Calliandra bahiana Renvoize
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Authors
Rupert C. Barneby
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Authority
Barneby, Rupert C. 1998. Silk tree, guanacaste, monkey's earring: A generic system for the synandrous Mimosaceae of the Americas. Part III. Calliandra. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 74: 1-223.
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Family
Mimosaceae
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Scientific Name
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Type
Typus sub var. bahiana infra designata.
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Description
Species Description - Microphyllidious shrubs (1-) 1.6-3 m with erect and incurved, defoliate annotinous and older branches, densely leafy distally, the young stems and lf-axes pilosulous with whitish hairs to 0.2-0.9 mm intermixed with reddish-brown granular trichomes, the peduncles and perianth of fls either densely exclusively red-granular or both red-granular and gray-pilosulous, the lvs bicolored, the firm plane lfts lustrous dark- olivaceous and either glabrous or microscopically puberulent above, paler dull and both puberulent and red-brown-granular beneath, the stout peduncles borne, either 2-3 together or solitary, in the axils of several distal primary lvs and sometimes, beyond these, shortly pseudoracemose; no axillary brachyblasts; phyllotaxy distichous. Stipules ovate or bluntly deltate or triangular-lanceolate 0.8-1 mm, not externally venulose, caducous. Lf-formula xi(-xiii)/20-33; lf-stk of longer lvs 3-6.5 cm, the petiole (consisting largely of pulvinus) 2-5 mm, at middle 1.5-2 mm diam, the longer interpinnal segments 4-8 mm, the ventral groove bridged at insertion of pinnae; pinnae either subequal or randomly shorter distally, the rachis of longer ones 3-5.5 cm, the longer interfoliolar segments 0.9-1.9 mm; lft-pulvinules 0.15-0.3 x 0.35-0.7 mm; lfts equilong or almost so, contiguous or imbricate, the blades narrowly oblong or linear-oblong from shortly obtusely auriculate base, obtuse, the longer ones 4.5-8 x 1.2-2.5 mm, (2.5-)3-4.1 times as long as wide; venation palmate, the straight midrib forwardly displaced to divide blade 1:2.5—3, weakly 1-2- branched beyond middle on posterior side, the inner posterior primary nerve incurved to or beyond midblade, the 1-2 outer ones much shorter, all bluntly prominulous dorsally, faintly so or immersed above. Peduncles stout (1.5-)2.5-6 cm, ebracteate; capitula 3-5(-6)-fld, the low-convex or subtruncate receptacle wider than long; floral bracts obtusely deltate or broad- lanceolate 2-4(-6) mm, ventrally concave, deciduous; perianth obese, variably granular or granular and pilosulous (see key to varieties), mostly 4-merous but the corolla rarely 5-merous; pedicels often poorly differentiated externally but in longitudinal section 0.6-1 x 2.5-3.7 mm; calyx shallowly campanulate 3-8 x 5.5-7.5(-9) mm, the teeth mostly depressed-deltate obtuse 0.6-1.2 mm, rarely triangular 2 mm; corolla 9—13(—14) mm, the broadly ovate lobes 4.5-5.5(-7) mm, in section 0.8-1.3 mm thick; androecium (2.8-)3.2-4.4 mm, (98—)114—204(-218)-merous, the horny stemonozone 1.4—3.5 mm, the tube 7-11 mm, the tassel white rubescent; intrastaminal disc 0; ovary at anthesis either glabrous or distally puberulent. Pods 6-9 x 1.1-1.2 cm, densely softly sordid-velvety-pilosulous overall; seeds ±9x4 mm, the testa brown, mottled, pleurogrammic.
Relationships - Calliandra bahiana is notable in the context of ser. Calliandra for relatively high leaf-formula, capitula of few, very large multistaminate flowers, and thick-textured perianth abundantly red-granular overall. Two geographic variants are here distinguished.