Dorstenia peruviana C.C.Berg

  • 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

    Dorstenia peruviana C.C.Berg

  • Type

    Type. Peru. Huánuco: trail from Río Huallaga to Riachuela Chontalagua, 15 Oct 1936, Mexia 8303 (holotype, U; isotypes, BM, F, G, GH, K, MO, NA, NY, S, US).

  • Synonyms

    Dorstenia boliviana C.C.Berg

  • Description

    Species Description - Herb, to 80 cm tall, rhizomatous; stem 3-5 mm thick, sparsely, ± retrorsely and minutely puberulous to densely hirtellous to subhirsute with uncinate and straight hairs; internodes 1-4.5 cm long. Leaves in spirals; lamina oblong to subobovate to elliptic to subpandurate or to lanceolate, 6-22 × 2-9.5 cm, chartaceous; apex subacute to acuminate; base subcordate to cordate or sometimes almost obtuse, often ± inequilateral; margin subentire to repand or (coarsely) crenate; upper surface scabridulous or smooth and subglabrous; lower surface scabridulous, on the veins sparsely and minutely puberulous with straight and uncinate hairs; lateral veins 10-18 pairs, loop-connected; tertiary venation subscalariform to reticulate; petiole 2-5 cm long, minutely puberulous to hirtellous with ± retrorse uncinate to straight hairs; stipules (narrowly) triangular to subulate, to 0.8 cm long, uninervate, (minutely) puberulous. Inflorescences on minute short-shoots with reduced stipules, yellowish green with a darker rim; peduncle 1-7 cm long, sparsely to densely puberulous to hirtellous, mainly with uncinate hairs; receptacle eccentrically to centrally attached, gradually passing into the peduncle or not, broadly turbinate to almost discoid, orbicular to elliptic in outline, ca. 1.5-5 cm diam., the outside minutely appressed-puberulous to hirtellous, the margin denticulate to subentire, the fringe ca. 0.5 mm broad; bracts in ca. 3 rows on and below the margin and on the fringe, ovate to triangular or to semiorbicular, to 0.7 mm long, appressed or sometimes ± radiating, sparsely appressed-puberulous; staminate flowers mainly peripheral or also numerous among the pistillate flowers; tepals 2; stamens 2; filaments longer than the perianth; stigmas almost equal or unequal in length, 0.4-0.5 mm long. Endocarp body ca. 3 × 2-2.5 mm, tuberculate.

  • Discussion

    The species shows similarities to Dorstenia choconiana from which it mainly differs in the absence of an attenuate base of the lamina and in the gradual broadening of the peduncle into the receptacle. The species appears to be related to D. umbricola.

    The collections from Huanuco differ from those from Madre de Dios and Bolivia in the sparse and short indumentum on various plant parts. This difference was used to distinguish Dorstenia peruviana from D. boliviana (Berg & van Leeuwen, 1982). Due to more recent collecting, the differences between the northern and the more distinctly hairy southern form became obscure and made uniting of these two entities necessary.

  • Distribution

    In Peru (Cuzco, Huánuco, Madre de Dios, and Puno) and Bolivia (La Paz); in moist forest; to 1400 m.

    Peru South America| Cusco Peru South America| Huánuco Peru South America| Madre de Dios Peru South America| Puno Peru South America| Bolivia South America| La Paz Bolivia South America|