Capsicum parvifolium Sendtn., Fl. Bras. [Martius] 10(6): 145. 1846.

Barboza, Gloria E., Garcia, Carolina Carrizo, Bianchetti, Luciano de Bem, Romero, Maria V. & Scaldaferro, Marisel, 2022, Monograph of wild and cultivated chili peppers (Capsicum L., Solanaceae), PhytoKeys 200, pp. 1-423 : 1

33. Capsicum parvifolium Sendtn., Fl. Bras. [Martius] 10(6): 145. 1846.

Figs 96 , 97

Fregirardia leptoclada Dunal, Prodr. [A. P. de Candolle] 13(1): 505. 1852. Type. Brazil. Bahia: "le bas des montagnes. Certam du Rio Fco [Rio San Francisco]", 1838, J.S. Blanchet 2823 (lectotype, designate here, G-DC [G00200561]; isolectotypes: BM [BM001016675, BM000617948], CORD [CORD00087945, CORD00087948], F [v0043297F, acc. # 646814], G [G00390274], K [K000585899, K000585900], LE, MPU [MPU026995 fragment ex G-DC, MPU023035 fragment ex G, MPU023036 fragment ex G], P [P00410185], W [acc. # 0001348, acc. # 1889-0118245]).

Capsicum leptocladum (Dunal) Kuntze, Revis. Gen. Pl. 2: 450.1891. Type. Based on Fregirardia leptoclada Dunal.

Bassovia ciliata J.R.Johnst., Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 40: 694. 1905. Type. Venezuela. Nueva Esparta: Isla Margarita El Valle, 30 Aug 1903, J.R. Johnston 75 (lectotype, designated by Barboza et al. 2011, pg. 773: GH [00936715]; isolectotype: US [00027416, acc. # 531916)].

Type.

[ Brazil]. Bahia: Serra Açuruá, Rio San Francisco , 1838, J.S. Blanchet 2823 (lectotype, designated by Barboza et al. 2011, pg. 773: W [acc. # 1889-0118245]; isolectotypes: BM [BM001016675, BM000617948], CORD [CORD00087945, CORD00087948], F [v0043297F, acc. # 646814], G-DC [G00200561], G [G00390274], K [K000585899, K000585900], LE, MPU [MPU026995 fragment from G-DC, MPU023035 fragment from G, MPU023036 fragment from G], P [P00410185], W [acc. # 0001348]) .

Description.

Erect shrubs 1-4 (-5) m tall, with an almost fastigiate habit, much branched above. Young stems angled, slender, fragile, greyish-brown, moderately pubescent with antrorse, simple, uniseriate, 4-6-celled, eglandular trichomes 0.3-1.1 mm long; nodes light brown; bark of old stems grey or brown, glabrous; lenticels absent. Sympodial units difoliate, the leaves geminate; leaf pair unequal in size, similar in shape. Leaves membranous, slightly discolorous, dark green above, paler beneath, sparsely to moderately pubescent on both surfaces, the trichomes similar to those of the stems, rarely few dendritic trichomes on the veins; blades of major leaves 3-8 (-9) cm long, 1-4.2 cm wide, ovate, the major veins 5-7 on each side of mid-vein, the base short-attenuate and unequal, the margins entire, the apex acuminate; petioles 0.5-2.4 cm, moderately to densely pubescent; blades of minor leaves 1.5-2.5 cm long, 0.8-1.5 cm wide, ovate, the major veins 3-4 on each side of mid-vein, the base short-attenuate, the margins entire, the apex acute; petioles 0.3-0.5 cm, moderately to densely pubescent. Inflorescences axillary, 3-6 (-8) flowers per axil; flowering pedicels 9-18 (-20) mm long, angled, pendent, non-geniculate at anthesis, green, densely pubescent, with short antrorse eglandular trichomes; pedicels scars conspicuous, corky. Buds subglobose, pale violet at the apex and cream near the base. Flowers 5-merous. Calyx (1.2-) 1.5-2.4 mm long, 2-3 mm wide, cup-shaped, thick, strongly 5-nerved, green, densely pubescent like the pedicels, the calyx appendages five or, exceptionally, up to seven, 0.7-2 (-2.2) mm long, subequal, erect or spreading, green. Corolla 4.5-7.3 (-8) mm long, 1-2 cm in diameter, purple with a narrow white margin and a yellowish-green centre outside and within, stellate with interpetalar membrane, lobed nearly halfway to the base, pubescent adaxially with small glandular trichomes (stalk 2-celled; head unicellular) in the throat and base of the lobes, glabrous abaxially, the tube (2.4-) 3-4 (-4.5) mm long, the lobes (2.1-) 2.9-3.5 mm long, 2-3.5 mm wide, broadly triangular, spreading, the margins involute, papillate or with long simple trichomes, the tips cucullate, densely papillate. Stamens five, equal; filaments 1.5-2.5 mm long, greenish-white, inserted on the corolla 1.3-1.5 mm from the base, with auricles fused to the corolla at the point of insertion; anthers 1.7-2.3 mm long, ellipsoid, yellow or violet, not connivent at anthesis. Gynoecium with ovary 1-1.4 mm long, 1 mm in diameter, greenish-white, ovoid; ovules more than two per locule; nectary 0.3-0.4 mm tall; styles homomorphic, 3.5-5.1 mm long, exserted ca. 1.5 mm beyond the anthers, whitish-green, clavate; stigma ca. 0.3 mm long, ca. 1-1.1 mm wide, somewhat discoid, green. Berry 8.5-9.5 mm in diameter, globose, slightly flattened at the apex, dark green when immature, greenish-golden yellow at maturity, deciduous, pungent, the pericarp thin, translucent, with giant cells (endocarp alveolate); stone cells absent; fruiting pedicels 10-18 mm long, angled, pendent, curved, widened distally, green; fruiting calyx 4-6 mm in diameter, persistent, not accrescent, discoid, strongly 5(-10)-nerved, green, the appendages spreading or reflexed. Seeds (2-) 4-13 per fruit, 3-3.8 mm long, 2.7-3 mm wide, C-shaped, brownish-black, the seed coat reticulate and slightly tuberculate at margins (SM), reticulate-cerebelloid (SEM), the cells irregular in shape, the lateral walls sinuate in the seed body, straight and wavy at margins; embryo imbricate.

Distribution.

Capsicum parvifolium has a disjunct distribution in South America (Fig. 92 ). It is found in the Brazilian Caatinga (Bahia, Ceará, Minas Gerais, Paraíba, Pernambuco, Piauí and Rio Grande do Norte States), as well as along the coast of Venezuela (Distrito Federal, Aragua, Carabobo, Lara, Sucre, Nueva Esparta States) and Colombia ( Atlántico and Magdalena Departments).

Ecology.

Capsicum parvifolium is a common element in seasonally dry tropical forest, mainly in the outcrops ( ‘inselbergs’) of the arborescent-shrubby Caatinga, at 500-1,200 m. In Venezuela and Colombia, it is found in coastal areas with higher humidity at lower elevations (0-350 m).

Phenology.

Flowering from August to April and fruiting from February to June in the Caatinga; flowering from April to October and fruiting from May to October in Venezuela and Colombia.

Chromosome number.

2 n = 2x = 24 ( Barboza et al. 2011).

Common names.

Brazil: Alecrim-quebrado ( Piauí, Mendes et al. 509), Jiriquiti ( Piauí, Mendes et al. 539), Murta (Sergipe, Oliveira et al. 552), Pimentinha (Pernambuco, Lucena 91).

Uses.

None recorded.

Preliminary conservation assessment.

EOO (4,493,957.435 km2); AOO (228 km2). Capsicum parvifolium is under threat in its fragmented habitat. Although in Brazil it is common, its habitat is restricted to the Caatinga, the least protected of all the major ecoregions in the country ( Fonseca et al. 2017; Silva et al. 2019). The species is more seriously threatened along the coast of Colombia, since only four records, which all date from the early 1900s, exist from areas that are currently highly urbanised (the cities of Santa Marta and Barranquillas). Few collections are known (13) in Venezuela and none of them is from protected areas. Considering the severely-fragmented habitat ( Antongiovanni et al. 2018) and the projected decline of the area of occupancy by the impact of climate change ( Silva et al. 2019), we assign a threat status of Vulnerable (VU; B2ab(iii) for C. parvifolium .

Discussion.

Capsicum parvifolium belongs to the Caatinga clade ( Carrizo García et al. 2016). Together with C. longidentatum and C. caatingae , these are the only Capsicum species growing in the arid Brazilian Caatinga (although C. parvifolium also extends into northernmost Venezuela and Colombia). The close affinity between C. parvifolium and C. caatingae was discussed and supported by morphological and karyological data by Barboza et al. (2011). Capsicum parvifolium resembles C. caatingae ; nevertheless, it is clearly distinguishable by the five calyx appendages (vs. absence of appendages in C. caatingae ), the few-flowered (vs. multi-flowered) inflorescences, the greenish-golden yellow (vs. red) fruits and the brownish-black (vs. yellow) seeds. Specimens of C. parvifolium from Venezuela have been confused in herbaria with C. rhomboideum , due to their similarities in calyx structure. However, they can be easily differentiated by corolla shape and colour (campanulate and yellow in C. rhomboideum ) and fruit colour at maturity (red in C. rhomboideum ).

Dunal (1852) described Fregirardia leptoclada , based on three Blanchet 2823 collections kept at G (G-DC and general collection). We found two specimens at G and duplicates of the three G collections at MPU. We select the more complete specimen housed at G-DC [G00200561] as the lectotype. Duplicates are widely distributed in other herbaria.

Specimens examined.

See Suppl. material 4: Appendix 4.

Figures

Figure 92. Distribution of C. mirum, C. muticum, C. neei and C. parvifolium.

Figure 96. Capsicum parvifolium A fruiting branch B branched trichome of the leaf C flower D calyx E opened corolla F, G anthers, dorsal and ventral views, respectively H gynoecium I fruits A, C, E-I from Agra & Barboza 7075 B, D from Pickersgill 72 - 366. Drawn by L. Ribulgo. Published in Barboza et al. (2011), reproduced with permission.

Figure 97. Capsicum parvifolium A habitat (Caatinga) B plant C reproductive branch D flower bud and flower on pendent pedicels E flower, in front view F fruiting calyces and immature fruit G mature fruits H fruiting calyx, inside view. From Agra & Barboza 7075. Photos by G. E. Barboza. Modified from Barboza et al. (2011), reproduced with permission.