Stephanopodium engleri Baill.

• Authority

  Prance, Ghillean T. 1972. Dichapetalaceae. Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 10: 1-84. (Published by NYBG Press)

• Family

  Dichapetalaceae

• Scientific Name

  Stephanopodium engleri Baill.

• Type

  TYPE. Warming 1841, Brazil, Minas Gerais, Lagoa Santa, fl (holotype, P; isotype, C).

• Description

  Description - Small tree, the young branches sparsely puberulous, soon becoming glabrous. Leaves oblong to lanceolate, subcoriaceous, 5.0-9.5 cm long, 1.7-2.8 cm broad, gradually tapering to an acuminate apex, the acumen 6.0-15.0 mm long, cuneate and equal to slightly unequal at base, glabrous beneath; midrib slightly impressed above, prominent and with a sparse appressed pubescence beneath; primary veins 7-10 pairs, arcuate, anastomosing; petioles 5.0-12.0 mm long, canaliculate, sparsely pubescent. Stipules lanceolate, to 3.0 mm long, tomentellous, subpersistent. Flowers hermaphrodite, borne in dense-flowered sessile glomerules inserted on petioles, with very short pedicels; bracteoles ca 0.5 mm long, persistent, tomentose. Calyx 3.0-4.0 mm long, tomentose on exterior, the lobes unequal. Corolla exserted well beyond calyx lobes, of a long exserted tube and 5 small bifid lobes which are not cucullate, the tube glabrous on exterior, lanate near mouth and glabrous at base within. Fertile stamens 5, alternating with corolla lobes, the anthers sessile, inserted at mouth of corolla tube. Ovary bilocular with 2 ovules in each loculus, tomentose on exterior. Style deeply divided into two, sparsely pubescent. Fruit irregularly ellipsoid, ca 1.5 cm long; epicarp velutinous-ferrugineous; mesocarp thin; endocarp thin, bony, rather soft, glabrous within.

• Discussion

  The typification of this species presents a problem since, in the original description, Baillon cited, "Lagoa Santa inter sylvas legit Engler (exs., n. 1091), aprili et decembre floriferum (Herb. Warming)." There is no Engler collection in the Warming herbarium, and Engler never collected at Lagoa Santa. The actual material examined by Baillon is undoubtedly the material cited above, Warming 1841, which was collected at Lagoa Santa, "in sylvis." There are three gatherings of this number one of which was collected in April and another in December 1864. Furthermore the collectors name is abbreviated to Eug. W. which could easily be mistaken for Engler since the script is of a flowing nature. In 'Flora Brasiliensis' some years later, Baillon cited Warming as the collector of this species, and did not mention Engler. Both the Paris and Copenhagen sheets of Warming 1841 are annotated in Baillon’s handwriting.

• Distribution

  Brazil South America| Minas Gerais Brazil South America|