Eugenia submontana B. S. Amorim & M. Alves, 2015

Eugenia submontana B. S. Amorim & M. Alves View in CoL , sp. nov. Figures 1 View FIGURE 1 , 2 View FIGURE 2 and 3 View FIGURE 3 .

Type:— BRAZIL. Pernambuco: Mun. Jaqueira, RPPN Frei Caneca, Mata do Jasmim , 08º43’40”S, 35º50’18”W, 650–700 m elev., 20 September 2011, fl., fr., B. S. Amorim 1080, D. Araújo, E. Mendonça, A. A. M. Araújo & M. A. Chagas (holotype: UFP GoogleMaps !; isotypes: CEPEC! GoogleMaps , K! GoogleMaps , MO GoogleMaps , NY! GoogleMaps , RB! GoogleMaps SP! GoogleMaps UEC! GoogleMaps ).

Shrubs to treelets up to 4 m tall, closely related to E. excelsa but differing by sulcate midvein on adaxial surface of leaves(versus raised), lanceolate bracteoles (vs. linear) and square staminal ring (vs. rounded).

Shrubs to treelets up to 4 m tall; rough and fissured bark, scattered, simple white hairs, 1 mm long. Leaves elliptic, 7.5–12 × 2.4–4.2 cm, membranaceous, pubescent on abaxial surface and with scattered hairs on adaxial surface (simple hairs), apex acuminate, base cuneate, midvein sulcate and glabrous on the upper surface, and pubescent on the lower surface, lateral veins 8–10 pairs, sub-opposite, marginal vein 0.1 cm from the margin; petiole 0.5 cm long, sulcate on the adaxial surface, glabrous. Inflorescence axillary, internodes 1–2 mm distant from each other, bearing 1–2 pairs of flowers; bracts 1 mm long, lanceolate, puberulent, persisting after anthesis; peduncle 0.1–0.2 cm long, puberulent; pedicel 1–2 cm long, puberulent. Hypanthium puberulent; bracteoles lanceolate, 1–1.5 mm long, with scattered hairs; calyx lobes four, 2 mm long, acute, glabrous on inner surface and puberulent on outer surface; petals not seen; stamens ca. 100, 3–4 mm long, glabrous, anther 0.5 mm long, ellipsoid, rimose; staminal ring 2 mm wide, squared, glabrous; style not seen. Fruit 1–1.2 × 1–1.2 cm, subglobose, yellowish to red (when mature), smooth surface; seeds not seen.

Eugenia submontana belongs to a group of species recognized by the presence of racemes with short internodes (1–2 mm distant from each other). Berg (1856) proposed a infragenerical classification for Eugenia and the species with this morphological feature were distributed in five sections [ Eugenia sect. Uniflorae , sect. Biflorae , sect. Glomeratae , sect. Umbellatae, and sect. Corymbiflorae], while in the molecular phylogenetic hypothesis of Mazine et al. (2014), the species with short internodes emerges as a supported monophyletic clade.

The Atlantic Forest of Northeastern Brazil has 90 species of Eugenia already recorded and more than 25% of them are endemic ( Sobral et al. 2014). Most of the species (more than 85%) from the area shares short-internode racemes (1–2 mm distant from each other) (B.S. Amorim unpubl. data, Sobral et al. 2014) and can be found in lowland, submontane and montane forests. In the submontane Atlantic forests of northeastern Brazil, 16 species hold this character ( Amorim and Alves 2012 c, Amorim et al. 2009, Sobral et al. 2012), and 11 of them have subglobose to globose fruits. [i.e. Eugenia adenantha O. Berg (1859: 578) , E. astringens Cambessèdes (1833: 361) , Eugenia . culicina Sobral (2013: 48) , E. excelsa O. Berg (1857: 227) , E. flamingensis O. Berg (1859: 576) , E. itacarensis Mattos (1974: 3) , E. ligustrina ( Swartz 1788: 78) Willdenow (1799: 962) , E. platyphylla O. Berg (1857: 294) , E. rostrata O. Berg (1857: 282) , E. schottiana O. Berg (1857: 286) , E. subreticulata Glaziou (1908: 233) , E. tumescens Amorim & Alves (2012: 694) , and E. umbrosa O. Berg (1859: 582) ] ( Amorim and Alves 2012c, Sobral 1013) which are compared in Table 1 View TABLE .

Geographic Distribution and Ecology:— Eugenia submontana is found in submontane Atlantic Forest fragments in the state of Pernambuco, northeastern Brazil. Until now, it is known only from submontane forests, from where several species are known as endemics, such as Vriesea barbosae J.A. Siqueira & Leme (2006: 362) and V. freicanecana J.A. Siqueira & Leme (2006: 377) ( Bromeliaceae ), Diospyros serrana Sothers (2003: 477) ( Ebenaceae ), Erythroxylum umbrosum Costa-Lima & Alves (2013: 55) ( Erythroxylaceae ), Eugenia culicina Sobral (2013: 48) ( Myrtaceae ), Campylocentrum serranum E. Pessoa & M. Alves (2015: 54) and Specklinia integripetala E. Pessoa & F. Barros (2014: 129) ( Orchidaceae ). Several other species found in the area are distributed in northeastern Brazil and restricted to humid Forests from southern Bahia and submontane forests from Alagoas and Pernambuco states as Rauvolfia moricandii A. De Candolle (1844: 340) ( Apocynaceae ; see Koch et al. 2014), Begonia obdeltata Gregório & E.L. Jacques (2014:190) ( Begoniaceae ; see Gregório et al. 2014), Aechmea gustavoi J.A. Siqueira & Leme (2001: 147) ( Bromeliaceae ; see Forzza et al. 2014), Masdevallia obscurans (Luer) Luer (1998: 112) ( Orchidaceae ; see Barros et al. 2014), and Solanum anisocladum Giacomin & Stehman (2013: 97) ( Solanaceae ; see Giacomin et al. 2013). The species was observed flowering from November to February and fruiting from March to May.

Conservation status:—The species is currently known from remnants of submontane Atlantic Forest with the population occurring in forest fragments of ca. 360 ha. The species is categorized as endangered based on criteria “D” of the IUCN (2013) for its very small and restricted population with less than 250 mature individuals. There might be other populations in areas of submontane forests close to the type locality, but they are not presently known.

Etymology:—The epithet “submontana ” refers to the ecosystem where the species was found, the submontane Atlantic Forest.

Paratype:— BRAZIL. Pernambuco: Mun. Lagoa dos Gatos, RPPN Pedra D´Anta, Mata do Perú , 08º41’29”S, 35º51’35”W, 600 m elev., 23 November 2011, fr., B. S. Amorim, D. Araújo, J. Viana & M. Chagas 1296 ( NY, UFP) GoogleMaps .