Martinella iquitoensis A. Samp., Ann. Acad. Bras. Sci. 7: 122. 1935.

Zuntini, Alexandre R. & Lohmann, Lucia G., 2014, Synopsis of Martinella Baill. (Bignonieae, Bignoniaceae), with the description of a new species from the Atlantic Forest of Brazil, PhytoKeys 37, pp. 15-24 : 20-21

2. Martinella iquitoensis A. Samp., Ann. Acad. Bras. Sci. 7: 122. 1935.

Martinella manaosiana A.Samp., Bol. Mus. Nac. Rio de Janeiro 12(3, 4): 84. 1936. TYPE: BRAZIL. Amazonas: Manaus, 25 July 1931, A. Ducke sn (holoype: RB-24095!; isotype MO-2193049!, RB-24095 [second sheet]!)

Type.

PERU. Loreto: Iquitos, 23 February 1924, J.G. Kuhlmann 1492 (holotype RB-22027!; isotypes, MO-2192060!, RB-22027 [second sheet]!).

Distribution and habitat.

This species is distributed widely in the Amazon basin (Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela), typically in sandy soils ( Lohmann and Taylor 2014; Fig. 3 ).

Conservation status.

Martinella iquitoensis is distributed geographically through an area that is <2000 km2, with seven Rapoport (1982) sub-populations known to date and ≥ 20% of its known individuals occurring outside Protected Areas, making it susceptible to the current reduction and degradation of its habitat. Therefore, this species is here considered as Vulnerable [VU B2ab(ii,iii)] according to the IUCN criteria ( IUCN 2012; IUCN Standards and Petitions Subcommittee 2014).

Discussion.

This species was distinguished by Sampaio from Martinella obovata based on the corolla color and size, leaflet texture and size, tendril type, and calyx indument. However these characters have proven to be fairly variable, especially in Martinella obovata , leading to morphological overlap between those taxa. The lack of a clear morphological discontinuity combined with the sympatric distributions, make these species hard to separate. Moreover, the difficulty in delimitating these two species can be observed in the few treatments that dealt with those species, which is particularly evident in the contrasting species keys presented ( Sampaio 1935; MacBride 1961; Gentry 1982; Gentry 2009).

A character that might help telling these species apart is the inflorescence structure: a thyrse or panicle in Martinella iquitoensis versus a raceme in Martinella obovata . This character, combined with leaflet base, is here proposed as diagnostic for each species; however, the examination of additional material is necessary to validate its usefulness and consistency.

Figures

Figure 3. Distribution of Martinella species: Martinella insignis (solid blue circle), Martinella iquitoensis (solid green square) and Martinella obovata (open red triangles). Elevation in meters, according to the scale presented on the right.