Stachytarpheta restingensis Moldenke (1959: 82)

Cardoso, Pedro Henrique, Valério, Vanessa Imaculada Dos Reis, Neto, Luiz Menini & Salimena, Fátima Regina Gonçalves, 2021, Verbenaceae in Espírito Santo, Brazil: richness, patterns of geographic distribution and conservation, Phytotaxa 484 (1), pp. 1-43 : 32

10.4. Stachytarpheta restingensis Moldenke (1959: 82) . (Fig. 3B)

Herbs 0.5‒0.7 m high, branches tetragonal, not winged, glabrous to puberulous. Leaves opposite, petiole 3‒9 mm long, blade 3.5‒7.6 × 1.2‒3.3 cm, chartaceous to subcoriaceous, ovate or obovate, apex acute, base attenuate, decurrent, margin entire near the base, serrate toward the apex, glabrous in both surfaces, occasionally sparsely strigose along the veins. Inflorescences 8.5‒33 cm long, lax; bracts 5.5‒6.3 mm long, lanceolate to oval-lanceolate, abaxial surface glabrous, margin ciliate; calyx 6‒6.4 mm long, immersed in the depressions of the rachis, 4-toothed, 1 sinus adaxial, externally glabrous, nectaries conspicuous; corolla 1.2‒1.3 cm long, lilac. Fruit ca. 5 mm long, surrounded by the persistent calyx.

Distribution and habitat:— Stachytarpheta restingensis is endemic to the restingas of the Rio de Janeiro and Espírito Santo ( Atkins 2005, Cardoso & Salimena 2020c). It was recorded inside a SPA of Espirito Santo state: Parque Estadual Paulo César Vinha.

Phenology:— Collected with flowers and fruits in February, March, May, June, July, October, and December.

Preliminary conservation assessment: — Stachytarpheta restingensis presents a restricted distribution and has small populations ( Atkins 2005). It has an EOO of approximately 25,000 km 2 and an AOO of 56 km 2. The restingas are severely degraded due to urban and touristic expansion ( Pereira 2007, Thomazi et al. 2013). According to IUCN (2019), S. restingensis should be classified as “Endangered” (EN) because of the restricted AOO, number of known locations, and declining habitat quality. However, it occurs inside PAs in Brazil and, therefore, we adopted a more conservative point of view and considered the species “Vulnerable” VU B2ab(i,ii,iii).

Selected material:— BRAZIL. Espírito Santo: Anchieta, 5 June 1997, fl. and fr., O . J . Pereira et al. 6000 ( CESJ, VIES); Aracruz , 26 July 1992, fl. and fr., O . J . Pereira et al. 3658 ( CESJ, VIES); Conceição da Barra , 20 May 1999, fl. and fr., G . Hatschbach et al. 69210 ( K); Guarapari, Parque Estadual Paulo César Vinha , 13 December 1994, fr., M . S . Cardoso 21 ( CESJ, VIES); Itapemirim , 23 October 2000, fl., G . Hatschbach et al. 71540 ( K, MBM, RB); Serra, Jacaraípe , 16 March 2007, fl. and fr., J . M .L. Gomes 3002 ( CESJ, VIES); Vitória , 23 July 1997, fr., A . M . Assis 335 ( VIES) .

Notes:— Stachytarpheta restingensis can be recognized by the ovate or obovate leaves, glabrous calyx and corolla longer than 1 cm. The majority of the specimens have glabrous leaf blade, but rarely present trichomes adpressed sparse along the veins. It is similar to S. schottiana , a species also restricted to the restingas, but can be differentiated by the ovate or obovate leaves; bracts exceeding the median portion of the calyx, and corolla longer than 1 cm (vs. elliptical leaves; bracts not exceeding the median portion of the calyx and corolla up to 1 cm long in S. schottiana ).

Illustrations in Atkins (2005).