Tococa nitens (Benth.) Triana
-
Family
Melastomataceae (Magnoliophyta)
-
Scientific Name
Tococa nitens (Benth.) Triana
-
Primary Citation
Trans. Linn. Soc. London 28(1): 123. 1871
-
Basionym
-
Description
Description Author and Date: Fabian A. Michelangeli, January 2010, based on Michelangeli, F. A. (2005). Tococa (Melastomataceae). Flora Neotropica Monographs 98: 1-114.
Type: Guyana (British Guiana). Cuyuni-Mazaruni: sandstone regions, Schomburgk s. n. (holotype K; isotype K).
Description: Shrub, to 2-3.5 (-5.5) m tall. Stems glabrous, rarely the younger stems very sparsely glandular setose, then the trichomes 1-2 mm long, caducous, the nodes glabrous. Petioles 0.5-2.0 (-3.5) cm long, glabrous. Leaves isophyllous, elliptic-oblong, rarely ovate, 6-13 (-16) x 3-6 (-7) cm, apex acute to obtuse, base round to obtuse, adaxial surface glabrous, rarely with very sparse caducous glandular setae, abaxial surface glabrous, green, occasionally with a red tinge near the margins on the adaxial surface, with 1(-2) pairs of secondary veins, basally nervate, occasionally the secondary and tertiary nerves red to crimson on the abaxial surface, the adaxial surface nitid, coriaceous to chartaceous, entire to slightly serrulate, ciliate; domatia absent. Inflorescence a terminal panicle, 7-14 cm long, on a peduncle 3-9 cm long, with (3-)10-18 (-25) flowers, the axis green, slightly flattened. Flowers on pedicels 1-3 (-5) mm long, slightly flared at the apex, subtended by persistent bracts, ovate to deltoid, 1.0-1.2 x 0.8-1.1 mm; hypanthium campanulate, 5.0-6.0 mm long, glabrous; sepals obscurely 5-lobed, truncate, 1.5-1.8 mm long, calyx teeth highly reduced, completely adnate to the sepals, glabrous; the ring inside the torus glabrous. Petals 5, oblong-obovate, 8-11.5 (-13) x 6-7.5 mm, base attenuate, emarginated, slightly pruinosus, glabrous, pink, occasionally the margins fuchsia to red. Stamens all of the same size, the filaments fuchsia to pink, 5-6 mm long, glabrous; anthers yellow; the connective with a dorsal-basal blunt tooth; thecae 6.0-6.5 mm long, opening by a upright to dorsally inclined pore. Ovary 3-locular, 1/5 inferior, the superior portion terete, the apex with a glabrous ring, 0.5-0.7 mm tall, rarely with sparse minute sessile glands; style glabrous, 12-14 mm long; stigma truncate. Fruits globose, 6-9 mm long, black, glabrous. The seeds not evident through the pericarp, truncate-obovate, 0.8-1.4 mm long, without capitate trichomes in the raphal area, without sculpturing, anticlinal walls straight, periclinal walls slightly convex, boundaries between periclinal walls flat. Chromosome number n= 17.
Habitat and Distribution: Growing in savannas and open scrub vegetation in S Venezuela, Guyana and Brazil, from 150 to 1500 m.
Phenology: Flowering and fruiting year round, but with a peak during the rainy season (May-Sep in the N hemisphere and Nov-Feb in the S hemisphere).
Taxonomy and Systematics: Tococa nitens is a very common species of the high elevation savannas and scrub lands of S Venezuela, Guayana and the Planalto in Brazil, although it occasionally grows at elevations under 500 m. Although two varieties have been described based on the shape and size of the leaves, the variation within and across populations is such that the differentiation seems difficult and superfluous. Tococa nitens is closely related to T. raggiana, T. caryophyllea and T. cinnamomea, with which it shares shinny leaves and the reduced outer calyces. Vegetatively, T. nitens looks very similar to Miconia ciliata, from which it can be distinguished by its thicker, larger and more coriaceous leaves. The fruits of T. nitens are edible, and occasionally consumed by Pemón Amerindians in S Venezuela.
-
Floras and Monographs
Tococa nitens (Benth.) Triana: [Article] Michelangeli, Fabián A. 2005.
(Melastomataceae). Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 98: 1-114.
