Montanoa atriplicifolia (Pers.) Sch.Bip.

  • Authority

    Funk, Victoria A. 1982. The systematics of Montanoa (Asteraceae, Heliantheae). Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 36: 1-133.

  • Family

    Asteraceae

  • Scientific Name

    Montanoa atriplicifolia (Pers.) Sch.Bip.

  • Description

    Species Description - Shrubs or vines to 3 m tall or 15 m long. Stems terete, light brown, herbaceous parts puberulent. Leaves variable; petioles 1.5-11.5 cm long, usually partially winged and auriculate, densely glandular and pubescent, hairs 0.5-1.0 mm long, blades ovate to pentagonal (Fig. 60A-K), 4.5-14.5 cm long, 1.5-15.0 cm wide, apex acute to acuminate, margin entire to irregularly serrate, sometimes deeply 3-lobed, adaxial surface moderately pubescent, hairs pustular, abaxial surface densely glandular and pubescent, hairs 0.5-1.0 mm long. Peduncles 1.5-7.5 cm long, densely glandular and pubescent, hairs 0.5-1.0 mm long. Heads pendulous at fruiting, 0.6-0.8 cm diam in flower, 1.7-2.7 cm diam in fruit, few to many in open cymose synflorescences in oppositely branched compound corymbs. Phyllaries 5-6, uniseriate, equal, quickly becoming reflexed, ovate-lanceolate, 4-5 mm long, 1.0-1.25 mm wide, dark green, margin ciliate, entire, abaxial surface densely pubescent, hairs 0.5-1.0 mm long, adaxial surface with a few scattered hairs. Ray florets 8-15, corollas white, ligules lanceolate to narrowly elliptic, 1224 mm long, 3-6 mm wide, apex acute to 2-notched, adaxial surface essentially glabrous, abaxial surface moderately to densely glandular, tube 0.5-1.0 mm long, 0.25 mm wide, essentially glabrous. Disc florets (Fig. 60L) 90-120; corollas yellow, tube 0.5 mm long, 0.5 mm diam, sparsely glandular and pubescent, hairs less than 0.5 mm long, throat cylindrical, 1.0 mm long, 1.0 mm diam, essentially glabrous or sparsely glandular and pubescent, hairs less than 0.5 mm long, lobes 5, 0.5 mm long, 0.5 mm wide, apex acuminate, moderately glandular and pubescent, hairs thick, less than 0.5 mm long; stamens with filaments 1.0 mm long, 0.10 mm wide, anthers not fully exserted from corolla, thecae brown, 0.75 mm long, 0.25 mm wide, apical appendages yellow, acute-acuminate, 0.5 mm long, 0.15 mm wide, abaxial surfaces of apical appendages glandular; styles (Fig. 60M) yellow, 2.5 mm long, enlarged at base, stigmatic surface brown, 0.75 mm long, apical appendages yellow, acute, 0.25 mm long, 0.25 mm wide. Pales at anthesis obtrullate (Fig. 60N) 2.25 mm long, 2.0 mm wide, light yellow with dark bands in center and along veins, apex long-acuminate, indurate, yellow, margin ciliate, entire, abaxial surface moderately glandular and pubescent near distal half, not on apex, hairs 1.0 mm long, on adaxial surface glabrous; pales at fruiting deciduous, more or less obdeltoid (Fig. 60M), 10-14 mm long, 3-4 mm wide, papery with netted venation, stramineous or purple, apex sinus with apiculate tip, margin sparsely pubescent, hairs less than 1.0 mm long, adaxial and abaxial surfaces glabrous. Achenes brown-black, 2.5 mm long, 1.5 mm wide, smooth. Chromosome number, n = 19. Flowering (and Fruiting) Period: November-January (December-March).

  • Discussion

    Verbesina atriplicifolia Pers., Syn. Pl. 2: 472. 1807. Type: Hort. Ital. (holotype, P?; non-flowering isotype, FI!). Persoon often used Jussieu’s herbarium (Stafleu, 1967) which is now at Paris. No possible holotypes were found in the loan material from P and Persoon’s description is cryptic. It would not be possible to place this species except that Jussieu and Desfontaines published a better description (Colla, 1824), synonymy, and a drawing, and attributed the species to Persoon. The drawing is somewhat questionable, however, as the rays are too blunt for Montanoa, and they have well-developed stigmas. Although there is still some doubt, the evidence is sufficient to warrant recognition of this name. Eriocoma atriplicifolia (Pers.) Kuntze, Rev. Gen. Pl. 1: 336. 1891. Clerodendron phlomoides Juss. & Desf. in Lamarck, Hort. Ital. 8: 460. 1808, nom. nud. pro syn. Galinsoga discolor Spreng., Nov. Prov. 19. 1819. Type: Hort. Ital., G. B. Balbis s.n. (holotype, P!; isotype, G-DC; photo of holotype, US!; photo of G-DC isotype, GH! US!). Montanoa dumicola Klatt in Durand & Pittier, Bull. Soc. Roy. Bot. Belgique (Brussels) 31: 200. 1882. Type: COSTA RICA, San José, hedgerow on the “llanos de Alajuelila,” 1100 m, 1 Dec 1889, H. Pittier 1454 (holotype, GH! isotypes, BR[2]! G! US!). Montanoa pauciflora Klatt, Leopoldina 23: 90. 1887. Type: “Middle America ... in Herb. Klatt.” (holotype not located). The most likely place for this specimen is GH. However, the types as well as the general collections of Montanoa have been searched to no avail. Coreopsis trilobata Vahl ex Klatt, Leopoldina 23: 90. 1887, nom. nud. pro syn. This is listed as the type of M. pauciflora Klatt in the type description. The types as well as the general collections at GH have been checked for this specimen (in litt., M. Canoso) but it has not been located. The possibility exists that the specimen will be located at a later date; a neotype has not been selected. Montanoa schottii Robins. & Greenm., Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 34: 518. 1899. Type: MEXICO, Yucatán, on the road between Merida and Sisal, 24 Oct 1865, A. Schott 913 (holotype, F!). A delicate appearing plant with slender, often erect branches and heads with a large number (90-120) of extremely small (2 mm) disc florets. When Montanoa atriplicifolia is found as a vine it is characterized by large (1-2 cm diam) branches sprawling across other vegetation or the ground and short, slender, erect, lateral branches bearing small groups of capitula. This type of growth form is found primarily in the Yucatán Peninsula. At higher altitudes and in wetter habitats this species gradually changes to a shrub habit. Both growth forms have relatively small leaves that have the same range of shapes (Fig. 60A-K). Montanoa atriplicifolia is most closely related to M. pteropoda with which it shares the occasional vine-like habit, large number of small disc florets (less than 3.0 mm long) and obtrullate pales with a moderate sinus. The two species are easily distinguished by M. pteropoda having a dark aspect to the heads caused by the dark gray-green-black color of the apices of the corolla, stigma and anthers, and by M. atriplicifolia not having all the parts of the disc florets yellow. In addition, the apices of the stigmata, anthers and petals are blunt-acute in M. pteropoda and the petioles are winged to the base, whereas the apices of parts of the disc florets are acuminate in M. atriplicifolia, and the petioles are unwinged for most of their length.

  • Distribution

    Distribution and Habitat: Chiapas and the Yucatán to Costa Rica (Fig. 61); wide range of habitats from cool forests to dry roadsides; 450-2000 m, more vinelike at lower altitudes and in drier environments.

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