In this post, we will discuss the mold/ecological syndromes of angiosperms in South America, exclusively focusing on forms absent in Brazil, along with a note on the most diverse morphologically genera on the continent.
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| CLOSEST POINTS TO THE DISTRIBUTION OF 10 GENERA ABSENTS IN BRAZIL |
ANGIOSPERMS SYNDROMES IN UNBRAZILIAN SOUTH AMERICAN PLANTS
In addition to some exceptions already mentioned above for certain genera or species that have a certain singularity in their genus or family, it is worth mentioning several important cases involving South America plants absents in Brazil.
1. plant mimicry is something neglected in the literature, but it is worth mentioning Macrocentrum droseroides Triana from Venezuela and Guyana, a Drosera-like species of Melastomataceae (SEE).
2. vivipary in Melastomataceae is reported in 4 genera worldwide; in New World only two species does not occur in Brazil, Macrocentrum minus Gleason and M. vestitum Sandwith, from Venezuela to French Guiana.
3. all DT's in New World occur in Brazil except members of Barbaceniopsis, V. andina Ibisch, R.Vásquez & Nowicki endemic to Bolivia, Sporobolus atrovirens (Kunth) Kunth endemic to Mexico, Microchloa kunthii Desv. from Africa, tropical Asia and from U.S.A. to Argentina, Clinopodium giliesii (Benth.) Kuntze, endemic to Chile; and Blossfeldia liliputana Werderm., S Bolivia and N Argentina.
4. fungi symbiotics, in the Neotropics, several unrelated plant genera have independently evolved the ability to form ECM symbioses with fungi; brazilian absents includes Pakaraimaea Maguire & Ashton (Cistaceae), Pseudomonotes tropenbosii A.C.Londoño, E.Alvarez & Forero (Dipterocarpaceae), and Quercus L. (Fagaceae).
5. among geocarpy in New World, all species occur in Brazil except members of Okenia (Nyctaginaceae) and Amphicarpus (Poaceae) from North America, and 14 spp. of Arachis in South America.
6. all lineages of mymercophyts plants in South America reaches in Brazil except Myrmecophila, Alexia, Besleria, Myrcia, Hoffmania, Allomaieta, and Blakea.
7. colored nectar occur documented in 70 spp. of angiosperms; in South America absent in Brazil includes Puya alpestris (Poepp.) Gay (Bromeliaceae), endemic to central Chile, with blue nectar; and Solanaceae C. pubescens Ruiz & Pav. from Ecuador to Bolivia, C. eximium Hunz. from Bolivia to Argentina (these three with yellow nectar), and in 9 spp. and 4 morphospecies of Jaltomata Schltdl. from Peru, one of them up to Bolivia (Dennis M. Hansen, Biol. Rev. Camb. Philos. Soc., 2007), all with red-to-orange nectars.
8. all rubiaceous genera with pterophyllous calycophylls in South American Rubiaceae occur in Brazil except Cruckshanksia Hook. & Arn. (7, from Argentina and Chile) and Pteridocalyx (Guyana).
9. among epiphylly, based on Dickson (The Botanic Review, 1978), as far as South America absent Brazilian taxa is concerned, Nototriche Turcz. (Malvaceae) has inflorescences at the junction of the petiole and the leaf blade; Phyllonoma Willd. ex Schultes (Phyllonomaceae, Venezuela to Peru) has inflorescences on the upper surface of the leaves; Erythrochiton hypophyllanthus Planch. (Rutaceae), endemic to Colombia, on the lower surface; in additon, by G. Mathieu et al. (Botanical Journal of Linnean Society, 2008), 12 spp. of Peperomia (Piperaceae) in South America (Colombia to Bolivia) has inflorescences at the junction of the petiole and the leaf blade.
10. of the 10 largest angiosperm seeds (Wikipedia), 5 are from palms absent in South America, two are from non-palms from East Asia (in Poaceae and Lauraceae), and 3 from South America: the 3rd and 8th in Mora (Fabaceae), respectively M. oleifera (Triana ex Hemsl.) Ducke from Central America to Ecuador, 18 cm ✕ 15 cm ✕ 8 cm, and M. excelsa Benth. from Venezuela and Guianas); and the 9th, Pelleciera rhizophorae Planch. & Triana, Tetrameristaceae, a mangrove from the Pacific (Costa Rica to Ecuador) and Atlantic (Nicaragua to Colombia) coasts of tropical America. Saccoglottis ovicarpa Cuatr. from Chocó region of W Colombia may be the largest-fruited Humiriaceae, as well two spp. of Compsoneura and also two spp. of Iryanthera of the same region, in their respective genera, both Myristicaceae (Gentry, Caldasia, 1986, pg. 12). Attalea cuatrecasasiana (Dugand) A.J.Hend., Galeano & R.Bernal (Arecaceae) has fruits up to 14 cm. long by 10 cm in diameter, they are the third largest seeds in the palm family after the double coconut (Lodoicea maldivica, Seychelles) and the coconut (Cocos nucifera, Paleotropics), and the largest in New World (Palmpedia).
Zanthoxylum magnifructum Reynel (Colombia) has the largest fruits of any species in the genus in the New World (Reynel, Novon, 2020). Chionanthus megistocarpus (Oleaceae, Colombia) has largest fruits for this genus in the Neotropics (4.5–5 cm long; Fernández-Alonso, Phytotaxa, 2016). Ternstroemia washikiatii Cornejo & C.Ulloa (Pentaphyllacaceae, Ecuador) the large leaves (21–33 × 8.5–11 cm), and the large fruits (4.5–5.5 × 6.5–7.7 cm) of this genus (Cornejo & Ulloa, Harvard Papers in Botany, 2016). Monteverdia multicostata Cornejo & Biral (Celastraceae, Ecuador) has the largest fruits in the genus (to 3.5 cm long, Cornejo & Biral, Phytotaxa, 2021). Solanum sibundoyense (Bohs) Bohs (Solanaceae, Colombia) produces some of the largest fruits known in Cyphomandra clade (10cm ✕ 7cm, Bohs, Systematic Botany, 1988).
11. populations of Polylepis tarapacana Phil. (Rosaceae, Bolivia and Cono Sur) near Nevado Sajama, Bolivia, grow at about 5,600 m in altitude, making the highest record of trees in the world, displacing records of Abies squamata Masters (Pinaceae) in SW China (How High Altitude Polylepis Trees Taste the Guinness World Records Wrong, 2016); Myrosmodes Rchb.f. (Orchidaceae) is the only genus of its family to grow in the swamps of the high Andes and was registered at about 5,100 m a.s.l., highest habitat known to support orchids in Earth (Trujillo et al., Lankesteriana, 2016). Barbaceniopsis boliviensis (Baker) L.B. Smith is the highest known site of Velloziaceae, growing at 2,900 m in Bolivian Andes (Ibsch et al., Systematic Botany, 2001). Ceroxylon parvifrons (Engel) H.Wendl grows at the highest elevations in the world for a member of Arecaceae: 3,500 m in Ecuador (F. Borchsenius & M. Moraes R., Botánica Económica de los Andes Centrales, 2006). Chusquea aristata Munro (Poaceae) from Colombia to Peru has the distinction of growing at altitudes up to 4,300 m in Ecuador, the highest known elevation for any bamboo (Judziewicz and Clark, Aliso, 2007).
12. cauliflory is an unusual phenomenon among flowering plants that evolved multiple times during the history of angiosperms, mainly tropical, like South American non Brazilian Grias in Lecythidaceae, Latua in Solanaceae, and Crescentieae in Bignoniaceae.
13. Puya raimondii Harms (Bromeliaceae) from mountains of Peru and Bolivia is the most massive inflorescence of the Earth, with 8-12m tall, and have a diameter of up to 2.4 metres; extra-large specimens can grow as tall as 15m; the inflorescence can bear approximately 8,000 small white flowers (Guinness World Records). Croton amentiformis Riina (Euphorbiaceae) from Ecuador and N Peru is unique in its great genus with pendulous and quite dense inflorescences (R. Riina et al., Webbia, 2015); simple umbrellas in South American genera absent in Brazil belong only to Oreomyrrhis Endl. Monocostus K. Schum. (Costaceae) endemic to rainforests of E Peru is the only axillary uniflorous species in his family (Neotropical Costaceae).
14. the third species-to-species largest flower in the New World is possibly Victoria boliviana Magdalena & L.T.Sm (Nymphaeaceae), endemic to flood plains of the Llanos de Moxos, Mamoré watershed, E Bolivia, with a diameter of up to 36cm. Psittacanthus longiflorus Kuijt (Loranthaceae), known only from Amazonas in Peru has unusually long flowers (to 17 cm), the longest known for this genus (Kuijt, Novon, 2014). Passiflora antioquiensis H.Karts (Passifloraceae), endemic to Colombia, is possibly the largest flower of this family (observation of SDa, see images).
15. by Almeda & Dorr (PCAS, 2006), 37 spp. of Melastomataceae are dioecious, all in Miconia Ruiz & Pav., mainly from northern Andes, 25 from Ecuador to Bolivia, 3 of them up to Colombia, 3 endemics to Venezuela, 5 from Mexico and Central America and 3 in Caribbean, one up South America, another up Central America - none in Brazil.
16. Rhytidanthera (Planch.) Tieghem from Colombia and Venezuela is the only genus of Ochnaceae with compound leaves (Reinales & Parra-O, BJLS, 2020). Despite being impressive for its large leaves, Pentagonia Benth. stands out for being the genus of the only species of Rubiaceae with normal, mature leaves are pinnately lobed to deeply pinnatifid. In the New World, occasional individuals of some species of Simira Aubl. may have pinnatifid leaves and a few species of Cruckshanksia Hook. & Arn. have leaves deeply and digitately 2 or 3 lobed (Hammel, Phytoneuron, 2015).
17. the typical venation of Melastomataceae is absent in remarkable latifolious genus absent in Brazil: Alloneuron Pilg., exclusive from Colombia and (mainly in) Peru, with more specifically semicraspedodromous or mixed craspedodromous (Michelangely et al., Int. J. Plant Sciences, 2011).
18. at pollination, Rhynchotheca Ruiz & Pavon (Francoaceae) from Ecuador and N Peru may be the only anemophilous species of Geraniales (POWO | NTK).
19. the presence of both monads and tetrads in the same genus is very rare; for instance, this feature occur, e.g., in extra-South American Typha L. (Typhaceae), Epilobium L. (Onagraceae) and Podophyllum L. (Berberidaceae), and in South American Xanthossoma (Araceae), where all species have pollen in tetrads except three spp. from Venezuela to Peru (X. paradoxum (Bogner & Mayo) Bogner, X. mariae Bogner & E. G. Gonç. and X. latestigmatum Bogner & E. G. Gonç.), who have pollen in monads.
20. among odd fruits, of the 2,223 Myrtaceae of New World, only Metrosideros stipularis (Hook. & Arn.) Hook.f. from S Chile and Argentina has capsular fruits - and is also the only non-Myrteae (is a Metrosidereae) in the hemisphere (Lucas et al., Taxon, 2007; Pillon et al., Systematic Botany, 2015). Dactylocardamum Al-Shehbaz, endemic to mountains of Peru, is the unique in Brassicaceae in fruits axillary sandwiched imbricated leaves (Al-Shehbaz, Journal of the Arnold Arboretum, 1989).
21. an immense diversity of plants in South America are highly toxic, and any detailing is beyond the scope of this text. However, one remarkable monotypic genera can be cited: Sarcotoxicum salicifolium (Griseb) X. Cornejo & H. H. Iltis (Capparaceae), from Argentina, Paraguay and Bolivia, whose fruits are edible at maturity if properly cooked, but extremely poisonous when immature, or even dried (Cornejo, Harvard Pappers in Botany, 2009).
22. Calceolaria L. (Calceolariaceae) from tropical America is among the largest oil-producing genera - nonvolatile, a very unusual floral reward that attracts particular solitary oil-collecting bees (Cosakov et al., American Journal of Botany, 2009).
23. at longevity, the List of Superlative Trees: Oldest proposes the ten oldest trees, and the second on the list is a gymnosperm from Argentina and Chile (Fitzroya cupressoides Hook. f. ex Lindl., Cupressaceae), in a Chilean individual.
24. Grias L. (Lecythidaceae) possibly has the largest leaves of Ericales; all species have leaves more tham 1m long (NYGB), but only two have bigger leaves: G. angustipetala Cornejo & S.A. Mori (Ecuador) and G. purpuripetala S.A. Mori & J. D. García-Gonz. (Colombia). Bajo Calima (region of W Colombia) species with putatively the largest leaves known in the entire world for their families include Schlegelia dressleri A. Gentry (Schlegeliaceae), Psittacanthus gigas Kuijt (Loranthaceae, leaves 50-100 cm long), Moquilea gentryi Prance (Chrysobalanaceae), Guarea cartaguenya Cuatrec (Meliaceae), Iryanthera megistophylla A. C. Smith (Myristicaceae), Ilex sp. nov. (leaves 15-25 x ca. 10 cm, Aquifoliaceae), and possibly Protium amplum Cuatr. (Burseraceae) and Macrolobium archeri Cowan (Fabaceae, also in Ecuador) - Gentry (Caldasia, 1986); some of them species reaches also in Panamá and Ecuador. Chusquea spectabilis L.G.Clark (Poaceae) from Venezuela to Ecuador has leaf blades which can reach 3–4 m in length, the largest leaves known in the grass family (Judziewicz and Clark, Aliso, 2007).
25. spurred (with nectar spur in flower) genera in South America absents in Brazil includes Halenia (Gentianaceae), Euphorbia (Euphorbiaceae, only E. tithymaloides L.), Pinguicula (Lentibulariaceae) and Nuttalanthus (Plantaginaceae), by SAa (SEE).
26. spiralate anther in a very rare features, cited by few groups; in South America but non in Brazil this feature occur in Centaurium J.Hill. (Gentianaceae), by Krapov. (Bonplandia, 2009).
27. the only neotropical dimerous Lauraceae is Yasunia van der Werff (Lauraceae), from Ecuador and Peru (van der Werff & Nishida, Novon, 2010); Tacarcuna amanoifolia Huft. from Colombia and Peru has 14–19 stamens, among the highest number in Phyllanthaceae (Hoffman et al., Kew Bulletin, 2006).
28. Only two several parasitic plants infect cactis, both Loranthaceae subtribe Ligariinae: Tristerix aphyllus (Miers ex DC.) Barlow & Wiens attacking Trichocereeus chiloensis (Colla) Britton & Rose in Chile, and Ligaria cuneifolia (Ruiz & Pav.) Tiegh. on Corryocactus Britton & Rose in Peru (Mauseth et al., Cactus and Succulent Journal, 2006). Tristerix aphyllus also has the most derived parasite in Santalales, as a endophytic parasite on cacti, whose endophytic life history may allow the parasite to escape the hot and desiccating desert conditions; however, this species retain some chlorophyll, and in spite of these extreme advances toward parasitism, true holoparasites are absent in the order despites Balanophoraceae (Science Direct | Holoparasitic).
29. several members of Amaryllidaceae-Alloideae from Chile, Bolivia and Argentina (Gilliesia Lindl. and Miersia Lindl.) has zygomorphic flowers, superficially some Orchidaceae, uncommon or absent in remaining family in continent (Rudall et al., Am. J. Bot., 2002).
30. some South American plants have some extremely unique appearance peculiarities. Outside Brazil, one of the most notable is Telipogon diabolicus Kolan., Szlach. & Medina (Orchidaceae), endemic to the border between the departments of Putumayo and Nariño in S Colombia, due to its floral appearance that resembles the popular silhouette of a devil.
31. Bignonia magnifica W.Bull (Bignoniaceae, Panama to N Venezuela and Ecuador) is the longest Lamiid plastome described to date (Fonseca et al., PeerJ, 2022).