Voyria aphylla (Jacq.) Pers.
-
Authority
Maas, Paulus J. M. & Ruyters, P. 1986. Voyria and Voyriella (saprophytic Gentianaceae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 41: 1-93. (Published by NYBG Press)
-
Family
Gentianaceae
-
Scientific Name
-
Type
T: Timothy J. Killeen - 1973. (F)
-
Synonyms
Gentiana aphylla Jacq., Voyria uniflora Lam., Lita aphylla (Jacq.) F.Dietr., Ciminalis aphylla (Jacq.) Raf., Voyria pallida Garcke, Leiphaimos uniflora (Lam.) Miq., Leiphaimos pallida (Garcke) Walp., Voyria araguensis H.Karst., Leiphaimos aphylla (Jacq.) Gilg, Leiphaimos feildenii Urb., Leiphaimos costaricensis Standl., Leiphaimos eximia Sandwith, Leiphaimos lutea C.V.Morton
-
Description
Species Description - Herbs, 15-30 cm high. Rhizome creeping. Stems simple, rarely branched near the base, pale orange or yellowish to white, internodes 1-2 cm long. Leaves yellowish to white, connate in their lower half, narrowly triangular to narrowly ovate, 4-8 mm long, 1-2 mm wide, apex acute. Flowers solitary, 5-merous. Bracts and bracteoles similar to the upper leaves but smaller. Pedicels 1-3 mm long, sometimes longer. Calyx campanulate to cylindric, 4-8 mm long, tube 3-6 mm long, lobes triangular to broadly triangular, 1-2 mm long, 1-1.5 mm wide, apex acute to acuminate, sinuses obtuse to acute, calyx scales present. Corolla salverform, yellow to orange, 25-65 mm long, tube cylindric, 20-50 mm long, dilated at the base by the maturing capsule, lobes narrowly ovate to narrowly obovate, 4-15 mm long, 1-5 mm wide, sometimes minutely hairy. Stamens inserted 3-5 mm below the throat, anthers subsessile, 0.3-0.8 mm long, dorsifixed, thecae tapering toward the base, apex rounded. Ovary fusiform, 5-8 x 1 mm, subsessile to stipitate, stipe 0.5-3 mm long in fruit. Style 10-30 mm long, stigma capitate-peltate, 5-lobed. Discoid glands absent. Capsule fusiform, 8-10 x 1.5-2.5 mm, medially septicidal. Seeds filiform to fusiform, with slender projections, 0.6-0.9 x 0.04-0.06 mm, paraphyses present.
-
Discussion
Voyria aphylla is the most common species of the genus, occurring throughout the Neotropics. It is the only species often found in drier vegetations like savannas and savanna-forest and it prefers white sandy soils. It can hardly be confused with any other species, except for Voyria spruceana. The latter, however, differs by its appendaged stamens and by a shorter corolla.
Distribution and Ecology: Throughout the Neotropics: Mexico, Central America, the West Indies, and tropical South America; in various forest types (rain forest, swamp forest, savanna forest, Amazonian caatinga forest), restingas, or savannas, often on white sand; growing in leaf mold or on decaying tree trunks, or on hummocks formed by ferns like Blechnum sp. and Schizaea sp.; from sea level to 1800 m. Flowering all year.
-
Distribution
Mexico North America| Chiapas Mexico North America| Oaxaca Mexico North America| Guatemala Central America| Honduras Central America| Costa Rica South America| Panama Central America| Cuba South America| Jamaica South America| Haiti South America| Dominican Republic South America| Puerto Rico South America| Saint Kitts and Nevis South America| Montserrat South America| Guadeloupe South America| Dominica South America| Martinique South America| Saint Lucia South America| Saint Vincent and the Grenadines South America| Grenada South America| Colombia South America| Antioquia Colombia South America| Caquetá Colombia South America| Cauca Colombia South America| Meta Colombia South America| Santander Colombia South America| Valle Colombia South America| Vaupés Colombia South America| Venezuela South America| Amazonas Venezuela South America| Aragua Venezuela South America| Bolívar Venezuela South America| Delta Amacuro Venezuela South America| Distrito Federal Venezuela South America| Falcón Venezuela South America| Miranda Venezuela South America| Nueva Esparta Venezuela South America| Sucre Venezuela South America| Yaracuy Venezuela South America| Trinidad and Tobago South America| Guyana South America| Suriname South America| French Guiana South America| Peru South America| Ayacucho Peru South America| Cusco Peru South America| Junín Peru South America| Loreto Peru South America| Puno Peru South America| San Martín Peru South America| Brazil South America| Amapá Brazil South America| Amazonas Brazil South America| Bahia Brazil South America| Mato Grosso Brazil South America| Minas Gerais Brazil South America| Pará Brazil South America| Paraná Brazil South America| Pernambuco Brazil South America| Rio de Janeiro Brazil South America| Roraima Brazil South America| Santa Catarina Brazil South America| São Paulo Brazil South America| Bolivia South America| La Paz Bolivia South America| Paraguay South America|