Chamaecrista comosa E. Mey.
Creators: name: Musandiwa, Liada
name: Magee, Anthony R.
name: Boatwright, James S.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2022
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Plantae
Tracheophyta
Magnoliopsida
Fabales
Fabaceae
Chamaecrista
Chamaecrista comosa

description: 4. CHAMAECRISTA COMOSA E.Mey., Comm. Pl. Afr. Austr. 1: 160 (1836); Brummitt in Fl. Zambesiaca 3(2): 142 (2007). <i>Cassia comosa</i> (E.Mey.) Vogel, Syn. Gen. Cassiae 65. (1837); Ghesquiere in Bull. Jard. Bot. 9: 153 (1932); Steyaert in Bull. Jard. Bot. Brux. 20: 251 (1950); Brenan in F.T.E.A Legum.- Caesalp.: 89 (1967); Gordon-Gray in F.S.A. 16(2): 96 (1977). TYPE: SOUTH AFRICA. KwaZulu-Natal Province, Port Edward, 500 m from the sea opposite Hills, <i>Grobbelaar 1534</i> (neotype: PRE!, designated here). Note: The original Drege collection (South Africa, Eastern Cape, between Umzimvubu River [Omsamwubo] and Umsikaba River [Omsamcaba], <i>Drege</i> (? B)) cited by Meyer could not be located as most of his collections housed at B are presumably largely destroyed, so we here designate a collection of Grobbelaar as neotype as it is the most complete with mature flowers and fruits. Perennial herbs, to 0.6 m high. Stems erect, simple or sub-simple, glabrous to pubescent or densely covered with whitish to yellowish spreading hairs, arising from a woody rootstock. Leaves paripinnate, 20–150 × 10–25 mm, oblong to linear oblong, slightly tapering distally; stipules 5–15 × 1–4 mm, narrowly triangular, base oblique, apex acuminate, margin ciliate; extrafloral nectaries at or below the top of petiole, 1.2–6.0 × 0.4–4.0 mm, sessile, elliptic, depressed in the middle, often with dark centre; rachis channelled, channel margin ciliate. Leaflets (5)11–36-jugate, 4–17 × 2–5 mm, oblong, base oblique, apex rounded to obtuse, margin hairy. Inflorescence supra-axillary, 2–6 flowered; flowers 6–17 × 7–20 mm; bracts 3–4(5) mm long, base oblique, apex acuminate; bracteoles 2, glabrous, towards top of pedicels. Pedicels glabrous or with spreading hairs, at flowering 10–26 mm long, at fruiting 15–27 mm long. Sepals 5, ovate, 6–12 × 3–5 mm, with spreading hairs on the outer surface. Petals 5, obovate, 7–15 × 4–8 mm, bright yellow. Stamens 9, straight or slightly curved, anthers in two series, (5)6 medium ± 5 mm long, 3(4) others often the largest, up to 9 mm long, filaments very short ± 1 mm long. Ovary ± 10 mm long, densely covered with white hairs, style glabrous, slightly curved. Pods 33–65 × 3–7 mm, spreading pubescent, straight, flattened. Seeds 3–5 × 1–3 mm, rhomboid, flattened, light brown to blackish, margin often with a thin line. <i> <i>Diagnostic Characters</i> — Chamaecrista comosa</i> is one of the most easily recognisable species of <i>Chamaecrista</i> in southern Africa. It shares large flowers with <i>C. capensis</i> but is readily distinguished by the long leaves, up to 150 mm (to 50 mm long in <i>C. capensis</i>), with leaflets 2–5 mm wide (1–3 mm wide in <i>C. capensis</i>) and large, sessile extrafloral nectaries, 1.2–6.0 × 0.4–4.0 mm, depressed in the middle or sunken in on the rachis (circular, concave, sub-sessile or attached with short stalk in <i>C. capensis</i>). <i>Note</i> — Meyer (1836) described <i>Chamaecrista comosa</i> for its large, sessile extrafloral nectaries, large leaves bearing broad leaflets, and large flowers. In his treatment of the African and Asian species of <i>Chamaecrista</i> Steyaert (1950) recognised two varieties (viz. <i>Chamaecrista comosa</i> var. <i>capriconia</i> and <i>Chamaecrista comosa</i> var. <i>lanata</i>). <i>Chamaecrista comosa</i> var. <i>lanata</i> was established based on its lanate indumentum and <i>C</i>. <i>comosa</i> var. <i>capriconia</i> for its smaller morphology. Gordon-Gray and Schorn (1975) later included <i>Chamaecrista comosa</i> var. <i>lanata</i> within <i>C. comosa</i> var. <i>comosa,</i> a decision that is supported by the present study. Following examination of available herbarium material, two varieties were recognised; one that occurs in coastal areas and one that occurs in drier areas. Based on field studies and examination of herbarium material <i>C</i>. <i>comosa</i> var. <i>capriconia</i> and <i>C. comosa</i> var. <i>comosa</i> need to be raised to subspecific level on the basis of different habitat preferences (<i>C. comosa</i> var. <i>comosa</i> is restricted to open grassland with high water table on granite derived soil or sand, and <i>C</i>. <i>comosa</i> var. <i>capriconia</i> in grassland in dried areas usually on sandy soil (Gordon-Gray and Schorn 1975)), distribution patterns (i.e. <i>C</i>. <i>comosa</i> var. <i>comosa</i> is restricted to the coastal areas of KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape, while <i>C</i>. <i>comosa</i> var. <i>capriconia</i> has a more northern distribution extending beyond the region to Zimbabwe), and morphological differences (<i>C</i>. <i>comosa</i> var. <i>capriconia</i> is smaller in its general morphology). Two subspecies are recognised:
description: Published as part of <i>Musandiwa, Liada, Magee, Anthony R. &amp; Boatwright, James S., 2022, A Taxonomic Revision of Chamaecrista (Caesalpinioideae, Cassieae, Cassiinae) in Southern Africa, pp. 992-1011 in Systematic Botany (Basel, Switzerland) (Basel, Switzerland) 47 (4)</i> on pages 1000-1001, DOI: 10.1600/036364422x16674053033831, http://zenodo.org/record/8117056
description: {"references": ["Meyer, E. H. F. 1836. Commentariorum de plantis Africae Australioris 1). Leipzig: Leopoldum Voss.", "Steyaert, R. L. 1950. Note sur des Cassia africains et asiatiques de la section Chamaecrista avec description de nouvelles especes. Bulletin du Jardin Botanique de l'Etat, Bruxelles / Bulletin oan den Rijksplantentuin 20: 233 - 268.", "Gordon-Gray, K. D. and P. K. Schorn. 1975. Studies in the genus Cassia in South Africa: Taxonomic notes on species of the sub-genus Lasiorhegma, section Chamaecrista. South African Journal of Botany 61: 133 - 161."]}