Castilla ulei Warb.
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Authority
Berg, Cornelius C. 1972. Olmedieae, Brosimeae (Moraceae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 7: 1-229. (Published by NYBG Press)
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Family
Moraceae
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Scientific Name
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Type
Lectotype. Ule 5359 [female] (B), Murray, Rio Jurua, Amazonas, Brazil.
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Description
Description - Monoecious or dioecious trees up to 40 m tall; latex white. Leafy twigs 2-7 mm thick, with appressed, whitish to yellowish, mostly basally echinate hairs, or more or less patent yellow to brown hairs; periderm wrinkled. Leaves elliptic to oblong, often broadest near the upper or the lower end, slightly inequilateral, (5-)10-25(-38) cm long, (2.5-)4-10(-15) cm broad, chartaceous, acuminate, truncate to cordate at the base, denticulate, scabrous above, subhispid to substrigose to subtomentose beneath; veins nearly plane above, prominent beneath, 15-2o(-25) pairs of secondary veins; petioles 4-16 mm long; stipules 1-5 cm long, yellow strigose and puberulous, their margins white tomentellous. Primary staminate inflorescences usually 4 together, flabellate, 2(-3)-valved, 8-15(20) mm broad, 6-10 mm high; peduncle 2-5 mm long, bracteate; involucre (in the middle) with 8-12 series of triangular to ovate to suborbiculate, acute to acuminate to obtuse, yellow strigose bracts; complemental staminate inflorescences solitary or paired, about infundibuliform, up to 7 mm high including the short peduncle, up to 6 mm broad; involucre with 7-8 series of bracts; stamens solitary, filaments 0.4-1.2 mm long, anthers 0.6-1.2 mm long, 0.4-1.2 mm broad, often irregularly shaped and inequilateral, connectives broad; interstaminal bracts up to 2 mm long, acute, puberulous. Pistillate inflorescences solitary, rarely geminate, subglobose, 7-10 mm in diameter, sessile; involucre with 8-12 series of reniform to deltoid to suborbiculate, acute to acuminate, yellow strigose bracts; flowers 3-5; perianth ca 2 mm high, tubular, 4-dentate, puberulous; ovary immersed in the receptacle; style ca 2 mm long, glabrous, stigmas 1.2-2.0 mm long, usually unequal, ovule subterminally attached. Infructescences (sub-)globose, 1.5-2.2 cm in diameter; fruiting perianth reddish. Flowering probably throughout the year.
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Discussion
The branchlets are either covered with white to yellow, short, appressed hairs or with yellow to brown, longer, mostly patent hairs; both types of indument are distributed at random, and intermediate forms occur. In many characters the species is very similar to C. elastica. The specimens with appressed hairs on the twigs or with pistillate inflorescences are easily distinguished from C. elastica. On the other hand, most other specimens are here placed in C. ulei because they are from the Amazon Basin. There are indications from annotations on labels that the habit of C. ulei differs from that of C. elastica; the fertile branches are probably shorter and less drooping than in C. elastica. The bark of the twigs often becomes detached in herbarium material.
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Distribution
(Fig 37). Brazil, Peru, Colombia; Amazon Basin; in forests of the terra firme.
Colombia South America| Peru South America| Brazil South America|