Otatea (Munro) C. E Calderón & Soderstr.

Ruiz-Sanchez, Eduardo, Clark, Lynn G., Londoño, Ximena, Mejía-Saulés, Teresa & Rodríguez, Gilberto Cortés, 2015, Morphological keys to the genera and species of bamboos (Poaceae: Bambusoideae) of Mexico, Phytotaxa 236 (1), pp. 1-24 : 18-19

Otatea (Munro) C. E Calderón & Soderstr.

Rhizomes pachymorph with short necks; culms hollow or rarely solid, erect to apically arching; culm leaf sheaths well developed, without auricles, fimbriae present, oral setae present or absent; culm leaf blades erect or reflexed, deciduous or persistent; branching intravaginal or rarely extravaginal; nodes with one primary bud developing into 3 subequal branches (sometimes 1, 2 or 6 branches per node); synflorescences paniculate or racemose; spikelets laterally compressed; glumes 2, awned, pubescent, scabrous or glabrous; 3–7 florets; lemmas with prominent awns, palea obtuse, 2-keeled; lodicules 3; stamens 3; stigmas 2; fruit a basic caryopsis ( Fig. 7A–F ).

1. Culm leaf blades persistent, the juncture of the sheath and blade abaxially indistinct (the two structures appear continuous), oral setae in culm leaves absent.................................................................................................................................................................2

1. Culm leaf blades deciduous, the juncture of the sheath and blade abaxially distinct, oral setae in culm leaves present...................4

2. Culms hollow; branches per node usually 1, ascending, if two branches present then the lateral narrower than the main or central; foliage leaf blades 6.5–12.5 cm long, 4–12.5 mm wide, patch of white cilia on the abaxial side present....................... O. ramirezii Endemic to Mexico; Querétaro; 1200–1600 m .

2. Culms hollow or solid; Branches per node 3, subequal or unequal, ascending; foliage leaf blades 6.5–11.5 cm long, 2–4 mm wide, patch of white cilia on the abaxial side present or absent..................................................................................................................3

3. Branches Per node 3, subequal; foliage leaf blades 6.5–11.5 cm long, 3–4 mm wide, patch of white cilia on the abaxial side present..................................................................................................................................................................... O. rzedowskiorum Endemic to Mexico; Chiapas; 600–1000 m .

3. Branches per node 3, unequal (central branch appears first and is twice the size of the two lateral branches); foliage leaf blades 4.8–6.2 cm long, 2–4 mm wide, patch of white cilia on the abaxial side absent .............................................................. O. victoriae Endemic to Mexico; Hidalgo; 1700–2140 m .

4. Foliage leaves of the primary branches with blades 0.3–1.2 cm wide, abaxially green....................................................................5

4. Foliage leaves of the primary branches with blades 0.6–6 cm wide, abaxially glaucous..................................................................8

5. Culm leaf blades reflexed; foliage leaf oral setae present..................................................................................................................6

5. Culm leaf blades erect; foliage leaf oral setae absent.........................................................................................................................7

6. Foliage leaf blades 18–26 cm long ; foliage leaf oral setae 6.6–24 mm long, fimbriae 8.4– 2 mm long, straight; culm leaf oral setae 15–31 mm long, fimbriae 10–19 mm long, straight.......................................................................................................... O. carrilloi Endemic to Mexico; Chiapas; 850–1100 m .

6. Foliage leaf blades 10–16 cm long ; foliage leaf oral setae 2.5–6 mm long, fimbriae 1–4 mm long, curly; culm leaf oral setae 2.5–11.5 mm long, fimbriae 1.5–4 mm long, curly.............................................................................................................. O. glauca Endemic to Mexico; Chiapas; 1200–1500 m .

7. branches per node 3, subequal and ascending; fimbriae on culm leaves 4–7 mm long; some populations develop oral setae on culm leaves .............................................................................................................................................................................. O. acuminata Endemic to Mexico, Pacific slopes, Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt , Oaxaca, Puebla, Querétaro, Veracruz ; 150–2000 m.

7. Branch per node usually 1, ascending, if two branches present then the lateral narrower than the main or central; fimbriae on culm leaves 1–3 mm long; oral setae on culm leaves absent. ................................................................................................... O. ramirezii

8. Culm leaf blades reflexed...................................................................................................................................................................9

8. Culm leaf blades erect......................................................................................................................................................................10

9. Foliage leaf oral setae 4.3–6 mm long, free ; lobes of the outer ligule absent; culm leaf sheaths 9.5–12.5 cm long, non-overlapping; culm leaf blades 1.6–7.5 cm long...................................................................................................................................... O. ximenae Endemic to Mexico; Michoacán, Oaxaca; 1500–1900 m .

9. Foliage leaf oral setae 13–21.5 mm long, connate for the basal one-third or more ; lobes of the outer ligule present, 3–8 mm long; culm leaf sheaths 24–29.5 cm long, overlapping; culm leaf blades 9–20 cm long................................................. O. transvolcanica Endemic to Mexico; Colima, Estado de Mexico, Jalisco ; 1040–1850 m.

10. Oral setae of culm and foliage leaves papyraceous, white ; branches per node usually one or two; foliage leaf blades abaxially with a patch of white cilia at the base on both sides of the midrib....................................................................................... O. reynosoana Endemic to Mexico; Guerrero, Jalisco; 1300–1650 m .

10. Oral setae of culm and foliage leaves coriaceous, brown or purple; branches per node three, subequal; foliage leaf blades abaxially with a patch of yellow to brown cilia at the base on one side of the midrib .................................................................... O. fimbriata Mexico to Colombia; Chiapas; 1000–1300 m.

Figures

FIGURE 7. A. Otatea carrilloi, showing reflexed culm leaf blade, white arrows indicate F = fimbriae and O = oral setae. B. Otatea glauca, showing reflexed culm leaf blades and green oral setae. C. Otatea fimbriata, showing erect culm leaf blade and oral setae. D. Otatea reynosoana, showing white oral setae. E. Otatea acuminata, showing abaxially pubescent culm leaves.F. Otatea ximenae, showing culm leaf with reflexed blade. Photos by E. Ruiz-Sanchez.