Microlicia serpyllifolia Don (1823: 302)

Romero, Rosana, Versiane, Ana Flávia Alves & Woodgyer, Elizabeth M., 2022, Miscellaneous taxonomic and nomenclatural notes on Microlicia D. Don (Melastomataceae), Phytotaxa 559 (2), pp. 99-131 : 118

Microlicia serpyllifolia Don (1823: 302) .

≡ Rhexia fulva Sprengel (1825: 308) , nom.superfl. ≡ Microlicia fulva (Spreng.) Chamisso (1834: 391), comb. superfl.

Hab. in Braziliâ [ BRAZIL]. Sello (v. s. in Herb. Sims.) [in the protologue]. Lectotype (designated here):— Brasilia [ BRAZIL]. s.loc., 3 July 1819, Sellow [1176, c.1862] [sheet] (K000530608!, isolectotypes BR0000005221141!, BR0000005221479!, K000530607!, P02297717!, P02297718!), syn. nov.

= Microlicia venusta Mart. ex Naudin (1845: 177) . In glareosis subhumidis prov. Minas Geraes legerunt Riedel et Claussen, Februario floret. Ex herb. cl. Deless. et Mus. Par. [in the protologue]. Lectotype (designated by Martin & Cremers 2007):— BRAZIL. s.loc., s.d., Martii Herbar Florae Brasil 938 [sheet] (P00506393!).

Remaining syntypes:— BRAZIL. Minas Gerais: in glareosis subhumidis, February 1839, Riedel 78 ( P00481608 !); s.loc., 1841, Claussen 5 ( P00481606 !) .

= Microlicia cardiophora Naudin (1849: 247) . In Brasiliae meridionalis provincia Minas Geraes, Claussen , Cat., 1838, n° 57 [in the protologue]. Type :— BRAZIL. Minas Gerais: s.loc., 1838, Claussen 579 [sheet] (holotype P02297782 !, with photo at F [F0360345F]), syn. nov.

= Microlicia martialis Naudin (1849: 248) . ≡ Microlicia fulva var. martialis (Naudin) Cogniaux (1883: 110) . In glareosis subhumidis Brasiliae meridionalis, prov. Minas-Geraes, Martius, Riedel, Claussen, De Pissis [in the protologue]. Lectotype (designated by Martin & Cremers 2007):— BRAZIL. s.loc., s.d., Martii Herbar Florae Brasil 947 [sheet] (P00481609!, isolectotypes BR0000005221806!, BR0000005262144!, G00318517! on the right side, K000530606!, M!, W!), syn. nov.

Remaining syntypes:— BRAZIL. Minas Gerais: s.loc., February 1839, Riedel 18 ( P!) ; prés Caxoeira do Campo , 1841, Claussen 5 (G00318555!, P00481606 !, P00481607 !) ; s.loc., 1842, P. J.A. Pissis 15 ( P00481610 !, P00481611 !) .

Notes:— Microlicia serpyllifolia was described based on Sello s.n. from Herb. Sims (currently at K) ( Don 1823). Years later, Sprengel (1825) described Rhexia fulva , also based on a Sellow’s collection from Brazil “ Brasil Sello ”, which was transferred to Microlicia by Chamisso (1834). Photography from the specimen Sellow 1176, c.1862 at B (F0 BN016598 ) has a label with the names Rhexia fulva and Microlicia fulva handwritten by Sprengel and Chamisso, respectively. We concluded Sprengel (1825) described R. fulva also based on Sellow 1176, c.1862. Only the duplicate Martii Herbar Florae Brasil 938 at P corresponds to M. serpyllifolia ; Martii Herbar Florae Brasil 938 at BM, G00318519, K000530601, and M0165690 corresponds to M. cordata .

Triana (1872) recognized M. serpyllifolia and listed M. fulva , M. variolosa , and M. martialis as synonyms. Cogniaux (1883) accepted all the synonymous proposed by Triana (1872) but erroneously considered M. fulva as the correct name. Cogniaux (1883) also established the variety martialis based on M. martialis , which has ovate-oblong leaf blades, acute apices, with 2–4 × 1–2 mm leaf blades, and very short internodes.

Since Triana (1872), the name M. fulva has been used (see Romero & Martins 2002; Matsumoto & Martins 2005; Silva & Romero 2008), although the name M. serpyllifolia had been proposed almost 200 years before by Don (1823). However, according to the Article 11.3 ( Turland et al. 2018), the correct name is M. serpyllifolia since it is the earliest binomial and has priority over the others. Microlicia serpyllifolia has a wide distribution in Brazil, occurring in São Paulo, Minas Gerais, Goiás, and Bahia states ( Romero et al. 2020).

We did not find the sheet Clausen 57, and we believe that the number 57 was undoubtedly a typographical error in the protologue of M. cardiophora .