Comocladia mayana Atha, J.D.Mitch. & Pell

Authority

Atha, Daniel E., et al. 2011. A new species of (Anacardiaceae) from Belize and Guatemala. Brittonia. 63 (3): 370-374.

Family

Anacardiaceae

Scientific Name

Comocladia mayana Atha, J.D.Mitch. & Pell

Description

Description - Trees 3-6 m tall; stems solitary, simple, decumbent to erect, sometimes repent or reclining, 5-20 cm diameter near the base; bark brown, thin; sap watery, clear, soon oxidizing to black; cataphylls imbricate, cymbiform, ca. 7 mm long, densely rusty sericeous or rarely glabrous. Leaves aggregated near the apex of the stems, alternate, spiral, patent or slightly ascending, imparipinnate, 5-9 jugate, 36-77 cm long; petioles 5-13 cm long, terete, striate, short-villous or glabrous, the hairs brown, simple; leaflets sub-opposite, chartaceous, the adaxial surface strigose or glabrous, dark green, the abaxial surface strigose or glabrous, lighter green, pilose or glabrous along major veins, venation cla dodromous, secondary vein pairs 8-18; lateral leaflet petiolules 1-3 mm long, pilose or glabrous, basal pair diminutive, increasing acroscopically, blades oblong or oblong-elliptic (basal pair ovate), symmetrical to suboblique, 4-17x2.5-7 cm, the base rounded to cordate, the margin entire or subentire, slightly revolute, the apex acute to abruptly short-acuminate; terminal leaflet petiolules 0.5-4.4 cm long, blades elliptic or elliptic oblong, 3.5-17x2.5-5.8 cm, the base rounded, obtuse or cuneate, the margin entire or subentire, slightly revolute, the apex acute to abruptly short-acuminate. Inflorescences alternate and spirally arranged above the leaves, shorter than the leaves, 27 47 cm long, ascending; peduncles 5-17.5 cm long, puberulent or glabrous. Flowers clustered on remote, short branches 0—10 cm long. Staminate flower buds globose ca. 1 mm diameter; perianth imbricate, 4-merous, gla brous; sepals basally united, forming a squarish cup, the lobes ovate, 0.5- 0.6x0.5-0.6 mm, pink; corolla rotate, 2.5-3.0 mm diameter, the petals ovate, 0.7-1.0x0.7-0.8 mm, fleshy, purple; stamens 4, alternating with the petals, much shorter than petals, the filaments flattened, subulate, 0.3-0.4 mm long and ca. 0.2 mm diameter in the center, the anthers basifixed, ellipsoid ca. 0.15 mm long; intrastaminal disk 0.5-0.7 mm diameter and ca. 0.2 mm high, weakly 4-lobed, the lobes projecting between the stamens and opposite the petals, glabrous; ovary globose, glabrous, ca. 0.2 mm diam. Ovulate flowers not seen. Fruits oblong-ellipsoid, 1.3-1.5x1.0 cm, the exocarp smooth, the mesocarp thin, fleshy. Seed ellipsoid, 0.8x 0.5 cm, the seed coat smooth and veiny; cotyledons large, fleshy.

Discussion

Phenology.-Male flowers fertile February and March; fruit ripe in April.

The distribution of this species is very similar to the recently-described Acalypha gentlei Atha (Euphorbiaceae), with which it shares the following arborescent associates: Metopium brownei (Jacq.) Urb. (Anacardia ceae), Plumeria rubra L. forma acutifolia (Poir) Woodson (Apocynaceae), Cryosophila stauracantha (Heynh.) R. Evans (Arecaceae), Schippia concolor Burret (Arecaceae), Bursera simaruba (L.) Sarg. (Burseraceae), Clusiaflava Jacq. (Clusiaceae), Alseis yucatanensis Standl. tubiaceae) and Vitex gaumeri Greenm. amiaceae) (Atha, 2008). The species is pected on limestone outcrops in adjacent Mexico.

Several natural history observations of C. mayana were made by the first author while collecting this new species . The pollinator for C. mayana is unknown, but solitary ants were observed visiting the hundreds of individual flowers of a male inflorescence (Atha pers obs., 007). Although all other species of the genus ; notorious for causing contact dermatitis, among five people who have handled the plant including the collectors of the type), none report any dermatological reaction to it.