Arcytophyllum

• Authority

  Mena V., Patricio. 1990. A revision of the genus Arcytophyllum (Rubiaceae: Hedyotideae). Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 60: 1-26.

• Family

  Rubiaceae

• Scientific Name

  Arcytophyllum

• Type

  Type Species. A. blaerioides Willd. ex Schult. & J. H. Schult., Syst. veg. Mant. 3: 108. 1827.

• Description

  Species Description - Perennial subshrubs or shrubs erect or prostrate; stems glabrescent or glabrous; branches setose, glabrescent or glabrous. Stipules interpetiolar, persistent, sheathing, triangular or scutiform, simple or with tooth-like projections, glabrous or setose or with pustuliform papillae. Leaves opposite, sessile or subsessile, venation inconspicuous, coriaceous, suborbicular, widely elliptic, widely ovate, elliptic, ovate or narrowly lanceolate, acuminate, caudate or aristate. Inflorescences terminal, a solitary flower or an umbelliform cyme or a compound dichasium. Flowers: hypanthium obovoid; disk fleshy; calyx 4(5)-merous with triangular or trullate lobes, margin entire or minutely serrate, seldom setose, intercalycine teeth present, slender, glabrous or setose, sometimes stipule-like, rarely absent; corolla 4(5)-merous, purple, white, pink or red, or white with purple or pink tips abaxially, whitish adaxially, minutely pubescent or with scattered white clavate hairs or vermiform hairs adaxially, tube glabrous, lobes valvate in bud; stamens 4(5), adnate to corolla tube, anthers dorsifixed, loculate, generally slightly protruding; ovary bilocular, the style slender, linear, the stigma bifid, included to conspicuously protruding. Fruit a bilocular, septicidal capsule, sometimes only the beginning ofthe dehiscence loculicidal, crowned by persistent calyx lobes and intercalycine teeth, seldom setose; seeds minute, (2-)4-12(-more than 12) per locule, irregularly patelliform or cymbiform, dark brown when mature, the coat coarsely alveolated.

• Discussion

  Anotis sect. Ereicofcjtis DC, Prodr. 4: 431. 1830; Ereicoctis (DC.) Kuntze, Revis. gen. pl. 1: 281. 1891. Mallostoma Karsten, Fl. Columb. 2: 9, pl. 105. 1862. Type Species. M. cachirensis Karsten (=Arcytophyllum cachirense (KATsXevi) K. Schum., Bot. Syst. Jahrb. 4(4): 28. 1891]. Pseudorachicallis Karsten, R. Columb. 2: 10. 1862, nom. nud.; Pseudorhachicallis Benth. & Hook, f, Gen. pl. 2: 60. 1873, orth var. Teinosolen Hook. f. in Benth. & Hook., Gen. pl. 2: 61. 1873, nom. nud. Etymologically, the name Arcytophyllum is somewhat misleading. The best, though not exact, translation from the Greek is "netted leaves." The syllable "to" is superfluous and the name makes little sense in a group characterized by the inconspicuousness of its foliar veins. The question arises as to why Willdenow chose such a seemingly contradictory name. In the sheet from the Willdenow herbarium it is clear that he wrote "Arcythophyllum." Barneby (pers. comm.) suggests that the actual word in the mind of Willdenow was "Arceuthophyllum," from the Greek meaning "juniper leaves." It is possible that Willdenow made a mistake in spelling it on the herbarium sheet and Schultes published it as Arcytophyllum, dropping the "h" possibly in an eflfort to make some sense out of the word. The name "Arceuthophyllum" does make sense, for this genus generally has leaves somewhat imbricated and shaped like those ofa juniper tree. There is even the name A. juniperifolium. Another possible, but to me less likely, explanation is that Willdenow actually meant "netted leaves," thinking that the foliage as a whole—the leaves being tightly packed—presents a netlike structure. Schlechtendahl (1856) restored the missing "h," but the first validly published spelling is Arcytophyllum and, even though it does not make much sense—especially when we now know its possibly correct form—it will have to be preserved. The ecological importance of the group has been pointed out a couple of times by Cleaf (1981) and by Mena and Balslev (1986). Sturm and Rangel (1985) described a new paramo plant association: Aragoo-Arcytophylletum nitidae, that comprises basically the shrubby vegetation that grows isolated and near rock outcrops.