Morphology of the Eschweilera integrifolia clade.

  • Title

    Morphology of the Eschweilera integrifolia clade.

  • Authors

    Scott Alan Mori, Caroline Carollo, Nathan P. Smith

  • Scientific Name

    Eschweilera Mart. ex DC.

  • Description

    From Huang et al. (in review)

    Eschweilera integrifolia clade (<50% BS; Fig. 1B) —This clade comprises 19 sampled species of Eschweilera included in Eschweilera section Eschweilera by Mori & Prance (1990). Species of this group are found from central to western Amazonian Brazil, the Andes, the forests of the Pacific coasts of Colombia, Ecuador, and Central America as far north as Costa Rica. This clade is the least understood of neotropical Lecythidaceae.

    This clade is defined by a triple coil (characters 26, 27) with vestigial stamen nectaries at the apex of the last coil (not coded) (Figs. 10B, F). In addition, most of the species (e.g., E. aguilarii S. A. Mori, E. amplexifolia S. A. Mori, E. andina (Rusby) J. F. Macbr., E. collinsii Pittier, E. integrifolia, E. ovalifolia (DC.) Nied., and E. sessilis A. C. Sm.) have a spreading aril that completely surrounds the seed (character 48) (Figs. 10D, G, I, 11C), but several species possess arils that are lateral but differ from the lateral arils of the E. parvifolia clade by having their ends extend around the base and apex of the seed (Fig. 11A–B, e.g., E. antioquensis Dugand & Daniel, E caudiculata R. Knuth, and E. rimbachii Standl.) or by having the very large and fleshy lateral arils known only in E. jacquelyniae S. A. Mori).

    Eschweilera amazoniciformis S. A. Mori, endemic to central Amazonian Brazil, is sister to the remaining species of the clade. This species is distinguished by the presence of four instead of six calyx-lobes (Fig. 2B; character 16) and four instead of six petals (18). In addition, it is the only known species of neotropical Lecythidaceae with the combination of a triple-coiled androecial hood and fusiform seeds with a well-developed basal aril.

     Most of the species of the E. integrifolia clade are found in western Amazonia and the mountain valleys and slopes of the Andes, with the exception of the central Amazonian E. amazoniciformis and Eschweilera ovalifolia. The Andean and western Amazonian species possess predominantly red flowers, but the coastal Ecuadorean species E. awaensis S. A. Mori & Cornejo and the western to central Amazonian species E. ovalifolia have yellow flowers.