (1890: 260) , Inga sp. , Clusia guatemalensis Hemsley (1878: 2–3) , Lonchocarpus sp. , Ficus sp. , Cedrela odorata Linnaeus.(1759: 940) , Dendropanax sp. , Ceiba pentandra (Linnaeus) Gaertner (1791: 244) , Orepanax sp., Heliocarpus donnellsmithii Rose (1901:110) , Astrocaryum mexicanum Liebmann ex Martius (1853: 323) , Sabal mauritiiformis (Karsten) Grisebach & Wendland (1864: 514) , and hemiepiphytes such as Monstera acuminata K. Koch (1855: 4) , Philodendron sp. , Syngonium sp. The following plants occur in the shrub stratum: Piper sp. , Chamaedorea ernesti-augusti Wendland (in Otto & Dietrich, 1852: 73–74), Eugenia sp. , Chamaedorea tepejilote Liebmann (in Martius 1849: 308), Bactris major Jacquin (1781: 134) , Chamaedorea oblongata Martius (1838: 160) , Ardisia sp. , and Psychotria sp. The following are found in the herbaceous stratum: Spathiphyllum sp. , Zamia splendens Schutzman (1984: 299) , Zamia lacandona Schutzman & Vovides (1998: 441–446) , and Thelypteris meniscioides (Liebmann) Reed (1968: 292) . Ceratozamia rosea grows in Luvisol and phaeozem soils (Ferrisquilla-Villafranca 1998; INEGI, 2010), generally on steep slopes of about 35°. The sedimentary outcrops in this area correspond to Paleogene, Neogene and Cretaceous marine strata ( INEGI 2010).

Etymology: — Ceratozamia rosea is named for its most distinguishable trait: the Mexican pink color of its emerging leaves, which is unique in the genus.

Uses: — Ceratozamia rosea is commonly known as “piña de monte ‘’ (forest pineapple) by the locals. According to their testimonies, it has a medicinal use. The healer collects plants and makes extracts of the trunk to prepare infusions, which are drunk by the patient to regulate menstruation periods. In another location nearby, the plants are used as talismans to choose the preferred sex of a child before birth. The parents must go to the field and search for a plant whose trunk resembles the male or female genitalia, which will help them to give birth to a boy or a girl, respectively. These practices, however, result in the death of adult plants, affecting the demography of the wild populations.

Distribution: — Currently, only three localities of C. rosea are known in the municipality of Tila, Chiapas, Mexico.

Conservation status: — GeoCAT ( Bachman et al. 2011) estimated that the polygon of the three localities occupy an extend of occurrence of 0.068 km 2 in an area of occupancy of 8 km 2. In each locality, the number of plants is low (less than 100 adult individuals) with low densities. Thus, the species must be considered Critically Endangered (CR) in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species ( IUCN 2023). Unfortunately, the region is also being converted to pasture for livestock or corn and coffee cultivation as in other species in the region (e.g., C. dominguezii in Uxpanapa, Oaxaca [ Pérez-Farrera et al. 2021b]). These practices are leading this species to the brink of extinction, and its conservation ex situ and in situ is urgent.. A ‘lifeboat’ approach by botanic gardens (see Marris 2006, Donaldson 2009) could save this species and others from becoming extinct.

Additional specimens examined: — MEXICO. Chiapas, Camino a Salto de Agua, municipality of Tila , Montañas del Norte , 11 June 2022, González-García J . & Molina Hernández U. 833 ♀ ( HEM!); Salto de Agua, Montañas del Norte, 2 October 2021, González-García J . & Molina Hernández U. 240, sex undetermined ( HEM!); Camino a Salto de Agua, municipality of Tila, Montañas del Norte, 15 October 2016, Pérez-Farrera M . A . 3471, sex undetermined ( HEM!); 15 May 2017, Pérez-Farrera M . A . 3560, sex undetermined (HEM!).

We provide a key to the species analyzed in this study plus the other members currently considered as part of the C. miqueliana species complex: C. euryphyllidia , C. hondurensis J.L. Haynes, Whitelock, Schutzman & R.S. Adams (2008: 16–21) and C. santillanii .

Figures

FIGURE 6. Ceratozamia rosea sp. nov. A. Mature leaf of an adult plant. B. Detail of rachis and leaflet articulations. C. Detail of base of petiole and prickles. D. Mature leaf of juvenile plant.

FIGURE 7. Stages of maturity of an adult leaf. A. Early emergence. B. Mid-emergence. C. Fully emerged leaf, with Mexican pink color beginning to turn green. Photos 7A, and 7B by Rory Antolak (used with permission).

FIGURE 8. Mature leaves of Ceratozamia rosea. A. Juvenile plant. B. Adult plants. C. Detail of leaflet articulations in adult plants.

FIGURE 9. Ceratozamia rosea plants can be found hanging from karst cliffs (A), growing among rocks (B) or in shallow soil (C).

FIGURE 10. Immature (A) and mature (B) megastrobili (seed cones) of Ceratozamia rosea.

FIGURE 11. Immature (A) and mature (B) microstrobili (pollen cones) of Ceratozamia rosea.