Voyria tenella Hook.

  • 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

    Voyria tenella Hook.

  • Type

    Type. St. Vincent. Mt. St. Andrew, Guilding s.n. (holotype, K).

  • Synonyms

    Voyria nuda Splitg., Leiphaimos tenella (Hook.) Miq., Leiphaimos nuda (Splitg.) Miq., Voyria simplex Griseb., Biglandularia azurea H.Karst., Voyria brachyloba Griseb., Voyria disadenantha Griseb., Leiphaimos azurea (H.Karst.) Griseb., Leiphaimos disadenantha (Griseb.) Alain, Leiphaimos simplex (Griseb.) Gilg, Leiphaimos portoricensis Britton, Leiphaimos brachyloba (Griseb.) Urb., Leiphaimos brachyloba var. cumbrensis Urb. & Ekman, Leiphaimos brachyloba var. albida Urb. & Ekman, Leiphaimos obconica (Prag.) Gilg

  • Description

    Species Description - Caespitose herbs, to 20 cm high. Stems simple, white to creamy, internodes few, to 5 cm long. Roots tuberous, slightly fleshy, white, narrowly ovoid, tapering to the apex, 1-10 mm long, 0.4-1 mm diam., densely hairy (hairs ca. 0.01 mm long), forming dense clumps and oriented like the rays of a star. Leaves white to yellow, connate in their lower half, triangular to narrowly triangular, 2-5 mm long, 1-1.5 mm wide. Flowers solitary, 5-merous, nodding in bud, slightly fragrant (de Granville 846, French Guiana). Bracts and bracteoles absent. Pedicels 10-50 mm long. Calyx orange to yellow, rarely white, tubular-campanulate, 2.5-4 mm long, tube about as long as the lobes, 1-2 mm long, lobes narrowly ovate to narrowly triangular, 1-2 mm long, 0.3-0.5 mm wide, apex obtuse to acute, sinuses mostly acute, calyx scales present, conspicuous. Corolla salverform, 9-22 mm long, tube white to orange, 7-15 mm long, throat yellow to pale orange, scarcely widened, lobes blue, sometimes purplish, rarely white, narrowly ovate to narrowly obovate, 2-7 mm long, 0.5-2.5 mm wide, obtuse, glabrous to hairy near the base, falling with the upper part of the corolla-tube after anthesis. Stamens inserted 2-3 mm below the throat, anthers subsessile, 0.5-1 mm long, dorsifixed, thecae tapering towards the base, apex rounded-truncate. Ovary fusiform, 3-5 x 1-2 mm, provided with two distinctly stalked clavate glands at the base, stipitate, stipe 1-2 mm long. Style 2-4 mm long, stigma capitate. Discoid scales absent. Capsule ellipsoid to globose, 4-7 x 2-4 mm, medially septicidal, margins thickened and rolled inwards. Seeds filiform, 0.5-1.0 x 0.03-0.10 mm.

  • Discussion

    Voyria tenella is very widely distributed, a character shared by most other Voyria species with filiform, hair-like seeds. This wide distribution is undoubtedly correlated with the seed structure, the seeds being surely dispersed by the wind. This species is characterized by its dense mass of narrowly ovoid, almost fusiform roots, solitary, often blue flowers, obtuse petals, and the caducous upper part of the corolla. A very important and useful herbarium character is the presence of two stalked glands on the basal part of the ovary.

  • Distribution

    Throughout the Neotropics; in forests, often shallow-rooted in leaf mold, sometimes growing on decaying tree trunks; at elevations from sea level to 1400(-1700) m; flowering all year, particularly in August.

    Mexico North America| Chiapas Mexico North America| Veracruz Mexico North America| Guatemala Central America| Belize Central America| Nicaragua Central America| Costa Rica South America| Panama Central America| Haiti South America| Dominican Republic South America| Montserrat South America| Guadeloupe South America| Saint Vincent and the Grenadines South America| Colombia South America| Amazonas Colombia South America| César Colombia South America| Chocó Colombia South America| Cundinamarca Colombia South America| Santander Colombia South America| Valle Colombia South America| Venezuela South America| Amazonas Venezuela South America| Aragua Venezuela South America| Bolívar Venezuela South America| Miranda Venezuela South America| Zulia Venezuela South America| Trinidad and Tobago South America| Guyana South America| Suriname South America| French Guiana South America| Ecuador South America| Pastaza Ecuador South America| Peru South America| Huánuco Peru South America| Junín Peru South America| Loreto Peru South America| San Martín Peru South America| Brazil South America| Acre Brazil South America| Amapá Brazil South America| Amazonas Brazil South America| Bahia Brazil South America| Espirito Santo Brazil South America| Mato Grosso Brazil South America| Pará Brazil South America| Rondônia Brazil South America| Roraima Brazil South America| São Paulo Brazil South America| Santa Catarina Brazil South America| Bolivia South America| Beni Bolivia South America| La Paz Bolivia South America|