Ipomoea reticulata O'Donell

Wood, John R. I., Munoz-Rodriguez, Pablo, Williams, Bethany R. M. & Scotland, Robert W., 2020, A foundation monograph of Ipomoea (Convolvulaceae) in the New World, PhytoKeys 143, pp. 1-823 : 1

87. Ipomoea reticulata O'Donell , Lilloa 26: 389. 1953. ( O’Donell 1953a: 389)

Ipomoea peredoi O'Donell , Lilloa 30: 44. 1960. ( O’Donell 1960: 44). Type. BOLIVIA. Santa Cruz, I. Peredo s.n. (holotype LIL158045).

Type.

COLOMBIA. Norte de Santander, región de Sarare, J. Cuatrecasas 13321 (holotype LIL001281, isotypes COL, F).

Description.

Weak liana to 3 m, stems woody, glabrous to minutely scabridulous, often dotted with black glands. Leaves petiolate, 4-9 × 3-6 cm, ovate to suborbicular, cordate with rounded auricles, shortly acuminate, usually glabrous but sometimes scabridulous-puberulent, abaxially often minutely black-punctate; petioles 2.5-5 cm, scabridulous. Inflorescence of pedunculate axillary cymes, these often developing into a raceme or panicle-like structure 5-10 cm long; peduncles 1-4.5 cm, sometimes extended into a rhachis up to 3 cm long; secondary peduncles 0.5-1.8 cm long; bracteoles scale-like, caducous; pedicels very variable in length. 5-15 mm long, glabrous; sepals subequal, 5-7 × 3-5 mm, elliptic, obtuse, scarious-margined, inner obovate with very broad scarious margins; corolla 2.3-3.5 cm long, creamy-white with greenish midpetaline bands and (sometimes a dull violet centre), campanulate, glabrous, limb 2.5 cm diam., undulate; stamens held at corolla mouth. Capsules ovoid, 10-12 × 7-8 mm, glabrous; seeds 5 mm long, pilose.

Illustration.

Figure 55 .

Distribution.

Widely distributed in tropical America from Bolivia north to southern Mexico but becoming less common north of Panama. It is usually found in sub-Andean rainforest or in moister areas of seasonally dry forest in the Amazonian lowlands, rarely above 1000 m.

BRAZIL. Acre: D.C. Daly 11802 (NY). Mato Grosso: L. Carreira et al. 895 (INPA, NY). Pará: R.S Secco et al. 201 (MO). Also Goiás and Minas Gerais fide Flora do Brasil (2020).

BOLIVIA. Beni: Ballivián, J. Balderrama 517 (NY, LPB, SP). Chuquisaca: Calvo, A. Carretero et al. 867 (HSB, MO, OXF). Cochabamba: P.N. Carrasco, Río Ichoa, O. Colque & L. Mendoza 472 (MO, NY, OXF, USZ); Chapare, J.R.I. Wood & B. Williams 27732 (K, LPB, USZ). La Paz: Guanay, H.H. Rusby 1995 (NY, MICH). Pando: A. Araujo-M. al. 5387 (K, USZ). Santa Cruz: Ibañez, M. Nee & L. Bohs 49612 (CTES, NY, MO, USZ); Ñuflo de Chávez, J.R.I. Wood 14767 (K, LPB, USZ); Velasco, J.R.I. Wood et al. 28205 (LPB, USZ).

PERU. Amazonas: Condorcanqui, R. Kayap 628 (MO). Ayacucho: La Mar, Villa Union, J. Roque 5538 (USM). Junín: Chanchamayo, Sandeman s.n. (BM). Loreto: R. Vásquez & N. Jaramillo 9357 (MO). Madre de Dios: R.B. Foster 6385 (F); Río Acre, E. Ule 9706 (K, NY). Pasco: Cordillera San Matias, A.H. Gentry & C. Díaz 58628 (F, MO); Oxapampa, Palcazú, R. Vásquez et al. 38032 (MO). San Martín: Juan Jui, Alto Río Huallaga, G. Klug 4305 (BM, K, MO S); Mariscal Cáceres, J. Schunke 3896 (F, MO).

ECUADOR. Napo: Río Aguarico, J.S. Brandbyge et al. 36185 (AAU, MO); Yasuni National Park, R.J. Burnham 1496 (MICH, QCA). Pastaza: Canelos, H. Lugo 1545 (K, MO). Sucumbíos: Río Cuyabeno, J.S. Brandbyge et al. 33820 (AAU, MO). Zamora-Chinchipe: Zamora-Romerillos, T. Croat & M. Menke 89763 (MO).

COLOMBIA. Guaviare: J. Cuatrecasas 7433 (COL). Norte de Santander: type of Ipomoea reticulata . Putumayo: Umbria, G. Klug 1773 (BM, K, MO, S).

VENEZUELA. Bolívar: Sifontes, G. Aymard 4712 (MO). Lara: Jiménez, P.N. Yacambú, G. Davidse & A.C. González 21334 (MO).

PANAMA. B.L. Seeman 4921 (K).

COSTA RICA. Puntarenas, W.A. Haber & E. Bello 2937 (MO); San José, Aserri, B.E. Hammel et al. 22887 (MO)

MEXICO. Puebla: W.G. D’Arcy 11938 (MO). Tamaulipas: Gomez Farias, S. Rodriquez 79 (MO). Veracruz: J. Dorantes et al. 03599 (F, MEXU, MO, XAL); San Andrés Tuxtla, G. Ibarra Manríquez & S. Sinaca 2077 (MEXU); Las Tuxtlas, S. Sinaca 1021 (MEXU).

Notes. Usually easily identified by the small flattish sepals (the inner with rather broad scarious margins) and short, campanulate, cream corolla but sometimes difficult to distinguish herbarium specimens from Ipomoea batatoides which also commonly has leaves abaxially gland-dotted. However in I. batatoides the corolla is much larger and usually pink, the sepals are coriaceous and convex without broad scarious margins and the axillary inflorescences are usually clearly cymose in form. In southern Brazil Ipomoea reticulata is largely replaced by Ipomoea saopaulista O'Donell , which differs in its larger corolla. Intermediates between the two are reported from Goiás.

R. Vásquez 5044 (FTG, MO) from Peru may represent an undescribed species related to Ipomoea reticulata . It is similar in all aspects but all flower parts are much smaller, the sepals 4-4.5 mm long and the corolla c. 1.8 cm in length. It was collected in Ucayali, Prov. Coronel Portillo, about 74°35'S, 8°25'W around km 10 on the Carretera Federico Besadare. More collections are needed to evaluate this plant.

Plants cited from Mexico are similar in inflorescence structure and flower colour but the corolla is rather large and more funnel-shaped and the sepals appear coriaceous. They need investigation and may also belong to a different species.

Figures

Figure 55. Ipomoea reticulata A habit B outer sepal C inner sepal D corolla opened out to show stamens E ovary and style F capsule. Drawn by Rosemary Wise A-E from Krapovickas & Schinini 32452 F from Killeen 6252.