Selkirkia Hemsl. Rep. Voy. Challenger, Bot.

Holstein, Norbert, Chacón, Juliana, Hilger, Hartmut H. & Weigend, Maximilian, 2016, No longer shipwrecked-Selkirkia (Boraginaceae) back on the mainland with generic rearrangements in South American “ Omphalodes ” based on molecular data, Phytotaxa 270 (4), pp. 231-251 : 240-241

Selkirkia Hemsl. Rep. Voy. Challenger, Bot. 1(III) (1884: 48)

Type species: S. berteroi (Colla) Hemsl. ( Cynoglossum berteroi Colla )

Synonym: Mapuchea M.Serrano, R.Carbajal & S.Ortiz , Nov. Acta Cie. Compostelana (Biol.) 23 (2016: [11])

Description: —Perennial erect herbs to subshrubs, or also ascending or decumbent stoloniferous herbs ( S. trianae ) or shrubs ( S. berteroi ). Leaves simple, alternate along stem, often crowded at the shoot apices (of stolons or rhizomes or aerial shoots). Leaves entire, (ob-)lanceolate to elliptical. Leaf petiolate to sessile, base attenuate to cuneate, also decurrent ( S. limense ), but not auriculate, apex acute, sometimes apiculate or acuminate. Upper leaf lamina often with short simple trichomes, glabrescent. Lower leaf lamina more or less densely strigose with simple trichomes, later glabrescent. Leaves often with dominant central vein (hyphodromous) or arched (eucamptodromous) with veins running to the apex. Leaf apex acute to acuminate. Flowers in ebracteate (rarely few frondose bracts at base) thyrsoids, these sometimes congested and appearing paniculate ( S. berteroi ). Pedicels at least as long as calyx, usually much longer, postflorally elongating and spreading ( S. limense ) or deflexed. Calyx tube short, lobes 2/3 of total length to free nearly to base, widely ovate, apex obtuse to acute or acuminate, margin entire, postflorally elongating. Corolla hypocrateriform, lobes subcircular with obtuse apex, margin entire; white or purple in buds, turning blue at anthesis or remaining white ( S. berteroi ), faucal scales white, pale blue or blue as corolla. Stamens 5, bithecate, filaments inserted in corolla tube, anthers included, not exceeding the faucal scales. Pollen dumbbell-shaped, <12 μm long, with 3 granular colpi and pseudocolpi ( S. berteroi , S. limense , S. pauciflora ). Gynoecium superior, with 4-parted ovary, gynobase broadly to narrowly pyramidal, style gynobasic, filiform. Nutlets 4, or 1 by abortion, dorsally convex to slightly flattened, somewhat ( S. berteroi ) to densely glochidiate, rarely winged esp. towards the base ( S. berteroi ). ( Figs 2B–D )

A genus of four species, three in western South America and one on Robinson Crusoe Island off the Chilean coast.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Nutlets of Myosotidium and Selkirkia species:A, nutlets of M. hortensia (obtained from www.nzseeds.co.nz); B, nutlet of S. trianae from B. LØjtnant & U. Molau 13127 (GB); C, nutlet of S. pauciflora from T. Kern 23 (BONN); D, fruit of S. pauciflora from T. Kern 23 (BONN).