Renealmia concinna Standl.

  • Authority

    Maas, Paulus J. M. 1977. Renealmia (Zingiberaceae--Zingiberoideae), Costoideae (Additions) (Zingiberaceae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 18: 1-218. (Published by NYBG Press)

  • Family

    Zingiberaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Renealmia concinna Standl.

  • Type

    TYPE. Standley 37355 (holotype, US), vicinity of Guapiles, 300-500 m, prov. Limón, Costa Rica.

  • Synonyms

    Renealmia foliifera Standl.

  • Description

    Description - Plants 0.5-2 m tall. Rhizomes 6-10 mm thick, the roots 2-4(-7) mm thick, sometimes supported on stilt-roots. Sheaths striate, 5-10 mm wide, to 20 mm at the base of the plant, densely covered with furcate to stellate prickles (<0.1 mm long). Ligule ca 1 mm long. Petiole absent. Lamina narrowly elliptic, acute to acuminate at the apex (acumen 5-20 mm long), cuneate at the strongly sheathing base, (22-) 30-50 cm long, 5-8 cm wide, upper side glabrous, lower side sparsely to rather densely covered with hairs of the compass-needle type (hairs 0.2-0.4 mm wide). Scape erect, 3-40 cm tall, up to 3 mm thick, beset with sheaths up to 1-5(8) cm long and 0.5-0.7 cm wide. Inflorescence a basal thyrse (5-)7-20 cm long and (l-)2-5 cm wide, with (2-)4-5-flowered cincinni, rhachis green to greenish-yellow. Indument of inflorescence: sheaths, rhachis, peduncles, bracteoles, pedicels, calyx, ovary, and capsule sparsely to densely covered with hairs of the compass-needle type (0.2-0.5 mm wide), branches of the hairs simple or furcate; normal furcate and plurifurcate hairs also present; petals sparsely hairy at their cucullate tips. Bracts green, rather long persistent, narrowly (ovate-)triangular to (ovate-)triangular, acute, 8-25 mm long, 4-15 mm wide. Peduncles 2-6 mm long. Bracteole green, 7-10 mm long. Pedicels 2-5 mm long. Calyx green, urceolate, 3-6 mm long and wide, the lobes triangular, deltate, or shallowly triangular, 1-3 mm long and wide. Corolla white, ca 10 mm long, the tube ca 5 mm long, the lobes 5 mm long, 3 mm wide. Labellum white with yellow centre, 7-8 mm long and wide when spread out, the limb horizontally spreading, lateral lobes rounded, ca 4 mm long, 2.5 mm wide, middle lobe bilobulate, basal claw densely covered with simple and furcate hairs (ca 0.3 mm long), 4 mm long, 2 mm wide, lateral staminodes ca 1 mm long. Anther pink, 2.5 mm long, 2 mm wide, glabrous. Style 10 mm long. Nectarial glands forming a one-sided cylinder, only partly surrounding the style base, 1.5 mm long. Ovary orange, globose to ellipsoid. Capsule red or orange, maturing black, globose to ellipsoid, 4-8 mm long, its wall 0.1 mm thick when dry, 2-8 seeded, seeds 2-3 X 3-5 mm, aril orange.

  • Discussion

    The closest relative of this species is R. dressleri, which shares the indument of compass-needles on lamina and inflorescence. Renealmia concinna differs from that species, however, by its basal inflorescence and its green instead of bright red calyx.

    Renealmia foliifera possibly belongs to this species, but as the type material is very fragmentary, its status could not be determined with certainty (it shows also relationship with R. congesta).

    Killip 35289 (COL, GH, US), from Choco, Corcovada Region, upper Rio San Juan, Yeracuí Valley, 200-275 m, Colombia, resembles this species by its indument, but differs by its distinctly petiolate lamina.

    A. Smith 1595 (NY), from Alfaro Ruiz, Bella Vista de Zarcero, prov. Alajuela, Costa Rica, 1550 m, is closely related to R. concinna, deviating, however, by the indument of the rhachis, consisting of plurifurcate (appearing stellate) hairs.

    Goudot 133 (K), from La Balsa, Quindio, Colombia, is somewhat intermediate between R. concinna and R. puberula.

  • Distribution

    Costa Rica, Panama, and Colombia; in wet forests from sea-level to 1800 m.

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