Boerhavia spicata Choisy

Sandoval-Ortega, Manuel Higinio & Sánchez-Escalante, José Jesús, 2022, The family Nyctaginaceae (Caryophyllales) in Sonora, Mexico, Phytotaxa 575 (1), pp. 35-56 : 45

4.10. Boerhavia spicata Choisy (in Candolle 1849: 456).

Lectotype (designated here):― MEXICO. No locality and collector info. ( GH00216835 , fragment [image!] image available at https:// s3.amazonaws.com/huhwebimages/33D7 F5 DCD4 CA472 /type/full/216835.jpg).

Typification of the name Boerhavia spicata — Candolle (1849: 456) reported “ visa sicca in herbario Boissier ” after the description of Boerhavia spicata . Watson (1889) mentioned that a fragment from the original material deposited in the Boissier Herbarium was sent to him. In fact, this fragment is deposited in GH (barcode GH00216835). In 2005 this specimen was verified by R. Spellenberg, who added the following note on the sheet: “It is very likely to be a fragment of the Holotype housed in the Boissier Herbarium”. However, no holotype was cited by Candolle (1849: 456) in the protologue and we here designated this GH specimen as the lectotype, since no further original material could be traced at G, where many Candolle’s exsiccata used for the preparation of the 17 volumes of the “Prodrome” are preserved (see Conservatoire et Jardin botaniques de la Ville de Genève-G 2016), or in the other consulted herbaria.

Distribution in Mexico: ―It is reported from Baja California, Baja California Sur, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango, Nuevo León, Sinaloa and Sonora ( Villaseñor 2016). In Sonora it is distributed in Chihuahuan Desert, Pacific Lowlands and Sonoran biogeographic provinces ( Fig. 4B ), and has been collected in Álamos, Hermosillo, Huatabampo, Moctezuma, Navojoa, Nogales, Onavas, Puerto Peñasco. San Javier, Soyopa and Yécora, in xerophytic scrub, subtropical scrub and road sides, at 200–900 m a.s.l.

Figures

FIGURE 4. Distribution of the Nyctaginaceae genera in the State of Sonora. A: genera Abronia, Allionia, Acleisanthes, Okenia, and Pisonia; B: genus Boerhavia; C: genus Mirabilis; D: genera Boldoa, Commicarpus, Cyphomeris, and Salpianthus.