Tapeinostemon spenneroides Benth.
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Authority
Maguire, Bassett. 1978. The botany of the Guayana Highland--part XI. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 32: 1-391.
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Family
Gentianaceae
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Scientific Name
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Discussion
3. Tapeinostemon spenneroides Bentham, Hook. Jour. Bot. Kew Misc. 6: 194. 1854. Fig 79. Stahelia surinamensis Jonker, Rec. Trav. Bot. Neeri. 34: 494, fig 7. 1937. Type. Top 1280 (1100 m), Wilhelmina Gebergte, Suriname, 20 Jun 1926, Ceroid Stahel 520 (holotype U; isotypes U, NY). Stahelia spenneroides (Benth.) Jonker, Rec. Trav. Bot. Neeri. 41: 149. 1948. Tapeinostemon ptariense Steyermark, Lloydia 14: 61, figs 1-7. 1951. Type. Herb 2 feet tall, steep forested slopes, "Cave Rock, at 2130 m all, Ptari-tepui, Bolivar, Venezuela, 4 Nov 1944, Julian A. Steyermark 59861 (holotype F, not seen by me). Type. Igarape, deep in forest near Panure, Rio Uaupes [Amazonas, Brazil], September 1852, Richard Spruce 2480 (type K, photo NY). Tapeinostemon spenneroides is an annual herb often exceeding two meters in height, distributed over much of Guayana and occupying a considerable altitudinal range, from the lowland of the Rio Negro region and the cumbres of Cerro Neblina in Venezuelan Amazonas eastward to the upper montane forests of Ptaritepuí in Estado Bolívar and the forested summit of the Wilhelmina Mountains in Suriname. In habit the species is fairly consistent throughout its altitudinal and geographic range. Other than general conformity of facies, distinctions have chiefly been recognized by flower criteria, especially flower size and coroUa length, and by prominence and form of style and stigmas. None of these morphologic variations seems to be correlatable with either geography or habitat. The species was estabhshed by Bentham on a purported unicate collection, " A single plant of this was found by Mr. Spruce by the side of an igarape, deep in the forest near Panure, in September, 1852." Bentham did not indicate a Spruce collection number. I have not seen this specimen or any putative duphcate specimens, but have before me a photograph of Spruce 2480, a presumptive type of Tapeinostemon spenneroides. The photograph is indeed adequate for evalution. It is consistent with the rather large accumulation of specimens that are here referred to Tapeinostemon spenneroides. The Spruce specimen is completely in late fruiting stage, no flowers being present, many of the fruits having been dropped, and of those remaining all styles have been partly deciduous, leaving only style bases of somewhat irregular lengths. Obviously no stigmas are to be seen. Therefore, Spruce 2480 is here designated as the type collection of Tapeinostemon spenneroides Benth. It is evident that the photographed specimen was viewed by Bentham, since the sheet bears the notation of locality and dates of the Spruce 2480 in the unmistakable handwriting of Bentham. The specimen in question bears no flowers, and ofthe capsules present and visible, as indicated above, without exception the style has been dropped and, therefore, no stigmas are to be observed. We must, therefore, disregard the Bentham characterization "Stylus brevissimus, lobis stigmatosis ovatis brevibus," but that the observation "... stylo omnino deraso obtusata" is accurate. Further, the pertinent stylar descriptions under Tapeinostemon capitatum (see discussion under that species) and that of the generic description also must be disregarded.
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Distribution
Distribution. Generally distributed and frequent as an annual herb 1-3 m high, at savanna elevations about 1000 meters, in the Gran Sabana of Venezuela and the Pakaraima Plateau of Guyana.
Venezuela South America| Guyana South America|