Guettarda malacophylla Standl.
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Authority
Maguire, Bassett. 1972. The botany of the Guayana Highland--part IX. Mem. New York Bot. Gard. 23: 1-832.
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Family
Rubiaceae
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Scientific Name
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Description
Distribution and Ecology - Distribution. Colombia and Venezuela. COLOMBIA. Magdalena: Valle del Río Cesare (parte occidental), al oeste de Los Venados, 10° N, 73° 42' W, alt 60 m, 23 Apr 1963, Dugand 6328. Huila: Neiva, 5 km to bridge over Río Magdalena, Cordillera Oriental, alt 425 m, 7 Apr 1944, E. L. & Ruby Little 7606; 1 km S of Rio Cabrera and ca 17 km NE of Villavieja, upper basin of Río Magdalena, alt 500 m, 13 Jul 1950, Galen Smith 1213; highway to Palermo, Magdalena Valley, 8 km W of Neiva, alt 455 m, 12 Oct 1944, Little 8809. VENEZUELA. Bolívar: en las cercanias de los campamentos "El Paraiso" y "La Yagua," aproximadamente 24-48 km NE del Caserío Los Rosos, este último aproximadamente 17 km de Upata (sobre la carretera nueva de Upata-San Felix), 1-25 Aug 1965, Blanco 238; Las Baras (Guri), alt 100 m, 9 Aug 1968, Hno. Alejandro 17-5543.
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Discussion
Guettarda eliadis Standi., Trop. Woods 42: 25. 1935.
Type. Río Magdalena, Neiva and Timana, alt 400-1200 m, November, F. C. Lehmann 8710.
Study of G. malacophylla Standi, and G. eliadis Standi, does not reveal any real distinction between them. Standley describes the leaf apex of G. malacophylla as shortly acuminate to obtuse, and that of G. eliadis as rounded or subtruncate. However, this character varies on the same branch, as in Dugand 6328, identified as G. eliadis, in which the leaves are both rounded and subacute. In both G. malacophylla and G. eliadis the flowers are tetramerous, the corollas with short tubes, the peduncles few, short, and crowded, and the vegetative pubescence similar. Younger and unfolding leaves are often densely pilosulous or hirtous above, becoming nearly glabrous on the surface or pubescent only on the midrib and lateral nerves above, but the lower leaf surface is densely pilosulous or villosulous with denser, longer hairs covering the midrib and lateral nerves. The corolla varies in length from 8-14 mm (tube 4.5-10, lobes 1.5-4), this variation apparently being correlated with the maturity of the corolla. Standley described the corolla of G. malacophylla as 9.5-10.5 mm long (tube 7-8, lobes 2.5), but the measurements were undoubtedly taken from dried corollas, since an examination of boiled material of the type specimen reveals a total length of 13 mm (tube 10 mm, lobes 3 mm). Standley does not mention the number of corolla lobes or stamens in his description of G. malacophylla, but the holotype examined shows two corollas with five lobes, four stamens, and a 4-celled ovary. Other collections examined of G. malacophylla and G. eliadis have generally tetramerous corollas, with four lobes, four stamens, and a 4-celled ovary.
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Distribution
Distribution. Colombia and Venezuela.
Colombia South America| Venezuela South America|