Authority:

Pennington, Terence D. 1981. Meliaceae. Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 28: 1-359, 418-449, 459-470. (Published by NYBG Press)

Family:

Meliaceae

Description:

Species Description - Young branches minutely appressed puberulous soon becoming glabrous, brown or grey-brown, rather rough and sometimes slightly suberous. Leaves pinnate with a terminal bud showing intermittent growth, to 50 cm long; petiole semiterete, rhachis terete or canaliculate above, appressed puberulous at first soon glabrous; petiolule 2-4(-5) mm. Leaflets 3-6 pairs, elliptic, oblong, or oblanceolate, apex attenuate to long acuminate less frequently obtusely acuminate, base acute, cuneate, or attenuate, chartaceous, 12.5-22.5[ 16.2] cm long, 4-7.5[5.0] cm broad (lower leaflets often shorter and broader), glabrous, not glandular-punctate or -striate; venation eucamptodromous, midrib flat or slightly sunken; secondaries (7-)9-12(-13) on either side of midrib, ascending, arcuate, convergent; intersecondaries absent; tertiaries oblique, obscure. Flowers unisexual, plants dioecious; inflorescence axillary and on smaller branches, 3.5-12 cm long, lower branches to 10 cm long, broadly pyramidal with weak slender axes, spreading and laxly-flowered, subglabrous; pedicel (1.5-)2 mm long. Calyx patelliform, 1-1.5 mm long, margin truncate or with 4 irregular lobes to 0.75 mm long, sparsely and minutely appressed puberulous to subglabrous. Petals 4-5, valvate or slightly imbricate, (7-)9.5-12 mm long, 2-3 mm wide, oblong or lanceolate, apex acute, minutely appressed puberulous outside, glabrous inside. Staminal tube (5.5-)7.5-9.5 mm long, 2-3 mm broad, margin undulate or truncate, glabrous; anthers 8-9, 1-1.25 mm long; antherodes smaller, ca. 0.75 mm long, not dehiscing, without pollen. Nectary a stipe expanded to form an annulus below ovary, 1-2 mm long, glabrous. Ovary 4(-5)-locular, loculi uniovulate (Pires et al. 50439 (Brazil, Amapa). Of 6 flowers dissected, one contains a single locule with 2 superposed ovules), strigose; style glabrous above; pistillode similar, with well-developed non-functional ovules. Capsule when young ± globose, smooth, apiculate, when mature depressed globose, valves prominently and irregularly 3-4-ribbed, minutely puberulous intermixed with scattered long stiff hairs, ca. 1.5 cm long, 2 cm broad, (3-)4-valved, valves 1-seeded; pericarp ca. 1.5 mm thick. Seed ca. 1 cm long, surrounded by a thin orange sarcotesta; seed coat thin and hard. Embryo with plano-convex, superposed cotyledons; radicle abaxial, extending to surface.

Discussion:

Relationships

In its vegetative features this species is similar to G. convergens and in central Amazonia they are found growing together, where they are easily confused in the absence of flowers or fruit. However, the inflorescence and fruit enable them to be separated without much difficulty. The chief distinguishing features are:

G. scabra: inflorescence branched, broadly pyramidal, and lax-flowered; petals (7-)9.5-12 mm long; fruit not more than 2 cm diam., valves with 3-4 prominent narrow ribs.

G. convergens: inflorescence narrow, ± densely-flowered, with few short branches, petals 6.5-7.5 mm; fruit ± globose, 3.5-4 cm diam., valves obscurely 6-7-ribbed.

Field Characters: Small or medium tree to 18 m, the trunk sometimes with prominent bosses. Bark mid-brown, scaling in slightly suberous pieces in older specimens. The species flowers from August to October and the only record of mature fruit is in September. The flowers are without noticeable scent, and have a reddish calyx; the corolla is cream-coloured in the lower half and tipped with pink.

Distribution:

Suriname South America| Brazil South America| Amapá Brazil South America| Amazonas Brazil South America|