Stephanopodium sessile Rizzini

  • Authority

    Prance, Ghillean T. 1972. Dichapetalaceae. Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 10: 1-84. (Published by NYBG Press)

  • Family

    Dichapetalaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Stephanopodium sessile Rizzini

  • Type

    TYPE. Pessoal do Horto Florestal R 20641, Guanabara, Rio de Janeiro, Horto Florestal, fl fr (holotype, RB 139381; isotype, R); Rizzini RB 66163, Guanabara, Rio de Janeiro, Horto Florestal, st (paratypes, NY, RB).

  • Description

    Description - Small tree, the young branches glabrescent. Leaves elliptic to oblong, coriaceous, 4.0-12.0 cm long, 1.5-5.5 cm broad, acute or bluntly acuminate at apex, cuneate and unequal at base, glabrous beneath; midrib slightly impressed to plane above, prominent and glabrous or with a few stiff appressed hairs beneath; primary veins 8-11 pairs, arcuate, anastomosing; petioles 4.0-7.0 mm long, canaliculate, sparsely puberulous--glabrescent. Stipules lanceolate, to 4.0 mm long, persistent, sparsely puberulous. Flowers hermaphrodite, borne in dense-flowered sessile glomerules inserted on petioles, sessile. Calyx 4.0-5.0 mm long, sparsely tomentellous on exterior, the lobes slightly unequal. Corolla of 5 equal slightly bifid lobes inserted on a long tube, the tube glabrous on both surfaces. Fertile stamens 5, alternating with corolla lobes, the anthers sessile, inserted at mouth of corolla tube. Ovary bilocular with 2 ovules in each loculus, tomentellous on exterior. Styles 2, glabrescent. Fruit not seen.

  • Discussion

    One sheet of this species at New York is labelled Curran RB 10586 which would make it an isotype of Tapura obovata (=S. blanchetianum). However, this sheet does not match the Curran material of the same number at Rio de Janeiro, and the New York sheet is certainly mislabelled. The New York sheet matches the type of S. sessile perfectly, and is almost certainly a duplicate of it. Since it is fertile it is probably a duplicate of Museu Nacional 20641, cited above.

    Stephanopodium sessile is quite distinct from S. blanchetianum by its shorter petioles, more acuminate thinner leaves, and its sessile flowers.

  • Distribution

    Brazil South America| Guanabara Brazil South America|