Dyckia secundifolia Leme, 2012

Leme, Elton M. C., Ribeiro, Otávio B. C. & Miranda, Zenilton De J. G., 2012, New species of Dyckia (Bromeliaceae) from Brazil, Phytotaxa 67 (1), pp. 9-37 : 31-33

Dyckia secundifolia Leme , sp. nov. ( Figs. 13 , A–E, 14 , A–G)

This new species has some morphological relationship with Dyckia coximensis but can be distinguished mainly by the leaf blades with straight to slightly antrorse marginal spines, longer inflorescence and longer sepals, which are ecarinate as well as the petals, in addition to the included stamens and the filaments being higher connate above the common tube with the petals.

Type:— BRAZIL. Mato Grosso: General Carneiro, Serra das Furnas, Paredão Grande, 550 m elevation, 15º 34’ 54.52” S, 53º 28’ 00.3” W, 29 April 2006, W . Kranz 129 (holotype RB!, isotype HB!) .

Plants terrestrial, flowering 55–62 cm high. Leaves 25–30 in number, densely arranged, coriaceous; sheaths suborbicular; blades narrowly triangular, nearly flat, suberect to nearly erect and unilaterally curved, 8–11 cm long, 1–1.4 cm wide at the base, 1.5–2 mm thick near the base, light green, nerved on both sides, abaxially subdensely and inconspicuously white lepidote with the trichomes arranged along the intercostal areas and not obscuring the leaf color, adaxially subdensely to laxly white lepidote with the trichomes inconspicuously arranged along the intercostals areas, abaxial and adaxial surfaces not contrasting in color, apex acuminate, pungent, margins glabrous, laxly to subdensely spinose, spines 0.5–1 mm long, 0.3–0.7 mm wide at the base, 4–10 mm apart, narrowly triangular, complanate, glabrous, pale castaneous toward the apex, straight or sometimes slightly antrorse. Peduncle erect, ca. 30 cm long, 3–4 mm in diameter, sparsely and inconspicuously white lepidote, with fimbriate trichomes, to glabrous, reddish toward the apex; peduncle bracts erect, distinctly nerved, reddish to stramineous, subdensely white lepidote to glabrescent, remotely denticulate to entire, distinctly shorter than the internodes except for the basal ones slightly exceeding them, with a broadly triangular base, 4–5 × 4–7 mm, slightly gibbose, and with a long laminate to narrowly triangular, acuminate blade, 6–16 mm long, 2–3 mm wide at the base, obtusely if at all carinate. Inflorescence erect, simple, 23–25 cm long, rachis 2–3 mm in diameter, straight, subterete to slightly complanate-spirally contorted, orange-red, subdensely but inconspicuously white lepidote, with fimbriate trichomes, to glabrescent; floral bracts ovate, acuminate-caudate (basal ones) to narrowly acute and apiculate (upper ones), finely nerved, orange-red except for the stramineous apex, suberect to nearly spreading at anthesis, ecarinate, subdensely and inconspicuously white lepidote, trichomes fimbriate, margins subentire to entire, bearing inconspicuous fimbriate trichomes, 5–9 × 3.5–5 mm, exceeding the pedicels to equaling 1/3 of the sepal length. Flowers laxly arranged, 14–22 in number, 16–17 mm long, suberect to nearly spreading at anthesis, becoming erect afterwards, odorless; pedicels inconspicuous, orange, sparsely white lepidote of fimbriate trichomes, to glabrous, 2.5–3 mm long, ca. 5 mm in diameter at the apex; sepals broadly ovate, apex emarginate, ecarinate, strongly convex, 7–8 × 6–7 mm, orange-red, subdensely and inconspicuously white lepidote, with fimbriate trichomes, to glabrous, margins entire, bearing densely arranged and inconspicuous filiform trichomes; petals symmetric, subromboid-orbicular, apex obtuse-emarginate, connate at the base for ca. 2 mm to form a common tube with the filaments, 11–13 × 11 mm, ecarinate, orange to reddish-orange, glabrous, erect at anthesis and forming a tubular corolla ca. 5 mm in diameter, margins inconspicuously crenulate; stamens equaling to slightly shorter than the petals; filaments complanate, connate for 1.5–2 mm above the common tube with the petals, 8–10 × 2 mm, pale orange toward the apex; anthers narrowly subtriangular, 3–3.5 mm long, strongly recurved at anthesis, base bilobed, apex apiculate, fixed near the base; pistil 8–9 mm long, about equaling the base of the anthers; stigma conduplicate-spiral, blades ca. 1.5 mm long, orange, margins minutely crenulate-lacerate; style ca. 1 mm long, inconspicuous; ovary narrowly suboblong, ca. 6 mm long, pale yellow. Capsules unknown.

Distribution and habitat:—This new species was found growing as a terrestrial in the shallow soils accumulated in depressions and crevices of sandstone rock outcrops at the foothill of Serra das Furnas, in a place locally known as Paredão Grande. Isolated or few-aggregated individuals grow under direct sun light in the Cerrado domain.

Etymology:—The name of this new species is a reference to its unilaterally curved leaves, which is an easy identification character of D. secundifolia even when sterile.

Observations:— Dyckia secundifolia is morphologically related to D. coximensis L.B.Sm. & Reitz (in Smith 1970: 282), but can be distinguished from it by the leaves secund (vs. leaves apparently recurved in the holotype specimen, according to the examined phototype), leaf blades with marginal spines straight to antrorsely curved (vs. prevailingly retrorsely curved according the original plate), longer inflorescence (23–25 cm vs. ca. 4 cm long), higher number of flowers (14–22 vs. ca. 7 in number) longer sepals (7-8 mm vs. ca. 5 mm long), which are ecarinate (vs. the posterior ones carinate as highlighted in a sketch drawing in the holotype specimen and in its protologue), petals blades ecarinate (vs. slightly carinate), and by the included anthers (vs. slightly exserted anthers at anthesis as highlighted again in a sketch drawing in the holotype specimen and in its protologue), as well as by the filaments higher connate above the common tube with the petals (vs. free above the common short tube with the petals).

Figures

FIGURE 13. A–E. Dyckia secundifolia (Kranz 129). A. Habit. B. Leaf rosette. C. Habit of sterile specimen at the type locality. D. Lower central portion of the inflorescence. E. Flowers.

FIGURE 14. A–G. Dyckia secundifolia (Kranz 129) A. Leaf blade. B. Floral bract. C. Floral bract and Flower. D. Sepal. E. Petal. F. Stamens. G. Pistil. H–P. Dyckia walteriana (Kranz 13). H. Basal portion of the leaf. I. Primary bract. J. Floral bract. K. Flower. L. Sepal. M. Petal. N. Stamens. O. Anther. P. Pistil. Scale bars = 1 cm.