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Family:

Melastomataceae (Magnoliophyta)

Primary Citation:

Trans. Linn. Soc. London, Bot. 28: 111. 1871

Accepted Name:

This name is currently accepted.

Description:

Description Author and Date: Frank Almeda, based on Almeda, F. (2009). Melastomataceae. In: G. Davidse, M. Sousa-Sânchez, S. Knapp, & F. Chiang (eds.), Flora Mesoamericana: Cucurbitaceae a Polemoniaceae. 4(1): 164-338.

Type: Holotype: Jamaica?, collector unknown (LINN).

Description: Shrubs or small trees 1-6 m tall, the branchlets, primary leaf veins beneath, and inflorescences densely strigose with appressed hairs 1-1.5. Leaves (5-)-7-plinerved (innermost pair of primaries diverging 2.5-9 cm above the blade base), 11-31 X 5.3-12 cm, adaxially moderately beset with antrorsely spreading smooth hairs, abaxially moderately covered with antrorsely to widely spreading smooth hairs 0.5-1.5 mm long and an inconspicuous ground layer of glandular hairs on the elevated veins and veinlets, apex gradually acuminate, base acute, the margin obscurely undulate-serrulate; petioles 0.5-3 cm long. Inflorescence 5.5-16.5 cm long; flowers 5-merous, sessile, the bracteoles essentially replaced by tufts of bristly hairs. Hypanthia moderately to densely strigose; calyx lobes broadly triangular, ca. 0.5 mm long obscured by the bluntly conic, copiously strigose exterior teeth. Petals oblong-obovate, 3.5-5 X 1-1.5 mm. Anthers subulate to linear-subulate, 3-4 mm long, white, the pore ventrally inclined; connective barely prolonged (to ca. 0.2 mm), exappendiculate. Style glabrous, 5-6 mm long; stigma capitellate or not expanded; ovary 3-locular, ca. 1/3 inferior, apex elevated into a low stylar collar beset with stiff smooth hairs and smaller glandular hairs; berry 6-8 X 6-8 mm, white to blue at maturity. Seeds cuneate, smooth and angulate on the convex face, 1 mm long.

Habitat and Distribution: Common, rain forest, river margins, and disturbed sites. 0-930 m. Southern Mexico?, Trinidad, all the Guianas, Venezuela and Colombia south to Bolivia to SE Brazil. BELIZE (Gentle 4291, CAS); GUATEMALA (Contreras 7895, CAS); NICARAGUA (Martinez & Riviere 1980, CAS); COSTA RICA (Almeda et al. 3413, CAS); PANAMA (Correa et al. 10616, CAS).

Taxonomy and Systematics: It seems unlikely that the type of this species was collected in Jamaica as reported in the protologue; it is unknown from the Greater or Lesser Antilles. This species was attributed to southern Mexico in Cogniaux's familial monograph but I have seen no authentic material or recent collections from anywhere in Mexico.

Notes: [Description based only on Mesoamerican specimens.]