Skip to main content

Nadia Roque (Roquea) from Brazil to accommodate new species multiphyllaries roquea (Roquea multiserialis)

Dlium Nadia Roque (Roquea) from Brazil to accommodate new species multiphyllaries roquea (Roquea multiserialis)

NEWS - Researchers report the results of a morphological, anatomical and phylogenetic study describing Nadia Roque (Roquea Loeuille & Antar gen. nov.), a new genus of Asteraceae from Brazil, to accommodate the new species multiphyllaries roquea (Roquea multiserialis Loeuille & Antar sp. nov.).

Roquea joins a growing list of Asteraceae genera recently described from Brazil, such as Maschalostachys, Lapidia Roque & S.C.Ferreira (2017), Lychnophorella Loeuille (2019), Archidasyphyllum (Cabrera 1959) Ferreira (2019) and Vickia Roque & Sancho (2020).

The first collection of R. multiserialis dates back to 2018 by G. Martinelli during a Bromeliaceae collecting expedition. The area is currently being systematically collected by the efforts of the Centro Nacional da Conservação da Flora and by a group led by the project “Plano de Ação Territorial Espinhaço Mineiro” which aims to publish a book detailing the flora of the area.

R. multiserialis is currently considered endemic to the Serra da Formosa area, in the municipality of Monte Azul, in the northern part of the Espinhaço Mountains, Minas Gerais, Brazil. This species is found only at elevations above 1700 meters in campo rupestre vegetation. It grows among rocks in sandy-rocky soils. It flowers in March-April and fruits in October.

Other species in the habitat include Baccharis platypoda Candolle (1836), Begonia grisea Candolle (1859), Clusia burle-marxii Bittrich (1996), Declieuxia cacuminis Müller Argoviensis (1876), Lippia hederifolia Martius & Schauer (1847), Miconia sclerophylla Triana (1872), Mimosa aurivillus Martius (1838), and Symphyopappus cuneatus (Candolle 1836).

R. multiserialis is currently only known from four collections and has a very restricted distribution, a common pattern seen in microendemic species in the Campos Rupestres. The Serra da Formosa has experienced threats caused by humans, including fires, quartzite mining and road construction for wind turbine generator installations.

If these threats continue within their potential range, they could have a negative impact on the species, leading to habitat degradation and decline. Considering the species' limited distribution, potential threats, and AOO value, the researchers propose the status of R. multiserialis as Critically Endangered.

DESCRIPTION

Roquea multiserialis Loeuille & Antar sp. nov., adhuc unica.

Treelet or shrub up to 2 m tall. Stems moderately branched, greyish, blackish towards base, pubescent, indumentum composed of long-stalked stellate trichomes, sometimes with forked arms or geminate or short-stalked and swollen stellate trichomes.

Leaves shortly petiolate, 3–5 mm long, leaf sheath semi-amplexicaul, 2.2–4.1 × 2.9–5 mm, adaxially densely white pilose (unbranched long trichomes); blade rhombic, wide obovate, rarely wide elliptic, 2.6–4.9 × 1.4–2.7 cm, venation eucamptodromous, midrib thick and flattened, furrowed, prominent abaxially, sunken adaxially, including secondary veins, chartaceous to subcoriaceous, conspicuously discoloured, adaxial surface green, dark green or nearly black in sicco, glabrescent with sparse short-stalked swollen stellate trichomes, tomentose in the midrib, especially near the base, glandular-punctate, abaxial surface greyish lanate, older leaves dark greyish, lanate, indumentum composed of dense short-stalked swollen stellate trichomes along midrib and venation and sparse darker long-stalked stellate trichomes in stomatal crypts, sometimes with forked arms or geminate, margin slightly thickened, entire or sinuate to crenate, especially near apex, apex obtuse or acute, sometimes retuse or acuminate, base attenuate or cuneate.

Inflorescence axillary, capitula organised in a dense corymb; flowering branch 7.7–20.5 cm long, cylindrical or slightly flattened and four-angled, mostly near base of capitula, greyish, sometimes blackish, pubescent, indumentum composed of stellate trichomes with long- or short-stalked trichomes, leaf-like bracts 0.9–2.9 × 0.5–1.4 cm.

Capitula 3–6 per corymb, pedunculate, associated to 1–2 leafy spatulate tomentose subinvolucral bract erect or slightly conduplicate towards apex, peduncle 1.4–3.2 cm long, flattened, costate, greyish, sometimes blackish, with similar indumentum as branches; involucre 9.5–13.1 mm tall, 12–18.5 mm in diam., campanulate; phyllaries imbricate, 7–9-seriate, densely light greyish to ochraceous, indumentum of short-stalked stellate and unbranched trichomes, apex dark brown and sparsely tomentose, outer phyllaries ovate to elliptic, 3.4–4.3 × 1.6–2.1 mm, apex acute and recurved, inner phyllaries elliptic to narrowly oblanceolate, 4.8–6.7 × 1.1–1.9 mm long, acute to acuminate and straight to slightly recurved; receptacle fimbrillate, fimbria up to 0.5 mm.

Florets 130–150 per capitulum; corolla lilac to pale pink, usually actinomorphic but sometimes asymmetric due to a higher number of lobes and size variation of sinuses, corolla tube 4.5–5.8 × 0.3–0.6 mm, glabrous, sparsely glandular-punctate, corolla lobes 5(–8), 3.2–4.1 × 0.3–0.5 mm, glabrous or sparsely pubescent, apex acute, densely villous; anthers 5(–8), purple, apical anther appendage triangular, anther base calcarate and tailed; style lacking a basal node, style shaft 8.1– 8.9 mm long, whitish to lilac, glabrous throughout except for pubescence upper ca. 1.5–2 mm beneath style-arms, style-arms 1.9–2.5 mm long.

Cypsela prismatic, 3.2–4.1 × 0.7–1.1 mm, 10-ribbed, brownish usually with darker extremities, glabrous; carpopodium inconspicuous; pappus setae biseriate, light stramineous, paleaceous, outer series setae 0.9–1.1 mm long, of unequal sizes, slightly fused at base or free, serrulate, sometimes twisted, persistent, apex erose, inner series setae 3.5–4.4 mm, free, slightly serrulate, twisted, deciduous, apex acute.

Original research

Benoît Loeuille, Roberto Baptista Pereira Almeida, Carolina M. Siniscalchi, Makeli G. Lusa & Guilherme Medeiros Antar (2024). Roquea, a new genus of Lychnophorinae (Vernonieae, Asteraceae) from Brazil and its phylogenetic placement. Phytotaxa 675 (2): 097–114, DOI:10.11646/phytotaxa.675.2.1

Dlium theDlium

Popular Posts

Indian shot (Canna indica)

Puspa midra or Indian shot ( Canna indica ) is is plant species in Cannaceae, annual, shrub 0.5-2.5 meters high, depending on variety, erect stems, unbranched and leaf midrib arranged overlapping to form pseudostems and hermaphrodite flowers. C. indica forms a branched rhizome, 60 cm long which is divided into rounded segments and is covered in two stripes by pale green or purple scaly leaves. The rhizome has tubers that contain very large starch grains. The surface has transverse furrows, the underside appears white roots and numerous shoots. The leaves sit alternate and spiral or arranged in two rows, very large and divided into a leaf midrib, short stalk and blade. The strands are 30-60 cm long, 10-20 cm wide and have linear veins, green or purple-green, the base blunt or narrowly pointed and the apex immediately tapering or sharp. Hermaphrodite flowers, pedicels 0.2-1 cm long and red or yellow-orange, except in some cultivars 4.5-7.5 cm long. The sepals are triangular in shape a...

Guinea grass (Panicum maximum)

Guinea grass or buffalo grass or green panic ( Panicum maximum ) is a plant species in Poaceae, annual grasses, growing upright to form clumps, strong, cultivated in all tropical and subtropical regions for very high value as fodder. P. maximum reproduces in very large pols, fibrous roots penetrate into the soil, upright stems, green, 1-1.5 m tall and have smooth cavities for diameters up to 2.5 mm. Propagation is done vegetatively and generatively. Ribbon-shaped leaves with a pointed tip, very many, built in lines, green, 40-105 cm long, 10-30 mm wide, erect, branched, a white linear bone, often covered with a layer of white wax, rough surface by hair short, dense and spread. The flower grows at the end of a long and upright stalk, open with the main axis length to more than 25 cm and the length of the bunches down to 20 cm. Grains have a size of 3x4 mm and oval. Seeds have a length of 2.25-2.50 mm and each 1 kg contains 1.2 - 1.5 million seeds. Guinea grass has two varieties. P...

Indian rosewood (Dalbergia latifolia)

Sonokeling or Java palisandre or Indian rosewood ( Dalbergia latifolia ) is a species of plant in the Fabaceae, a large tree producing hardwood, medium weight and high quality, rounded leaves, thin and broad pods, highly adaptive, grows in dry and rocky landscapes with lots of sunlight. D. latifolia has medium to large size, cylindrical stems, up to 40 m high with a ring of up to 2 m, the bark is brownish gray and slightly cracked longitudinally. The crown is dense, dome-shaped and sheds leaves. The leaves are compound and pinnate oddly with 5-7 strands that have different sizes and appear alternately on the shaft. The leaves are round or elongated in width or heart, the upper surface is green and the surface is pale green. The flowers are small, 0.5-1 cm long and clustered in panicles. The pods are green to brown when ripe and are elongated lanceolate, pointed at the base and tip. The pods have 1-4 seeds which are soft and brownish. Indian rosewood grows at elevations below 600 m,...