Sparattosperma leucanthum (Vell.) K.Schum.

  • Authority

    Gentry, Alwyn H. 1992. Bignoniaceae--part II (Tribe Tecomeae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 25: 1-370. (Published by NYBG Press)

  • Family

    Bignoniaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Sparattosperma leucanthum (Vell.) K.Schum.

  • Type

    Type. Brazil. Rio de Janeiro: Silvis maritimis, n.v. Type illustration, Vellozo, Atlas Fl. flumin. 6: t. 49. 1831.

  • Synonyms

    Bignonia leucantha Vell., Spathodea vernicosa Cham., Bignonia subvernicosa DC., Tecoma salzmannii DC., Tecoma subvernicosa DC., Sparattosperma lithontripticum Mart., Sparattosperma lithontripticum Mart. ex DC., Sparattosperma vernicosa (Cham.) Bureau & K.Schum., Sparattosperma stenocarpum Bureau & K.Schum.

  • Description

    Species Description - Tree 10-25 m, to 70 cm dbh., with fibrous bark varying from smooth to thick and fissured; branchlets terete to subtetragonal, drying blackish and finely longitudinally striate when young, brownish when older, often with inconspicuous narrow lenticels, usually glabrous or sparsely minutely puberulous, occasionally conspicuously puberulous or almost pilose. Leaves mostly 5-foliolate, occasionally in part 3-foliolate, the leaflets elliptic to lanceolate or oblong-ovate, acuminate to long-acuminate, broadly cuneate to truncate at base, 3-17 cm long, 1.5-7 cm wide, entire, sometimes appearing serrulate from the finely undulate-crisped margin, membranaceous, usually rather sticky and varnished from the densely glandular epidermis, especially above, drying dark green to blackish, variably pubescent, usually essentially glabrous except simple trichomes in the axils of lateral veins below and on midvein above, occasionally more or less densely pilose below over whole surface; petiole 2.5-14 cm long, usually varnished-glabrous, occasionally pubescent, the slender petiolules (0.5-)1-5 cm long, varnished-glabrous to puberulous. Inflorescence a rather few-flowered terminal panicle, usually shorter than the subtending leaves, usually with a well-developed central rachis, more or less dichotomously branched, glabrous to puberulous, drying blackish, the bracts and bracteoles early caducous. Flowers white or pale pink with dark pink striations in throat, the calyx irregularly tubular-campanulate, distinctly apiculate in bud, irregularly bilabiate or subspathaceous at anthesis, more or less vernicose, usually essentially glabrous, sometimes more or less pilose or puberulous at base, occasionally longitudinally striate, 12-22 mm long, 6-9 mm wide; corolla very broadly tubular-campanulate above the ca. 1 cm long narrow basal tube, dorsoventrally flattened when fresh, 3.5-5 cm long, 1.2-2.5 cm wide at mouth, the tube 2.5-4 cm long, the lobes 1-1.5 cm long, tube glabrous outside, sparsely pubescent with very long lax trichomes in throat, rather sparsely glandular-pubescent at stamen insertion, the lobes irregularly laciniate, puberulous outside at bases and around margins; stamens didynamous, the anther thecae divaricate, 3-4 mm long, the filaments ca. 2 cm long; ovary flattened-oblong, 3-4 mm long, 1-2 mm wide, strongly longitudinally costate, the surface glandular, obscure from the glandular secretions; disk evenly cylindric, 1.5 mm long, 2 mm wide. Fruit linear-cylindric, attenuate at apex, obtuse at base, 21-54 cm long, 0.5-1.2 cm wide, varnished-glabrous or lepidote-glandular, longitudinally more or less costate, the calyx caducous, the valves subwoody; seeds 2-4 mm long, 3-5.5 cm wide, the wing fragmented into individual elongate capillary trichomes, the narrow seed body ca. 2 by 7-10 mm.

  • Distribution

    Wide-ranging from Venezuela (where recently discovered) and Peru to southern Brazil. In Amazonia, mostly in drier types of forest, in coastal Brazil extremely common as a second growth species in many forest types. Near sea level to 1800 m elevation.

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