Taxon Details: Grias ecuadorica Cornejo & S.A.Mori
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Multimedia:
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GMulti(8187)_Fr.jpg)
Additional Resources:
Protologues of Grias angustipetala and G. ecuadorica.
Protologues of Grias angustipetala and G. ecuadorica.Family:
Lecythidaceae (Magnoliophyta)
Lecythidaceae (Magnoliophyta)
Scientific Name:
Grias ecuadorica Cornejo & S.A.Mori
Grias ecuadorica Cornejo & S.A.Mori
Primary Citation:
Brittonia 64: 321 (-324, fig. 2). 2012
Brittonia 64: 321 (-324, fig. 2). 2012
Accepted Name:
This name is currently accepted.
This name is currently accepted.
Type Specimens:
Specimen 1: Holotype -- X. Cornejo
Specimen 2: Holotype -- X. Cornejo
Specimen 3: Holotype -- X. Cornejo
Specimen 1: Holotype -- X. Cornejo
Specimen 2: Holotype -- X. Cornejo
Specimen 3: Holotype -- X. Cornejo
Description:
Author: X.avier Cornejo & Scott A. Mori
Type: Ecuador. Los Ríos: environs of Montalvo, roadside, 79°17' W 2°48' S, 70 m, 2 Nov 2007 (fl, fr), X. Cornejo & C. Bonifaz 8016 (holotype: NY; isotypes: COL, GUAY, K).
Description: Unbranched to few-branched pachycaulous trees, 5-12 m tall × 10-20 cm dbh, the trunk cylindric to base. Stem-bearing leaves 15-20 mm diam. at lowest leaf attachment. Mature leaves clustered at apices of trunk or stout branches; petioles absent or scarcely developed, suborbicular to broadly elliptical in cross-section at base of leaf blade; blades oblanceolate to oblanceolate-spathulate, 100-150 × 30-40 cm, coriaceous, glabrous, green adaxially, paler green, punctuate, and white-puberulent at base abaxially, the base tapering, the margins sinuate to remotely dentate or subentire, the apex narrowly- to broadly-obtuse to shortly acuminate; venation brochidodromous but weakly so toward base, the midrib narrowly carinate for most of length adaxially, longitudinally multi-sulcate abaxially, the secondary veins in 40-60 pairs, those in middle of blade 2.5-4 cm apart in mature leaves, prominulous, carinate adaxially, salient, carinate abaxially, the tertiary veins mostly impressed or plain (when fresh), inconspicuous to often prominulous (when dry) abaxially, percurrent, joining the secondaries at ca. 90° angles, the higher order venation inconspicuous. Inflorescences cauline from lower to middle part of trunk, the racemes very short, the rachis 0.3-1.5 × 3-5 mm, bearing up to 4 flowers; floral bracts triangular, 2-4 x 2-3 mm; pedicel 9-17 × ca. 2 mm, reddish at base, abundantly short-pilose. Flowers 4-5 cm diam. at anthesis; calyx entire in bud, splitting into 2 to 4 lobes, the lobes fused at bases to form a rim around apex of the ovary, the lobes irregular, hemiorbicular to deltoid or ovate, 4-6 × 5-13 mm, short pilose to often glabrous, green abaxially; petals broadly-oblong to oblong-ovate, spreading at anthesis, 2.5-3 × 1.4-1.8 cm (smaller, 2-2.6 x 0.8-1.5 cm, when dry), carnose (when fresh, but chartaceous when dry), glabrous, cream to yellow at anthesis, the apex broadly-obtuse; androecium actinomorphic, ± orbicularly arranged when viewed apically, the stamens 45-70, inserted at two to three levels, all inflexed, the filaments carnose, subangular in cross section, not abruptly constricted at apex, the outermost filaments 7-10 mm long, yellow, the anthers terminal, 0.6-0.9 mm, never exceeded by filament tip, the dehiscence introse; ovary inferior, turbinate, ca. 6-8 x 5-6 mm (ca. 3 x 3 mm when dry), 4-locular, densely short pilose abaxially, green, the ovules ca. 2 per locule, pendulous from near apex of septum, the funicle short, linear, the summit truncate, with red annular disc, the style ca. 0.7 mm long, with 4 stigmatic lobes. Fruits on short, persistent pedicels 2-20 mm long, obovoid, 7-12 × 5-6.5 cm, brown at maturity when fresh, the base broadly cuneate to truncate, the apex truncate, the sepals persistent at least in nearly mature fruits; seeds one per fruit, the embryo white.
Common names: Membrillo (Cornejo & Bonifaz 4796, Cornejo et al. 4927, a name also applied in Ecuador to Gustavia angustifolia Benth. and G. dodsonii S.A. Mori), paragua, utucama (Bonifaz & Cornejo 3241).
Distribution: Known only from western Ecuador from 70- to 600 m elevation.
Ecology: An understory low tree of non-flooded primary and secondary wet forests where it is occasionally sympatric with other large-leaved species of Lecythidaceae such as Grias peruviana Miers and Gustavia pubescens Ruiz & Pav. ex O. Berg.
Phenology: Flowers have been collected in Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Aug, and Nov, and fruits have been gathered in Apr, and Nov.
Pollination: Jette Knudsen and Bertil Ståhl (pers. comm. to S. A. Mori, 2009) report that the flowers of the Cerro Samama population of this species have flowers that emit a fruity scent and are often visited by small beetles, mainly of the Staphylinidae.
Dispersal: Fruits eaten by the squirrel Sciurus granatensis but it is not know if it is a dispersal agent, a predator , or both a predator and dispersal agent (Cornejo & Bonifaz 4796).
Predation: The fruits are eaten by the red-tailed Squirrel, Sciurus granatensis Humboldt (Cornejo & Bonifaz 4796), agouties (guatusa in Spanish, Dasyprocta punctata Gray), and pacas (guanta in Spanish, >Cuniculus paca L.). The last two rodents also eat the thick-petaled flowers of Grias ecuadorica after they have fallen to the ground (pers. comm. with field guide).
Field characters: Grias ecuadorica can be recognized in the field by its large leaves and unbranched to few-branched pachycaul habit; flowers and fruits with short rachises and pedicels; stamens with filaments not abruptly constricted a apex; introsely dehiscent anthers; and a truncate, red ovary summity..
Taxonomic notes: Grias ecuadorica is morphologically similar to G. haughtii R. Knuth, a Colombian endemic known only from the Magdalena Valley, Santander and adjacent Antioquia (Mori, 1979). Grias ecuadorica differs from G. haughtii by having fewer stamens (45-70 vs. 100-180); a truncate versus an umbonate ovary; and a thinner, 0.7-1 cm (vs. thicker, 1-2.5 cm) midvein as measured at the base of the blade on the abaxial side. When the genus was last monographed (Mori, 1979), specimens now representing Grias ecuadorica were included in a broadly defined G. multinervia. Since then field observations made by the senior author in several localities of western Ecuador have demonstrated that the Ecuadorian populations of what was previously called G. multinervia (e.g., Mori in Jørgensen & León-Yánez, 1999) possess distinctively shorter pedicels (0.2-2 cm long in fruit, versus 4-10 cm) and fewer secondary veins (45-60 pairs) than those of the type of G. multinervia (ca. 86). Because of these differences Grias ecuadorica is herein recognized as a new species restricted to western Ecuador and G. multinervia is regarded as a narrow endemic restricted to the type area in coastal Colombia. Flowers of this species dried outside of the press are markedly smaller than those dried in the press. For purposes of this study, only measurements of flowers dried in a press have been provided.
Conservation: Grias ecuadorica inhabits the private forests of Bosque Protector Cerros Guineales, Samama y Mumbes in Los Ríos and adjacent Bolívar provinces. It is protected in the hacienda Clementina, the largest banana farm in Ecuador. Outside of that protected area it is represented by scattered populations in remnant forests of Los Ríos and Bolívar provinces. Although Grias ecuadorica mostly occurs in primary and secondary wet forests, a few mature individuals sometimes persist as scattered or solitary trees in disturbed areas and pastures near conserved forests. Saplings and juveniles of this species are seldom observed in heavily disturbed and open areas. Because populations of this species have been fragmented due to extensive deforestation in western Ecuador, we suggest that this new species be assigned the IUCN conservation status of endangered, EN A2c (IUCN, 2001).
Uses: None recorded.
Etymology: The epithet refers to the country where the species is presumably endemic.
Source: The protologue of G. ecuadorica (Cornejo, X. & S. A. Mori, 2012).
Acknowledgements: We are grateful to K. Yoza for allowing us to use the image below to illustrate the characters of this species.
Author: X.avier Cornejo & Scott A. Mori
Type: Ecuador. Los Ríos: environs of Montalvo, roadside, 79°17' W 2°48' S, 70 m, 2 Nov 2007 (fl, fr), X. Cornejo & C. Bonifaz 8016 (holotype: NY; isotypes: COL, GUAY, K).
Description: Unbranched to few-branched pachycaulous trees, 5-12 m tall × 10-20 cm dbh, the trunk cylindric to base. Stem-bearing leaves 15-20 mm diam. at lowest leaf attachment. Mature leaves clustered at apices of trunk or stout branches; petioles absent or scarcely developed, suborbicular to broadly elliptical in cross-section at base of leaf blade; blades oblanceolate to oblanceolate-spathulate, 100-150 × 30-40 cm, coriaceous, glabrous, green adaxially, paler green, punctuate, and white-puberulent at base abaxially, the base tapering, the margins sinuate to remotely dentate or subentire, the apex narrowly- to broadly-obtuse to shortly acuminate; venation brochidodromous but weakly so toward base, the midrib narrowly carinate for most of length adaxially, longitudinally multi-sulcate abaxially, the secondary veins in 40-60 pairs, those in middle of blade 2.5-4 cm apart in mature leaves, prominulous, carinate adaxially, salient, carinate abaxially, the tertiary veins mostly impressed or plain (when fresh), inconspicuous to often prominulous (when dry) abaxially, percurrent, joining the secondaries at ca. 90° angles, the higher order venation inconspicuous. Inflorescences cauline from lower to middle part of trunk, the racemes very short, the rachis 0.3-1.5 × 3-5 mm, bearing up to 4 flowers; floral bracts triangular, 2-4 x 2-3 mm; pedicel 9-17 × ca. 2 mm, reddish at base, abundantly short-pilose. Flowers 4-5 cm diam. at anthesis; calyx entire in bud, splitting into 2 to 4 lobes, the lobes fused at bases to form a rim around apex of the ovary, the lobes irregular, hemiorbicular to deltoid or ovate, 4-6 × 5-13 mm, short pilose to often glabrous, green abaxially; petals broadly-oblong to oblong-ovate, spreading at anthesis, 2.5-3 × 1.4-1.8 cm (smaller, 2-2.6 x 0.8-1.5 cm, when dry), carnose (when fresh, but chartaceous when dry), glabrous, cream to yellow at anthesis, the apex broadly-obtuse; androecium actinomorphic, ± orbicularly arranged when viewed apically, the stamens 45-70, inserted at two to three levels, all inflexed, the filaments carnose, subangular in cross section, not abruptly constricted at apex, the outermost filaments 7-10 mm long, yellow, the anthers terminal, 0.6-0.9 mm, never exceeded by filament tip, the dehiscence introse; ovary inferior, turbinate, ca. 6-8 x 5-6 mm (ca. 3 x 3 mm when dry), 4-locular, densely short pilose abaxially, green, the ovules ca. 2 per locule, pendulous from near apex of septum, the funicle short, linear, the summit truncate, with red annular disc, the style ca. 0.7 mm long, with 4 stigmatic lobes. Fruits on short, persistent pedicels 2-20 mm long, obovoid, 7-12 × 5-6.5 cm, brown at maturity when fresh, the base broadly cuneate to truncate, the apex truncate, the sepals persistent at least in nearly mature fruits; seeds one per fruit, the embryo white.
Common names: Membrillo (Cornejo & Bonifaz 4796, Cornejo et al. 4927, a name also applied in Ecuador to Gustavia angustifolia Benth. and G. dodsonii S.A. Mori), paragua, utucama (Bonifaz & Cornejo 3241).
Distribution: Known only from western Ecuador from 70- to 600 m elevation.
Ecology: An understory low tree of non-flooded primary and secondary wet forests where it is occasionally sympatric with other large-leaved species of Lecythidaceae such as Grias peruviana Miers and Gustavia pubescens Ruiz & Pav. ex O. Berg.
Phenology: Flowers have been collected in Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Aug, and Nov, and fruits have been gathered in Apr, and Nov.
Pollination: Jette Knudsen and Bertil Ståhl (pers. comm. to S. A. Mori, 2009) report that the flowers of the Cerro Samama population of this species have flowers that emit a fruity scent and are often visited by small beetles, mainly of the Staphylinidae.
Dispersal: Fruits eaten by the squirrel Sciurus granatensis but it is not know if it is a dispersal agent, a predator , or both a predator and dispersal agent (Cornejo & Bonifaz 4796).
Predation: The fruits are eaten by the red-tailed Squirrel, Sciurus granatensis Humboldt (Cornejo & Bonifaz 4796), agouties (guatusa in Spanish, Dasyprocta punctata Gray), and pacas (guanta in Spanish, >Cuniculus paca L.). The last two rodents also eat the thick-petaled flowers of Grias ecuadorica after they have fallen to the ground (pers. comm. with field guide).
Field characters: Grias ecuadorica can be recognized in the field by its large leaves and unbranched to few-branched pachycaul habit; flowers and fruits with short rachises and pedicels; stamens with filaments not abruptly constricted a apex; introsely dehiscent anthers; and a truncate, red ovary summity..
Taxonomic notes: Grias ecuadorica is morphologically similar to G. haughtii R. Knuth, a Colombian endemic known only from the Magdalena Valley, Santander and adjacent Antioquia (Mori, 1979). Grias ecuadorica differs from G. haughtii by having fewer stamens (45-70 vs. 100-180); a truncate versus an umbonate ovary; and a thinner, 0.7-1 cm (vs. thicker, 1-2.5 cm) midvein as measured at the base of the blade on the abaxial side. When the genus was last monographed (Mori, 1979), specimens now representing Grias ecuadorica were included in a broadly defined G. multinervia. Since then field observations made by the senior author in several localities of western Ecuador have demonstrated that the Ecuadorian populations of what was previously called G. multinervia (e.g., Mori in Jørgensen & León-Yánez, 1999) possess distinctively shorter pedicels (0.2-2 cm long in fruit, versus 4-10 cm) and fewer secondary veins (45-60 pairs) than those of the type of G. multinervia (ca. 86). Because of these differences Grias ecuadorica is herein recognized as a new species restricted to western Ecuador and G. multinervia is regarded as a narrow endemic restricted to the type area in coastal Colombia. Flowers of this species dried outside of the press are markedly smaller than those dried in the press. For purposes of this study, only measurements of flowers dried in a press have been provided.
Conservation: Grias ecuadorica inhabits the private forests of Bosque Protector Cerros Guineales, Samama y Mumbes in Los Ríos and adjacent Bolívar provinces. It is protected in the hacienda Clementina, the largest banana farm in Ecuador. Outside of that protected area it is represented by scattered populations in remnant forests of Los Ríos and Bolívar provinces. Although Grias ecuadorica mostly occurs in primary and secondary wet forests, a few mature individuals sometimes persist as scattered or solitary trees in disturbed areas and pastures near conserved forests. Saplings and juveniles of this species are seldom observed in heavily disturbed and open areas. Because populations of this species have been fragmented due to extensive deforestation in western Ecuador, we suggest that this new species be assigned the IUCN conservation status of endangered, EN A2c (IUCN, 2001).
Uses: None recorded.
Etymology: The epithet refers to the country where the species is presumably endemic.
Source: The protologue of G. ecuadorica (Cornejo, X. & S. A. Mori, 2012).
Acknowledgements: We are grateful to K. Yoza for allowing us to use the image below to illustrate the characters of this species.