Werauhia swartzii (Baker) Kessous

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 : 94-96

4.2 Werauhia swartzii (Baker) Kessous & A.F.Costa, comb. nov. ( Fig. 9 )

Basionym: — Tillandsia swartzii Baker (1888: 12) . Type : — JAMAICA. Without exact locality. Swartz s.n. (holotype BM #923958 !, isotype S! #S-R-10050).

≡ Vriesea swartzii (Baker) Mez (1935: 400) .

= Tillandsia paniculata Sw. ex Baker (1888: 12) . nom. illeg. et nud. pro syn.

Description:—Plant terrestrial, flowering ca. 1.3 m high. Leaves ca. 25 in number, forming an infundibuliform rosette; sheath oblong-obovate, 11−16 × 7.5−10 cm, densely lepidote on both surfaces; blade linear-oblong, triangular attenuate toward the apex, 35–51 × 4–5 cm, apex acute, green, sparsely lepidote on both surfaces. Inflorescence compound, once-branched, ca. 60-flowered, ca. 70–110 cm long, very lax, erect; peduncle erect, ca. 30 cm long, 6.5–8 mm in diameter, glabrous; peduncle bracts the lower ones foliaceous and imbricate, suberect to erect, the upper narrow and exposing the peduncle in part distally, triangular-lanceolate, ca. 10 × 1.2 cm long, glabrescent to sparsely lepidote; main axis slightly sinuose, ca. 70 cm long, 4–7 mm in diameter, glabrous; primary bracts deciduous in some branches, lanceolate (lower ones) to narrowly ovate (upper ones), ca. 70 × 8.5 mm (lower ones) and ca. 15 × 5 mm (upper ones), glabrescent to sparsely lepidote on both surfaces; spikes 10–20 in number (including the terminal one), 10–30 cm long, in an angle of 30–70º to the main axis, then arching to horizontal, 2–6 flowered and with a sterile bract at the apex; stipe 16–20 cm long, ca. 2 mm in diameter, with a sterile bract at the base; rachis sinuous, 5–12 cm long, ca. 1.5 mm in diameter. Floral bracts ovate, obtuse, 10–10.5 × 6–7 mm, ecarinate, much exceeded by the sepals, lepidote on both surfaces. Flowers distichous, suberect, downward secund, 27–32 mm long, 10–15 mm apart; sepals narrowly oblong-elliptic, 16–17 × 4.5–6.2 mm, free, ecarinate, symmetric, glabrous; petals narrowly oblong-ovate, ca. 35 × 10 mm, off-white to smoky-cream, each with a purplish strip in center, free; petal appendages ca. 5 × 2 mm, adnate to the base of petals for 4.4 mm, entire, reduced dactyloid (one-fingered), with free lobe rounded (except the finger); stamens equaling the corolla; filament ca. 23 mm long, complanate; anther dorsifixed near the base, ca. 7 × 1 mm, erect, incurved; ovary conical, ca. 6.2 × 3.5 mm; style ca. 23 mm long; stigma cupulate, exceeding the anthers. Fruits fusiform, suberect ca. 2.3 cm; seeds unknown.

Distribution: —This species occurs in northern Jamaica, 370–762 m above sea level.

Taxonomic and nomenclatural notes: —Downward-secund flowers as observed in this taxon are often observed in Werauhia species with compound inflorescences, such as W. gigantea (Mart. ex Schult. f.) Grant (1995a: 31) and W. sanguinolenta (Linden ex Cogn. & Marchal) Grant (1995a: 35) , although in some members of Vriesea as well. Beside this characteristic present in both genera, V. swartzii has dactyloid (one-fingered) petal appendages ( Fig. 9C ), a cupulate stigma ( Fig. 9D ), and free petals, which lead us to propose this new combination in Werauhia . In addition, this taxon is restricted to Jamaica in the West Indies, one of the centers of diversity of Werauhia . The name Tillandsia paniculata Sw. ex Baker is a nomen nudum and pro synonymo, not previously described and only cited (not accepted) as a synonym by Baker (1888) (Art. 38 of the Shenzhen code, Turland et al. 2018).

Etymology: —The specific epithet “ swartzii ” refers to the type collector, Olof Swartz (1760–1818).

Representative Specimens Examined: — JAMAICA: Rio Minho Valley , 3 March 1910, Harris 10885 ( NY); St. Ann ; Jamaica; on road to Grier Mount, Mt. Diablo , 24 March 1967, fl., Read 1850 (US); Trelawny, on limestone ridge above the Donkey trail, 1 mile N of Burnt Hill intersection. 26 May 1960, past fl. Read 1920 (US) .

Figures

FIGURE 9. Werauhia swartzii (Baker) Kessous & A.F.Costa. A. Isotype, Swartz sn (S-R-10050; Scanned by Frida Eggens (S); Courtesy of the Swedish Museum of Natural History). B. Living specimen (Photo: Philip K. Nelson, courtesy of Smithsonian Institution). C. Petal with appendages, one appendaged had its outline highlighted (Photo and illustration: I.M. Kessous). D. Stigma (Photo: I.M. Kessous).