Rinorea riana Kuntze

  • Authority

    Hekking, W. H. A. 1988. violaceae Part l—Rinorea and Rinoreocarpus. Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 46: i-ii, 1-208. (Published by NYBG Press)

  • Family

    Violaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Rinorea riana Kuntze

  • Type

    Type as Riana guianensis Aublet, 1775. T: Aublet s.n.; ; French Guiana: Aroura (P-R 5: 173; IT: BM (photo))

  • Synonyms

    Rinorea riana (DC.) Kuntze, Conohoria riana DC., Alsodeia riana (DC.) Turcz., Riana guianensis Aubl., Alsodeia prunifolia Spreng.

  • Description

    Species Description - Treelet 1-8 m tall. Branchlets purplish with large (usually) whitish callose lenticels, sparsely puberulous to glabrescent. Leaves apparently opposite; petioles (1-)2.5-10(-15) mm long, ferruginous or maroon pilosulous or puberulous when young, glabrescent when older; stipules deciduous, narrowly ovate, subobtuse to subacute, 3-3.5 x 0.75-1.5 mm, herbaceous to scarious, ferruginous strig(ill)ose, veined, ciliolate; lamina (narrowly) ovate to elliptic, cuspidate to acuminate, (4.5-)8-24.5 x (1.25-)3-8.75 cm, usually widest near ½ from the base, sometimes widest at from the base; coriaceous; lamina, costa and lateral veins glabrous on both sides; lateral veins 8-13 pairs (acumen excluded); tertiary venation reticulate; base rounded to cuneate; margin subentire to subserrate or subcrenate, obscurely mucronulate; acumen (0.5-)1-3.5(-4) cm long, apex subobtuse to subacute, obscurely mucronulate. Inflorescences axillary, lateral and subterminal, solitary, extremely rarely 2-4 fasciculate, racemose, (1.25-)5-14.5 cm long, laxiflorous; central axis sparsely ferruginous pilosulous; pedicels (1.75-)3-4.5 mm long, articulate at ½-¼(-1/7) from the base, ferruginous pilosulous to puberulous; bracts and bractlets, deltoid, ovate or elliptic, herbaceous, ferruginous to golden pilose along the costa, veined, ferruginous to golden ciliolate, apex (sub)acute; bracts 1.5-1.75 x, 0.75-1 mm; bractlets subopposite, 0.75-1.75 x, 0.5-1 mm. Flower buds tolpoid. Flowers drooping, dirty yellowish-white when fresh, fragrant, drying to chocolate-brown. Sepals subequal, ovate, 1-2 x 0.5-1.5(-l.75) mm, herbaceous, usually (sparsely) ferruginous to golden pi-lose(ulous) along the costa, 5-7(-9) veined, 5-7(-9) striate when dried, margin scarious and golden ciliolate, apex subacute. Petals narrowly ovate to deltoid, 3-5 x 1.25-2 mm, herbaceous, costa sometimes sparsely ferruginous to golden pilose, margin sometimes sparsely golden ciliolate, apex (sub)obtuse. Stamens 2.75-3.75 mm long; filaments free, 0.5-0.75 x 0.25-0.75 mm, glabrous; dorsal glands free, extremely rarely some of them fused with each other, adnate to the filaments, equaling or slightly longer or shorter than the filaments, (narrowly) ellipsoid to ovoid, (0.25-)0.5-1.5 x 0.25-1 mm, carnose, slightly pilosulous to completely glabrous, apex free, obtuse, truncate or emarginate; anthers ovoid, 1.5-2 x 0.5-1 mm, apex (sub)obtuse, unappendaged; connective outside (narrowly) deltoid to elliptic, (sub)obtuse, 0.75-1 x ca. 0.25 mm, glabrous; connective scales lateral as well as apical, ovate, 2.25-2.75 x 1-1.25 mm, scarious, maroon colored, margin (sub)erose, apex obtuse, suberose to subentire. Ovary subglobose, (0.5-)0.75-1.5 mm long and wide, spiny hispid in combination with densely hispidulous, indument golden when young, maroon when older; ovules one to two per placenta. Style filiform, erect or slightly curved near the base, (1.25-) 1.75-2.5 x ca. 0.2 mm, exceeding the stamens usually by 0.25-0.5 mm, predominantly glabrous, pilosulous near the base; stigma truncate. Capsule symmetric, (ob)ovate to orbicular, acuminate, coriaceous to subligneous, pale green to maroon colored when fresh, velutinous in combination with sparsely pilose, indument maroon when dried, venation orange to reddish-brown when fresh; valves three, equal, 1.5-2.75 x 0.5-1 cm. Seeds one to two per valve, globose, 4-10 mm long, ferruginous hirtellous.

  • Discussion

    Uses: The local Creole name in Surinam “Manari-tiki” means that branchlets and twigs can be used for making sieves.

    Rinorea riana is characterized by combination of the following characters: (1) its predominantly maroon indument (when dried); (2) branchlets with large callose lenticels, which are larger and less numerous than in R. brevipes (dried branchlets of both species are usually purplish with whitish lenticels); (3) leaves, costa and lateral veins glabrous on both sides, just as in R. flavescens; domatia are wanting; (4) ovaries and juvenile fruits erect ‘spiny’ hispid in combination with densely hispidulous (its indument is initially straw-yellow, but soon turns to maroon [when dried]); and (5) its capsule velutinous in combination with scarcely pilose (its indument is maroon [when dried]).

    Dried flowers turn chocolate-brown, whereas those of most of the other species in this subgroup turn orange.

    In two specimens, Jonker & Daniels 772a from Surinam and Froes 32799 from Brazil, some of the dorsal glands adnate to the filaments are fused with each other, which is exceptional in this species.

    Rinorea riana has often been confused with R. lindeniana, although the species are quite different (cf. Melchior, 1929). Some striking errors in preceding studies are given below: (1) both species were described separately by Blake (1924). The description and material studied of R. lindeniana are correct. The description of R. riana is a mixture of both species, the type specimen belongs to R. riana and the additional specimens to R. lindeniana var. lindeniana; (2) specimens from Venezuela identified and cited by Knuth (1928) as R. riana, appear to belong to R. lindeniana var. lindeniana; and (3) specimens from Colombia cited by Smith and Fernández-P. (1954) as R. riana belong to both varieties of R. lindeniana and to R. viridifolia. The description of R. riana given by the two latter authors refers also to a mixture of R. riana and R. lindeniana, just as in Blake (1924).

    Distribution and Ecology: Rinorea riana is widespread in the Guianas, Lower Amazonia (Brazil, Para), Lower Basin of the Orinoco (Venezuela) and Trinidad. It is a fairly common undergrowth in primary rain forests in lowlands as well as in hilly or submountainous areas from 0 to 800 m, and also recorded from forests growing on C 2 Ore Body. Specimens in hilly areas have been collected on summits, rocky gullies and slopes. Also occurs along rivers, streams and creeks. In lowlands it inhabits uninundated areas such as river dunes and ridges as well as periodically inundated areas, in granitic, schistic, ferrobauxitic, clayish or sandy soils. Probably flowering and fruiting throughout the year.

  • Common Names

    Caspadillo, molinillo, Pata grillo/grullo, Pata-pauji, Mamusaré, Shero, Shipiye, Boembi kiridia, Lèle-tiki, Manari(e)-tiki(e) , Boumbikidia, Ouag-non, Pacumleima, Riana, Pywa’y-hu

  • Distribution

    Venezuela South America| Bolívar Venezuela South America| Delta Amacuro Venezuela South America| Trinidad and Tobago South America| Guyana South America| Suriname South America| French Guiana South America| Brazil South America| Amapá Brazil South America| Pará Brazil South America| Roraima Brazil South America|