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Family:

Melastomataceae (Magnoliophyta)

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: French Guiana, Richard s.n. (P!).

Description: Small trees 4-10(-20) m tall, the branchlets, elevated primary and secondary leaf veins beneath, inflorescences, and hypanthia densely covered with stalked asperous-headed and/or stellate hairs. Leaves sessile, conspicuously 3-plinerved (excluding the intramarginal pair), broadly elliptic to subpandurate, 20-42 X (-10)13-21(-25) cm, adaxially glabrous, abaxially moderately to copiously brown stellate-pubescent, apex attenuate to gradually caudate-acuminate, base attenuate and auriculate-clasping, the margin entire to bluntly and obscurely denticulate. Panicle 9-20(-30) cm long, narrow and oblong; flowers 5-merous, sessile, the deciduous bracteoles subulate, 1-2 mm long. Calyx tube somewhat flaring and flange-like, 1.5-2 mm long, silvery stellulate-furfuraceous adaxially, the triangular-ovate lobes 1(-1.5) mm long, the bluntly tuberculate exterior teeth 0.25 mm long but not projecting. Petals minutely pruinose-papillose abaxially, oblong-obovate, 5-8 X 2.5-4 mm. Stamens somewhat unequal in size; anthers subulate, alternately 5.5-6 and 7-8.5 mm long, pink-magenta, the pore ventrally inclined; connective thickened, strongly curved ventro-basally into a biauriculate appendage copiously beset with stalked glands. Style sparsely glandular-puberulent basally, 10-11 mm long; stigma not or barely expanded; ovary 4-locular, 1/6 inferior, apex elevated into a lobulate glandular-puberulent collar 1 mm long; berry 9-14 X 9-12 mm, purple at maturity. Seeds pyramidate, sulcate-angulate, 1 mm long.

Habitat and Distribution: Local and uncommon, rain forest, gallery forest, swamp forest. 0-830 m. Greater Antilles (Cuba), Trinidad, all the Guianas, Venezuela and Colombia south to Bolivia to N and NE Brazil. MEXICO: Chiapas (Martínez 18301, CAS); BELIZE (Balick et al. 2608, US); GUATEMALA (Standley & Williams, 1963:467); HONDURAS (Saunders 1158, CAS); NICARAGUA (Little 25436, CAS); COSTA RICA (Herrera et al. 7794, CAS); PANAMA (Almeda & McPherson 5963, CAS).

Notes: [Description based only on Mesoamerican specimens.]