Sorocea affinis Hemsl.

Authority

Berg, Cornelius C. 2001. Moreae, Artocarpeae, and (Moraceae): With introductions to the family and and with additions and corrections to Flora Neotropica Monograph 7. Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 83: 1-346. (Published by NYBG Press)

Family

Moraceae

Scientific Name

Sorocea affinis Hemsl.

Type

Type. Panama. Panamá: nr. Río Grande, Paraiso Station, 19 Sep 1862 ([female] fl), Hayes 684 (holotype, K; isotypes, BR, G, NY, P).

Description

Species Description - Shrub or tree, to 10(-20) m tall. Leafy twigs 1-3 mm thick, minutely puberulous. Lamina oblong to elliptic, (5-)7-23.5 × (1.5-)2-8.5 cm, broadest above or in the middle, equilateral to slightly inequilateral, chartaceous to subcoriaceous (to coriaceous); apex acuminate; base acute to subobtuse; margin distinctly to obscurely dent(icul)ate (to subentire); upper surface glabrous or sparsely and minutely puberulous on the midrib; lower surface sparsely and minutely puberulous on the main veins; venation above plane, but the midrib impressed above, the venation prominent beneath; lateral veins 7-12 pairs; tertiary venation reticulate (or partly scalariform); petiole 0.3-1.2 cm long, 0.5-1.5 mm thick, minutely puberulous; stipules 0.2-0.5 cm long, puberulous to glabrous, caducous. Staminate inflorescences pendulous, 1-10 cm long, including the 0.1-0.5 cm long puberulous peduncle; flowers distant to rather crowded, with pedicels to l(-4) mm long, (in some inflorescences sometimes subsessile or narrowly sessile); perianth 1.5-2 mm long, 4-fid to deeply 4-parted, sparsely puberulous and ciliolate, or glabrous; stamens (3-)4, straight to bent inwards, isomorphic or anisomorphic; filaments 0.5-1.5 mm long; anthers 0.4-0.8 × 0.4-0.7 mm, the connective apiculate. Pistillate inflorescences patent, 0.5-4 cm long, to 5 cm long in fruit; peduncle 0.1-0.4 cm long, to 4 cm long in fruit, puberulous; rachis puberulous, (reddish? in fruit); flowers 5-25(-40), pedicellate (or subsessile); pedicels 0.05-0.2 cm long, to 0.6 cm long in fruit, densely and minutely puberulous; perianth ca. 2 mm long, subentire, the upper part (depressed) subglobose to hemispherical, glabrous, the lower part densely puberulous; stigmas 0.5-1.2 mm long, coarsely papillate. Fruiting perianth ellipsoid to broadly ovoid to subglobose, ca. 0.7-1 × 0.6-0.8 cm, orange to red (not turning black?), the apex obtuse to umbonate to apiculate, the surface smooth, for the greater part rather densely and minutely puberulous (or subglabrous).

Discussion

Sorocea affinis is variable in several characters. The lamina is mostly chartaceous to subcoriaceous with a dentate margin, but it can be entire and coriaceous and then quite similar to that of S. ruminata. The midrib is either glabrous or sparsely puberulous above. The staminate flowers are mostly pedicellate, but they can be subsessile or narrowly sessile in the northern part of the species range (see, e.g., Allen 5492). The collection Seibert 464 shows transitions from pedicellate to sessile flowers. The collections with pistillate inflorescences made by Brand et al in Colombia (Antioquia) have a subglabrous fruiting perianth and are, therefore, difficult to distinguish from material of S. trophoides from the same region. Sorocea affinis appears to be closely related to the geographically separated S. sarcocarpa.

Distribution

From Nicaragua (Zelaya) through Costa Rica (Alajuela and Puntarenas) and Panama to Colombia (Chocó and Antioquia); in wet forest; to ca. 1200 m.

Nicaragua Central America| Zelaya Nicaragua Central America| Alajuela Costa Rica Central America| Costa Rica South America| Guanacaste Costa Rica Central America| Puntarenas Costa Rica Central America| Panama Central America| Bocas del Toro Panamá Central America| Chiriquí Panamá Central America| Coclé Panamá Central America| Colón Panama Central America| Darién Panamá Central America| Panama Central America| San Blás Panama Central America| Veraguas Panama Central America| Colombia South America| Antioquia Colombia South America| Chocó Colombia South America|