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Family:

Lecythidaceae (Magnoliophyta)

Description:

Author: Scott A. Mori

Type: Not yet designated.

Description: Small trees, 3-12 m tall. Bark unknown. Twigs 2-3 mm diam. Leaves and flowers present at same time: petioles 0.8-10 mm long, 1.5-2 mm diam.; blades elliptic, 8.5-15 x 3.5-5 cm, glabrous, chartaceous, the base obtuse, the margins entire, not markedly revolute when dry, the apex usually distinctly acuminate, the acumen greater than 5 mm long; venation eucamptodromous for most of length, brochidodromous, toward apex, the midrib slightly carinate throughout length adaxially, salient abaxially, the secondary veins in 8-15 pairs, nearly plane adaxially, prominent abaxially, intersecondary veins present, the higher order veins nearly plane adaxially, prominulous abaxially, visible on both surfaces. Inflorescences unbranched or weakly 1-branched, usually terminal or axillary, sometimes ramiflorous, the main rachis 1.5-5 cm long, infrequently zig-zagged, with horizontally oriented squamae, especially when young; pedicels tapered from hypanthium to articulation, ca. 2 mm long, 2 mm diam. at middle. Flowers ca. 2-2.5 cm diam; calyx with distinct lobes, the lobes broadly ovate, ca. 2.5 x 3 mm, imbricate at bases (calycine rim absent), the apices rounded; petals 4, whitish-yellow (fide Amorim et al. 1600) or yellow (fide Amorim et al. 2634); androecium with staminal ring with ca. 100 stamens, the filaments clavate, the shortest 1 mm long, color not known, the anthers ca. 0.6 mm long, color not known, staminal ring lip erect or slightly spreading, the hood yellow, with single coil bearing short vestigial stamens on exterior surface and longer, angular staminodes on interior surface; anterior hood extension absent; ovary, 2-locular, each locule with ca. 6 ovules inserted on floor of locule, the summit of ovary plateau-like, the style obconical, ca. 1.5 mm long, slightly obliquely oriented toward anterior end of flower, not well differentiated from summit of ovary. Fruits turbinate, the base to 7 x 7 cm, ferrugineous at less when immature (fide Jardim et al. 3108), the calycine ring inserted above middle, the infracalycine zone tapered to pedicel, the supracalycine zone slightly tapered to opercular opening, the pericarp ca. 8-10 mm thick, the operculum umbonate. Seeds irregularly globose, usually with two flat sides and one rounded side as seen in cross-section, ca. 3 x 2.5 cm, chestnut colored at maturity, the veins impressed, lighter colored than surface of testa; aril not seen but scar suggests small basal aril.

Common names: None recorded.

Distribution: Endemic to Bahia, Brazil from a short distance north of Salvador south to just north of the Bahian panhandle.

Ecology: A small tree restricted to wet forest along the Atlantic coast of Brazil. It is said to be frequent near the edges of forest (fide A. M. Amorim et al. 3624).

Phenology: Flowers have been collected in Mar, Nov, and Dec, immature fruits have been collected in in Feb and Oct, and fruits with nearly mature seeds have been gathered in Apr.

Pollination: No observations recorded but the flower structure and color is similar to other species of Lecythidaceae known to be pollinated by bees.

Dispersal: No information recorded. The aril, as indicated by the scar, is basal and small and may attract animals that consume it and disperse the seeds.

Predation: No observations recorded.

Field characters: An understory tree characterized by medium-sized leaves (from 8.5-15 cm long) with elliptic, chartaceous blades with a markedly acuminate apex; inflorescences that are 1-branched or more commonly weakly 2-branched with rachises that have horizonally oriented squamae, the main rachis is usually less than 5 cm long; calyx-lobes imbricate; single-coiled androecial hood with vestigial stamens on the exterior surface and staminodes and vestigial stamens on the interior surface; fruits tapered to the base; and an umbonate operculum.

Taxonomic notes: Eschweilera imbricata belongs to Eschweilera Sect. Tetrapetala which is described on the species page of E. alvimii.

Conservation: This species has not been evaluated for the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. However, it has only been collected along the central Bahian coast where deforestation has destroyed or severely modified old growth forests; thus we recommend that E. imbricata sp. nov. ined. be classifified as Critically Endangered (CR) according to IUCN criteria.

Uses: None recorded

Etymology: The epithet refers to the imbricate calyx-lobes of this species.

Source: Not yet published