Monotes adenophyllus Gilg var. homblei (De Wild.) Meerts, 2017

Meerts, Pierre, Rougelot, Quentin & Sosef, Marc, 2017, Revision of the genus Monotes (Dipterocarpaceae) in D. R. Congo, with implications for Angola and its distinction from Marquesia, Phytotaxa 308 (2), pp. 151-205 : 164-167

1b. Monotes adenophyllus Gilg var. homblei (De Wild.) Meerts , comb. et stat. nov.

Basionym: Monotes homblei De Wildeman (1915: 55) ; De Wildeman (1921: 133; 1927a: 175); Bancroft (1935: 512; 1937: 139; 1939a: 344). ≡ Vatica homblei De Wildeman (1915: 55) . ≡ Monotes magnificus Gilg var. homblei (De Wild.) Duvigneaud (1949: 55 , Pl. 13: a). ≡ Monotes adenophyllus Gilg subsp. homblei (De Wild.) Duvigneaud (1959: 102) ; Lebrun & Stork (1991: 144); Catarino et al. (2013: 266); Duvigneaud (1961: 414); Figueiredo & Smith (2008: 67); Lebrun & Stork (1991: 144); Meerts (2016: 222); Verdcourt (1989: 8); White (1962: 263).

Lectotype (designated here): —D.R. CONGO. Kapiri Valley , February 1913, Homblé 1177 (lecto-: BR! [barcode BR000008891631]).

Diagnosis: — Differs from the type variety by the more or less discolorous leaf blade, with areoles of the lower surface of the leaf covered with stellate hairs; upper surface with indumentum often denser, more persistent and with a larger proportion of fasciculate hairs.

Leaf blade 6–16 × 4–13 cm, upper surface with reticulum markedly impressed, with hairs in fascicles of mostly 2 or 3, 0.15–0.4 mm long; lower surface discolorous, typically ash-grey, more rarely whitish, with short fasciculate hairs on the nerves mixed with long curled solitary hairs 1–1.5 mm long on the nerves and reticulation, those longer than areole diameter (areoles generally <1 mm in diameter); interreticular areoles more or less densely covered with small stellate hairs; indumentum of reticulum and nerves often more or less fulvous, contrasting with the greyish indumentum of areoles.

Note: — Homblé 1249 (BR!, K! (fragm.)), one of the two syntypes, has only sparse stellate hairs, and thus appears somewhat intermediate between var. adenophyllus and var. homblei . Homblé 1177 is markedly discolorous and better represents the more usual state in specimens from Katanga. Therefore, Homblé 1177 is here chosen as the lectotype of Monotes homblei .

Variation: — Var. homblei is very variable in colour of the lower surface of the leaf and density of the indumentum. Two forms can be recognized, with a range of intermediates.