Harpalyce villosa Britton & P.Wilson
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Authority
Arroyo, M. A. 1976. The systematics of the legume genus Harpalyce (Leguminosae: Lotoideae). Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 26 (4): 1-80.
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Family
Fabaceae
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Scientific Name
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Description
Species Description - Deciduous shrub or small tree to 4 m tall, the branches sulcate, villous to clad in short, ferrugineous hairs, aging with puberulent longitudinally fissured, dark-gray or brownish bark; stipules triangular, 1 mm long, 0.5 mm wide, sometimes caducous; petioles 1-2.5(-2.8) cm long, ferrugineous, the rachis (3.5-)5.5-10.5 cm long; leaves somewhat seasonally dimorphic, leaflets 9-11 (-13), when young softly chartaceous, later becoming thickly coriaceous, elliptic-oblong, 1-4 cm long, (0.8-) 1-1.3 cm wide, rounded and retuse at the apex, rounded at the base, glabrous and highly lustrous above, opaque below, when young sparsely clad in long, ferrugineous hairs, the hairs soon faUing and exposing the numerous, deeply-embedded, golden, pateriform, biseriate glands, the glands thus becoming evident with age; primary veins emerging from the midvein at 10°-20°, proximally straight, eventually forking toward the margin, the bifurcations converging in pairs, prominent on the upper surface, less evident beneath; intervein areas above strongly venose; petiolules 1-3 mm long, ferrugineovillous; stipels caducous, the interpetiolular region almost lacking glandular scales. Flowers borne in axillary racemes or in terminal panicles of racemes at the leafless nodes, the peduncles and pedicels sulcate, densely ferrugineous, the bracts triangular, 1 mm long and wide; pedicels very long, 1.5-3 cm long; bracteoles ovate-triangular, rather thick, less than 1 mm long, 0.5 mm wide, inserted 1-2 mm beneath the calyx; calyx in bud narrowly ovate to ovate-oblong, curving only at maturity, strongly ribbed, angulate in cross-section, gradually tapering from the truncate base into the shortly apiculate apex, the two lips ovate-lanceolate, apiculate at the apex, ferrugineo-villous and densely gland-dotted on the outside, glabrous within, the vexillar lip 2.8-3.5 cm long, 4-5 mm wide, the carinal lip 3-3.5 cm long, 4-5 mm wide; coroUa pink to whitishpink, vexillum and wings membranaceous, keel somewhat fleshy; vexillum obovate or essentially orbicular, the blade 0.8-1 cm long, 6-8 mm wide, shallowly notched at the apex, rapidly diminishing into an entire, slender claw, 3-4 mm long, 1-2 mm wide; wings oblong-falcate, 5-7 mm long, 2-3 mm wide, the claw longer than the blade, auricled only on the vexillar side, the auricle broadly triangular, 1-2 mm long, 1.5-2.5 mm wide; keel petals free, helically contorted, linear-lanceolate, strongly angled at the claws, the auricle 1 m long, 1-2 mm wide; nectariferous disc ca. 0.5 mm wide; staminal sheath 2.5-2.8 cm long, shortly exserted from the keel; anthers linear-oblong, apex apiculate, base auriculate, the large anthers 9-10 mm long, the small anthers 2-3 mm long, both sets ca. 1 mm wide; pollen powdery, long axis, 42-25 µ; ovary ovate-oblong, 7-8 mm long, 2-3 mm wide, containing 4-8 ovules; style 2.5-3.1 cm long, curved, exserted from the staminal tube by 8-10 mm ; stigma obliquely truncate, glabrous. Legume obovateoblong, 3.8-5.5 cm long, 9-10 mm wide, recurved at the apex, attenuate at the base, lacking partitions, the valves reddish-brown, shallowly rugose, the sutures finely notched. Seeds 4-6, obovate, ca. 6 mm long, 5 mm wide, maroon-brown, nitid, the strophiole bioperculate, bright orange upon drying.
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Discussion
20. Harpalyce villosa Britton & Wilson, Mem. Torrey Club 16: 67. 1920. (Fig. 19 a-k). Type. CUBA. Oriente: Vicinity of Camp San Benito, Sierra de Nipe, Shafer 4089, 24 Feb 1910 (holotype, NY!). Paratype. Oriente: Moa, Baracoa, Roig 43, 29 Aug 1917 (NY!). The unique feature of this species of sect. Cubenses is its deciduous habit with flowering occurring frequently in the leafless state. Other striking characteristics of this species are the 9-11(-13) relatively small, highly lustrous leaflets, the strongly angled, narrow calyx lips, and the extraordinarily long keel petals and contrastingly minute wings. The subcorymbose inflorescence, strongly angled calyx and free keel petals place this species with H. ekmanii and H. alainii.
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Distribution
Distribution (Fig. 18). C U B A . Oriente: Restricted to coastal areas in the vicinity of M o a and extending onto the western edge of the Sierra de Nipe.
Cuba South America|