Vriesea vexillata Smith (1955: 72)

Kessous, Igor M. & Costa, Andrea F., 2023, Novelties in “ incertae sedis ” Vriesea (Bromeliaceae: Tillandsioideae): Redescriptions, new combinations and nomenclatural revision, Phytotaxa 585 (2), pp. 71-101 : 92

3.10 Vriesea vexillata Smith (1955: 72) .

Type: — COLOMBIA. Vaupés: epiphytic, caatinga forest, Teresita, Rio Papuri , 27 May 1953, SchuItes & Cabrera 19443 (holotype US!)

Description:—Plant flowering 90 cm high or more. Leaves forming an infundibuliform rosette; sheath 7−7.6 cm long, lepidote on both surfaces, denser toward the base; blade linear-oblong, triangular attenuate toward the apex, 43–45 × 2.6–2.8 cm, apex narrowly acute-acuminate, lepidote on the abaxial surface, glabrous on the adaxial surface. Inflorescence simple, 3–8 flowered, ca. 80 cm long, lax, erect; peduncle erect, ca. 55 cm long, 2.4–3.2 mm in diameter, glabrous; peduncle bracts erect, imbricate, 30–65 mm long, purple-brown in sicco, lepidote on the adaxial surface, and glabrous on the abaxial surface; rachis slightly sinuous, ca. 2.5 mm in diameter. Floral bracts with apex obtuse, ca. 28–30 mm long, ecarinate, slightly exceeded by the sepals, sparsely lepidote on the abaxial surface and denser adaxially. Flowers 18–20 mm apart, distichous, suberect, strongly secund; sepals narrowly oblong to elliptic, ca. 24 × 7.8 mm, free, ecarinate, symmetric, glabrous on the abaxial surface and sparsely lepidote on the adaxial surface; petals unknown. Fruits cylindric-fusiform, suberect, 35–37 mm long; seeds unknown.

Distribution: —This species occurs in the departments of Vaupés, Amazonas and Caquetá, Colombia.

Taxonomic and nomenclatural notes: —The type specimen is an individual with immature fruit and inflorescence fragments. Thus, the measurements of the total length, inflorescence size, and rachis, and the number of flowers are not accurate in the protologue. From the material examined, we were unable to obtain information on certain reproductive traits in order to determine the appropriate placement of this taxon. However, we noted some characteristics that are common in Werauhia , such as the flowers/fruits secund and the geographical distribution in northern South America.

Etymology: —The specific epithet “ vexillata ” (flag-like) probably refers to the shape of the inflorescence.

Representative Specimens Examined: — COLOMBIA: Prov. Amazonas, Río Caquetá mar. izquierda 4.4 Km TRA 39 Caño Solarte mar. izquierda 2.4 Km., 23 August 1986, Palacios 1867 ( COL); Prov. Caquetá, Medio Caquetá, río Caquetá., 1.03100000, -71.554666, 14 March 2001, Benavides 545 ( COL) .