Polypodium ovatum Burm. f.

Mazumdar, Jaideep, Callmander, Martin W. & Fumeaux, Nicolas, 2019, Typification and nomenclature of the ferns described in N. L. Burman’s Flora Indica, Candollea 74 (1), pp. 93-109 : 100-102

Polypodium ovatum Burm. f. , Fl. Ind.: 233. 1768.

Lectotypus (designated by STEENIS, 1934: 288): INDONESIA. Java: s.d., Anon. s.n. ( G-PREL [ G00348837 ]!).

= Plectranthus scutellarioides (L.) R. Br. , Prodr.: 506. 1810. ≡ Ocimum scutellarioides L. , Sp. Pl. ed. 2: 834. 1763. (Lamiaceae)

Notes. – In the protologue, BURMAN (1768: 233) simply referred to an illustration ( PETIVER, 1712: 38, tab. 14, fig. 2) as (unnamed) variety β. He did not mention any collector, merely “ Habitat in Java ” as locality. But his comment about the variety β (“[...] cum javanica sit ovata [...]”), a comparison between Petiver’s plate and an actual Javan specimen, may be regarded as implicit specimen citation.

Asingle specimen of original material is extant in G-PREL [G00348837]: it bears a reference to Petiver’s illustration and the name of the new species, both from N.L. Burman’s hand, as well as a few notes by John Briquet (1870 – 1931), former curator of the Delessert Herbarium (“ Java / non filix / non Petiver ” in front of the reference to Petiver’s illustration).

MERRILL (1921: 337) treated Polypodium ovatum as of doubtful status. This name refers indeed to a commonly cultivated form of Plectranthus scutellarioides (Lamiaceae) , as correctly identified by STEENIS (1934: 288), who also designated the above specimen (seen as photograph!) as “actual type ”. This implicit lectotypification is accepted here.