Cyrtopodium lageanum J. A. N. Bat.
Creators: name: Batista, João A. N.
name: González, Andrés
name: Cruz-Lustre, Gabriela
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Plantae
Tracheophyta
Liliopsida
Asparagales
Orchidaceae
Cyrtopodium
Cyrtopodium lageanum

description: 2. Cyrtopodium lageanum (J.A.N.Bat. & Bianch.) J.A.N.Bat. comb. & stat. nov.
≡ Cyrtopodium brandonianum Barb. Rodr. subsp. lageanum J.A.N.Bat. & Bianch. (2005: 80).
Type: — BRAZIL. Santa Catarina: Lages, Estaç„o de Aquicultura (IBAMA) e Polícia de Proteç„o Ambiental, 4 Nov 2003 (fl.), J.A.N. Batista 1444 (holotype: CEN 60717!; isotypes: AMES 00351976!, BHCB 134869!, SP 442213!).
Distribution and ecology: — Cyrtopodium lageanum is a uncommon taxon throughout most of its distribution and so far known only from Brazil, where it occurs in the states of Paraná, which concentrates most of the records, Santa Catarina and Minas Gerais (Figure 3). The species is found mainly the Atlantic Forest biome between 900 and 1400 m elevation and in areas of transition from the Atlantic Forest to the Cerrado biome, where it grows in dry grassland, cerrado sensu stricto and cerrado rupestre, in sandy-clay, well-drained soils with the pseudobulbs completely or almost completely buried. Flowering occurs at the end of the dry season and beginning of the rainy season in October and November. Inflorescence growth and flowering precede vegetative growth and when the plants are in full bloom the leaves are poorly or only partially developed (Figure 4E).
Conservation Assessment: — Cyrtopodium lageanum is known from eight localities and shows a small AOO estimated at 32 km 2 and EOO of 152,994 km 2. Of the known populations only one is found within a conservation unit, the Parque Estadual de Vila Velha, and at least the two populations that we observed (Batista 1444 and Batista & Martins 2221) are composed of few individuals restricted to a small area. The conversion of native vegetation into agricultural land or reforestation with eucalyptus and pines, and overgrazing by livestock are apparently the main threats to the species. Based on the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria, and its guidelines (IUCN 2012, 2016), the species can be tentatively classified as vulnerable (VU) [B2ab(iii)].
Additional specimens examined: — BRAZIL. Minas Gerais: Gouveia, 13 Nov 2007 (fl.), J.A.N. Batista & C.A.N. Martins 2221 (BHCB!, CEN!); Poços de Caldas, Campo do Saco, 19 Nov (fl.) 1980, W.H. Stubblebine et al. 552 (UEC!); Poços de Caldas, Campo do Saco, 28 Oct (fl.) 1981, J.Y. Tamashiro et al. 1294 (UEC!); Poços de Caldas, área ao lado do velório municipal, 28 Oct 2015 (fl.), J.P.L. Braga et al. 659 (AFR!); Poços de Caldas, Campo do Chapéu, 6 Oct (fl.) 2020, F.N. Pereira et al. 353 (AFR!). Paraná: Jaguariaíva, Fazenda Cajuru, 26 Nov (fl.) 1980, G. Hatschbach 43409 (HBG!, M!, MBM!, NY!, UB!, US!); Palmeira, Recanto dos Papagaios, 28 Oct (fl.) 2006, E. Barboza & E.M. Cunha 1789 (MBM!); Ponta Grossa, Vila Velha, 4 Nov (fl.) 1944, G. Hatschbach 148 (MBM!); Ponta Grossa, 18 Oct (fl.) 1961, E. Fromm-Trinta et al. 390 (R!); Ponta Grossa, Parque Vila Velha, 8 Nov (fl.) 1965, G. Hatschbach 13100 (MBM!); Ponta Grossa, proximidades do clube Verde, 16 Nov (fl.) 1987, M.C. Wosniacki s.n. (HUPG 2521!); Ponta Grossa, Rio Verde, 8 Nov (fl.) 2011, M.E. Engels 316 (HUPG!); Ponta Grossa, Rio Verde, 31 Oct (fl.) 2011, M.E. Engels 317 (HUPG!). Santa Catarina: Abelardo Luz, 8-12 km north of Abelardo Luz, 15 Nov (fl.) 1964, L.B. Smith & R.M. Klein 13337 (NY!, P!, US!).
Taxonomic discussion:—When we first found and described C. brandonianum subsp. lageanum (Batista and Bianchetti 2005), we knew only the type population, from Lages, Santa Catarina, Brazil. Since then, a re-evaluation of several herbarium collections revealed that the earliest record of this taxon dates back to the 1940s and that there are a total of at least 16 collections from eight localities in the states of Santa Catarina, Paraná and Minas Gerais (Figure 3). In at least three of these localities the taxon is sympatric with C. brandonianum subsp. brandonianum. Most of these specimens were previously identified as C. brandonianum subsp. brandonianum or C. pallidum due to the similarity in general morphology and flower colour with these species. Due to the expansion of the geographical distribution of the taxon, including some sympatric populations with C. brandonianum subsp. brandonianum, the subspecies concept we used (Stace 1989) to define the taxonomic status of the taxon no longer applies. Therefore, based on the examination of a larger number of specimens and a extended characterization with morphological, both floral and vegetative, ecological and phenelogical data, we now propose a re-assessment of its taxonomic status and raise C. brandonianum subsp. lageanum to specific level, treating it as C. lageanum comb. & stat. nov., in accordance with article 6.10 and recommendation 24B.2 of the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (Turland et al. 2018).
The main difference in flowers between C. brandonianum (Figure 4A–D) and C. lageanum (Figure 4E–H) is the morphology of the lip. In C. lageanum the lateral lobes of the lip are narrower, (2.5–)3–3.5(–4) mm wide (vs. 4–6 mm in C. brandonianum) and the median lobe of the lip is obtrullate to rhombic, (9–) 11–14 mm wide (vs. flabelliform, widely lunate or reniform, 14–21 mm wide), among a few other differences (Table 1). Other significant differences are found in the ecology and phenology of the two species. Similarly to other species of the genus (e.g. Romero et al. 2008, 2009), flowering of the two species is favoured by bushfires during the dry season. However, C. brandonianum is a late-flowering species, flowering basically during the rainy season, mainly from December to February (Figure 5), with leaves fully or almost fully developed during flowering (Table 1, Figure 4A). On the other hand, C. lageanum flowers earlier, in the transition between the end of the dry season and the beginning of the rains, in October and November (Figure 5), generally with the leaves poorly or incompletely developed during anthesis (Table 1, Figure 4E). Subsequent examination of other C. lageanum samples and images showed that the leaves are not always as reduced as in the type material. Nevertheless, they are smaller than the leaves of C. brandonianum and are always incompletely developed during flowering. Although we have never determined exact times, C. lageanum and other species such as C. brunneum, C. cristatum, C. latifolium Bianchetti & Batista (2000: 222), C. poecilum Rchb.f. & Warm. in Reichenbach.f. (1881: 89), C. triste and C. vernum, are early flowering species that bloom shortly after fire in the midst of still growing surrounding vegetation and are among the first species to flourish after fire. Cyrtopodium brandonianum, on the other hand, flowers later a few months after the fire an in vegetation that is usually already fully recovered and well developed.
description: Published as part of Batista, João A. N., González, Andrés & Cruz-Lustre, Gabriela, 2023, A new overlooked species and a new record of Cyrtopodium (Cymbidieae, Orchidaceae) from Uruguay, pp. 127-139 in Phytotaxa 613 (2) on pages 135-136, DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.613.2.2, http://zenodo.org/record/8345649