Myrcia federalis Bezerra & Faria, 2014

Myrcia federalis Bezerra & Faria , sp. nov.

Type:— BRAZIL. Federal District. Brasília, Campo Limpo, Poço Azul , 07 Jul. 1999, 15 º 35’20”S, 48º4’38”W, fl., K. Calago 254 (Holotype CEN! GoogleMaps , Isotypes HUEFS! GoogleMaps , SP! GoogleMaps , UB! GoogleMaps ). Figure 1 View FIGURE 1 .

Myrcia federalis is closely related to M. goyazensis , but differs in having hirsute young leaves and hirsute flowers, strongly revolute blades with 25–32 pairs of secondary veins with no parenchymatic sheath, while M. goyazensis presents velutinous young leaves and flowers, flat to somewhat revolute leaves with 16–25 pairs of secondary veins with parenchymatic sheath.

Shrub 0.3–0.7 m tall; branchlets cylindrical with chestnut-greyish bark, finely fissured and exfoliating. Indumentum hirsute, cinereous on twigs, leaves, young petioles and inflorescences. Leaves lanceolate to narrow-elliptic, 4.5–9 × 1–1.5 cm, leaf ratio 4.5–7.5, leaf blades coriaceous, concolorous and opaque on both surfaces; apex acute, base cuneate to convex; strongly revolute margins; glabrous adaxially, glabrescent abaxially, trichomes grouped along with the midvein; midvein canaliculate adaxially; translucid dots on both surfaces; petiole ca. 0.2 cm long, sulcate and hirsute. Venation brochidodromous. Inflorescence thyrsoid depauperate, terminal and axillary, lax, with 15 to 30 flowers, 5–12 cm long, peduncle 1.5–3 cm long; bracts elliptic to lanceolate, naviculate, ca. 0.8–4 × 0.5–1 cm, hirsute adaxially, glabrescent and glabrous abaxially, persistent in adult flowers, bracteoles lanceolate to naviculate, 5–6 × 0.5–0.8 mm, basally pilose, hirsute abaxially, with translucent glandular dots. Flower buds obconic, 5–8 mm long, densely hirsute, calyx lobes deltoid, concealing the globe of the petals, with three external and two internal lobes 4–5.3 × 3.5–4.3 mm, glabrous adaxially and hirsute abaxially; petals orbicular, 4.5–6 × 4.6–5.5 mm, concave, glabrous adaxially, sparsely hirsute abaxially, with translucent glands; hypanthium elevated ca. 0.3 mm above the top of the ovary; stamens 300 to 320, 3– 9 mm long, glabrous, filaments with prominent glands, anthers 0.3–0.5 mm long, with one apical-dorsal gland; staminal disk hirsute; ovary 2-locular; style ca. 7 mm long, hirsute at base, stigma punctiform, papillose. Fruits globose, 0.8–1.2 cm in diameter, hirsute. Seeds 1–3, testa membranaceous, opaque; embryo myrcioid, glandulose.

Paratypes:— BRAZIL. Goiás Province, 1896, fl., Glaziou A. 21168 ( K!) ; Federal District: Chapada da Contagem , 15 o 34’0”S, 47 o 48’0”W, 18 Set 1964, fl., Irwin H.S. & Soderstrom T.R. 5272 ( UB!) GoogleMaps ; ibid., 11 Set 1965, fl., Irwin H.S. et al. 8185 ( K, NY, UB!) GoogleMaps ; ibid. 15 o 43’0”S, 48 o 1’0”W, 10 Dec. 1968, fr., Belém R.P. & Barroso G.M. 4001 ( UB!) GoogleMaps ; Região da Palma, DF-05 , 15 o 35’0”S, 48 o 2’0”W, 28 Jul 1980, fl., Dantas A.M.O. & Ribeiro M.M.V. 3 ( UB!) GoogleMaps ; ibid., 15 o 33’0”S, 47 o 48’0”W, 29 Jul 1980, fl., Grandi T. & Fiedler L. 3 ( UB!) GoogleMaps ; ibid., 15º33’0”S, 48º2’30”W, 29 Jul 1980, fl., Souza M.L. & Starling M.F. 2 ( UB!) GoogleMaps ; Ermida Dom Bosco, Lago Sul , 15º48’0”S, 47º48’0”W, 02 Set 1995, fl., Proença C. & Landrum L. 1289 ( UB!) GoogleMaps ; Cachoeira do Colorado, BR-020 , 15 o 35’0”S, 47 o 53’0”W, 20 Dec 1996, fr., Simon M. F. et al. 63 ( UB!) GoogleMaps ; Chácara Angaturama, APA do rio São Bartolomeu , 15 o 45’50”S, 47 o 40’60”W, 07 Set 2007, fl., Correia C.A.C. 348 ( UB!) GoogleMaps ; ibid., 15 o 44’1”S, 47 o 44’10”W, 18 Oct 2007, fr., Correia C.A.C. 115 ( UB!) GoogleMaps ; ibid., 15º10’3”S, 47º18’18”W, 07 Nov 2007, fr., Correia C.A.C. 145 ( UB!) GoogleMaps ; ibid., 15º53’30”S, 47º20’0”W, 03 Aug 2008, fl., Correia C.A.C. 279 ( UB!) GoogleMaps ; Chácara Santuário ecológico Flores do Vento , 15º51’0”S, 47º53’0”W, 15 Aug 2008, fl., Proença C. & Almeida S.M.S. 3441 ( UB!) GoogleMaps ; Chácara Angaturama, APA do rio São Bartolomeu , 15º26’53”S, 47º41’22”, 16 Aug 2008, fl., Correia C.A.C. 259 ( UB!) GoogleMaps ; ibid., 15º50’29”S, 47º40’59”W, 19 Set 2008, fl., Correia C.A.C. 315 ( UB!) GoogleMaps ; Chapada da Contagem , 15º40’25”S, 47º52’2”W, 06 Set 2011, fl., K.M. Gomes-Bezerra 12 ( UB!) GoogleMaps .

Phenology:—Flowers from July to September and fruits from October to December.

Etymology:—The specific epithet refers to the Brazilian Federation Unit, which has the largest number of vouchers in the herbaria consulted.

Affinities:—This species is related to Myrcia goyazensis Cambessèdes , a well known species well represented at CEN, HUEFS and UB (1964 to present) herbaria. The close resemblance to Myrcia goyazensis might have misled collectors and reduced Myrcia federalis collections to 15 specimens in the same herbaria. The two species can be distinguished through the following couplet:

1 Indumentum velutinous on young leaves and flowers; blades flat to slightly revolute, with 16–25 pairs of secondary veins, with parenchymatic sheath. Bracts and bracteoles deciduous after anthesis; bracts elliptic to oblong, navicular, 5.1–5.8 × 2.2–4.2 mm; bracteoles elliptic, deltoid to navicular, 2.2–8.1 × 1.4–4 mm ....................................................................................... M. goyazensis

1 Indumentum hirsute on young leaves and flowers; blades strongly revolute, with 25–32 pairs of secondary veins devoid of parenchymatic sheath. Bracts and bracteoles persisting after anthesis; bracts elliptic to lanceolate, navicular, 8–40 × 5–10 mm; bracteoles lanceolate, navicular, 5–6 × 0.5–0.8 mm ........................................................................................................ M. federalis

Comments:—The specimen Glaziou 21168 was cited by Glaziou (1905: 210) as a new species, Myrcia angustifolia Glaziou ; nevertheless, this species is not valid since it was not followed by a description; additionally it is a later homonym of M. angustifolia (O.Berg) Niedenzu (1893) .

Habitat and distribution:— Myrcia federalis colonizes open, and rocky grasslands with or without shrubs and rocky outcrops in the Federal District ( Fig. 2 View FIGURE 2 ).

Conservation status:— Myrcia federalis has been mainly found outsite conservation units in private areas. Despite its wide distribution in the Federal District, small populations colonizing restricted areas suggest an endangered conservation status. According to IUCN (2011), this species was considered Endangered (EN) based on the B1 and B2.b.i.ii.iii and c.i.ii and D criteria. Another risk factor is the increasing land occupation in the Federal District mainly due to the expansion of residential areas.

Scanning Electron Microscopy:— Myrcia federalis presents hypostomatic leaves, with epicuticular granular wax ( Fig. 3B and C View FIGURE 3 ) on both surfaces; stomata with crests ( Fig. 3A View FIGURE 3 ); simple trichomes on mature abaxial surface leaves and on both young leaves surfaces. Triangular pollen grains in polar view (or angle) ( Fig. 3D View FIGURE 3 ) and oblate-spheroidal in equatorial view (or angle) (P/E=0.9), irregularly parasyncolpate with a verrucous surface. ( Fig. 3D View FIGURE 3 ).

Foliar architecture:— Myrcia federalis shows a brochidodromous-pinnate venation pattern with visible 5 th order veins; conspicuous on both surfaces; secondary veins, 25–32 pairs, diverge from midvein in 80–90˚ angles, an intramarginal vein is formed in obtuse angles at the meeting laces; branched exmedial intersecondary veins; alternatepercurrent tertiary veins; well developed areoles, 0.1–0.2 mm, (3-)4–5 sides, 260–300/cm 2; simple or absent ending ultimate veins, rarely bifurcate ( Fig. 4C View FIGURE 4 ); intramarginal veins 0.8–1 mm from the margins; marginal vein in loops from the base ( Fig. 4 View FIGURE 4 ).