Ipomoea cheirophylla 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

159. Ipomoea cheirophylla O'Donell , Lilloa 29. 141. 1959. ( O’Donell 1959b: 141)

Type.

ARGENTINA. Salta, Dept. Rosario de la Frontera, Las Termas, C. O’Donell 5360 (holotype LIL, not seen).

Description.

Twining perennial 2-5 m in height, stems wiry, glabrous or pubescent. Leaves petiolate, 4-6(-10) × 5-7(-10) cm, 5-7-lobed to just above the base, base truncate or broadly cordate and cuneate onto the petiole, lobes oblong-elliptic, narrowed at both ends, apex obtuse and mucronate, usually glabrous but pubescent in the Tarija area; petioles 1-4(-8) cm. Inflorescence of usually compound, axillary cymes of 1-5(-7) flowers; peduncles 2-8 cm, pubescent; bracteoles 2 mm, oblanceolate, caducous; secondary peduncles 1.3-2.2 cm; pedicels 7-18 mm, pubescent; sepals slightly unequal, elliptic, convex, coriaceous with a very narrow scarious margin, glabrous or puberulent near base, the outer 6-10 × 3-5 mm, obtuse, inner 5-7 mm wide, rounded; corolla 4-5 cm long, funnel-shaped, pink, glabrous, limb 4 cm diam., shallowly lobed. Capsules 10 × 8 mm, ellipsoid to subglobose, glabrous; seeds 5-6 mm long, dark brown, woolly.

Illustration.

O’Donell (1959b: 143).

Distribution.

Scattered in occurrence in northern Argentina, western Paraguay, southern Bolivia and the extreme west of Brazil. Essentially a species of the western and northern Chaco fringes. It is usually a species of the dry inter-Andean valleys and chaco lowlands but sometimes grows in seasonally swampy areas suggesting its ecological requirements are not as distinct from those of Ipomoea mauritiana as suggested by O’Donell (1959b: 146).

ARGENTINA. Catamarca: Yacatula, C. Spegazzini s.n. [3/1897] (LP). Cordoba: C. Spegazzini s.n. [11/1902-3/1903] (LP). Formosa: Matacos, Solis Neffa et al. 588 (CTES). Jujuy: Zuloaga et al. 10244 (CTES). Salta: Anta, E. Saravia 1267 (CTES); Capital, Sierra de Vélez, L.J. Novara 5889 (G). Tucumán: Legname & Cuezzo 4515 (CTES, LIL); Yerba Buena, S. Venturi 1328 (LIL, LP, SI).

PARAGUAY. Alto Paraguay: Puerto Casado, T. Rojas 3031 (LIL, SI); 4 de Mayo-Lagarenza F. Mereles 2631(FCQ); P.N. Defensores del Chaco, M. Vavrek & E. Enciso 36 (PY). Boquerón: 10 km NW of Nueva Asunción, A. Krapovickas et al. 45436 (CTES)

BRAZIL. Mato Grosso do Sul: Corumbá, S. Moore 972 (BM); A. Pott et al. 4837 (CPAP).

BOLIVIA. Beni: Ballivián, J. Balderrama 366 (LPB, CTES); Cercado, Ibiato, M.T. Martinez & M. Adler 75 (K, LPB, USZ). Chuquisaca: Luis Calvo, E. Saravia & Nelson 10474 (CTES); Tomina, J.R.I. Wood 8003 (K, LPB); Zudañez, J.R.I. Wood & H. Huaylla 21548 (HSB, K, LPB). Cochabamba: Campero, J.R.I. Wood & H. Huaylla 20256 (K, LPB). La Paz: Iturralde, Luisita, S.G. Beck & R. Haase 10005 (BOLV, LPB). Santa Cruz: Caballero, M. Nee 46682 (USZ, MO, NY); Chiquitos, Quimome, J.R.I. Wood & B. Williams 27906 (USZ); 30 km SE of Pailón, G. Navarro 2155 (CTES); Cordillera, M. Mendoza 2731 (USZ); Vallegrande, Pucará, J.R.I. Wood & M. Mendoza 21488 (K, LPB, USZ); Velasco, El Refugio, J R.I. Wood & H. Huaylla 20753 (K, LPB, USZ). Tarija: Arce, T. Meyer 21810 (LIL); Gran Chaco, Palos Blancos, J.R.I. Wood et al. 27616 (K, LPB, USZ); O’Connor, M. Mendoza 2877 (K, USZ).

Note.

Similar to Ipomoea mauritiana but more slender (leaves mostly <7 cm long) and inflorescence fewer flowered with longer secondary and tertiary peduncles so the inflorescence appears more lax. The two species are not always easily separated but were drscussed in detail by O’Donell (1959b).