Trymatococcus amazonicus Poepp. & Endl.

  • Authority

    Berg, Cornelius C. 2001. Moreae, Artocarpeae, and (Moraceae): With introductions to the family and and with additions and corrections to Flora Neotropica Monograph 7. Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 83: 1-346. (Published by NYBG Press)

  • Family

    Moraceae

  • Scientific Name

    Trymatococcus amazonicus Poepp. & Endl.

  • Synonyms

    Trymatococcus paraensis Ducke

  • Description

    Species Description - Revised description: Tree, to 15 m tall, or shrub. Leafy twigs 1-5 mm thick, yellowish to dark brown, appressed-puberulous to hirtellous to (sub) velutinous, usually some of the hairs uncinate. Lamina (elliptic to) oblong to subobovate, (2-)7-22(-36) × (1.5-)3-8(-11) cm, not or slightly inequilateral, chartaceous to coriaceous; apex (acute to) acuminate to caudate; base acute to rounded (to subcordate); margin entire, plane to revolute; upper surface glabrous except for the midrib, sometimes ± bullate; lower surface sparsely to densely appressed-puberulous to hirtellous on the veins; lateral veins 5-13 pairs; tertiary venation partly scalariform, the smaller veins plane to prominent beneath; petiole (0.3-)0.6-2(-2.5) cm long, usually with uncinate hairs; stipules 0.3-0.8 cm long, appressed-pubescent, caducous. Inflorescences: peduncle 0.3-0.7(-l .5) cm long, brown-puberulous to (sub)velutinous, often with uncinate hairs; receptacle turbinate to almost fungiform, and 0.4-1 cm diam., brown short-velutinous, with or without uncinate hairs; staminate flowers several to many; perianth 1-1.5 mm long, 3-lobed to -parted, puberulous, sometimes with uncinate hairs; stamens 3 (-2); filaments 0.5-1.5 mm long; anthers 0.2-0.6 × 0.2-0.8 mm; style 3-5 mm long; stigmas 3-7 mm long; bracts ovate to suborbiculate, basally attached or subpeltate, puberulous. Infructescences (sub)globose, 1.5-3.5 cm diam., crowned with the (remnants of the) staminate flowers and usually covered with sparse or short hairs and sparse to dense longer uncinate hairs, greenish or brownish.

  • Discussion

    Trymatococcus amazonicus is a very variable species with regard to the dimensions, shape, texture and venation of the lamina, in the denseness and the color of the indumentum, varying from pale yellow to dark rusty-brown, and in the shape of the inflorescences and in the size of the fruiting receptacle. Most of the material west of the Rio Negro (Brazil-Venezuela) has laminas with pale yellow, rather sparse and ± appressed hairs and plane smaller veins beneath. East of the Rio Negro material usually has laminas with prominent smaller veins and denser and patent hairs on the lamina beneath. The indumentum is usually darker, varying to dark rusty-brown, and the lamina is usually thicker (to coriaceous and then often more or less bullate above). In this eastern part of the range of distribution- Venezuela (Amazonas and Bolívar) and Brazil (northwestern Amazonas and Roraima)- the leaves are relatively large (longer than 10 cm) and the fruiting receptacles relatively large (to 3.5 cm diam.). More to the east, in the Guianas, Brazil (Amapá and northern Pará), the leaves tend to be smaller (to 10 cm long) and the fruiting receptacle to 1.5 cm diam.; the indumentum is mostly ± dark brown and the lamina is mostly thick and ± bullate above and with a ± revolute margin. The fact that in the monograph juvenile specimens of the entity recognized as T. paraensis (with larger leaves than adult ones) have been referred to T. amazonicus is an indication of the weakness of differentiating characters. The three morphological entities circumscribed-the "typical" western form, the form of the central part of the range, including the type of I turbinatus, and the eastern form, including the type of T. paraensis-are connected with intermediates; it seems unjustified to recognize them formally, not even at the subspecies level. The infructescences, which often remain greenish, can adhere to most surfaces by the uncinate hairs (Daly et al. 5653), and may contribute to exozoochorous dispersal.

  • Distribution

    In the Amazon Basin, mainly its northern part, westwards to Ecuador, extending to the Guayana part of Venezuela (Bolívar) and through northern Pará to the Guianas; in non-inundated or in periodically inundated (varzea, tahuampa) forest; at low elevations.

    Acre Brazil South America| Amapá Brazil South America| Amazonas Brazil South America| Pará Brazil South America| Rondônia Brazil South America| Roraima Brazil South America| Amazonas Colombia South America| Caquetá Colombia South America| Napo Ecuador South America| Sucumbíos Ecuador South America| Saül French Guiana South America| Upper Demerara-Berbice Guyana South America| Loreto Peru South America| San Martín Peru South America| Amazonas Venezuela South America| Bolívar Venezuela South America|