Besleria iara Gabriel Emiliano Ferreira &amp; Andréa Onofre De Araújo &amp; Michael John Gilbert Hopkins &amp; Alain Chautems 2017, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Ferreira, Gabriel Emiliano
name: De Araújo, Andréa Onofre
name: Hopkins, Michael John Gilbert
name: Chautems, Alain
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2017
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Plantae
Tracheophyta
Magnoliopsida
Lamiales
Gesneriaceae
Besleria
Besleria iara

description: <b>Besleria iara</b> G. E. Ferreira &amp; M. J. G. Hopkins, <b>sp. nov.</b> Type: Brazil. Amazonas: Benjamin Constant, sítio Prof. Agno Nonato, trilha prox. ao açude, 8 February 2016, <i>G. E. Ferreira 355</i> (holotype: INPA; isotype: G). (Figs. 1, 2) <i>Besleria iara</i> is similar to <i>B. aggregata</i> s.l. in its axillary inflorescences, and flowers with orange imbricate calyx lobes. It differs by having a long tubular-ventricose yellow corolla (vs. ventricose-urceolate orange to scarlet), and larger leaf blades, 18– 30 × 7.3–11.4 cm, with serrate margins (vs. 15–19 × 5.5–6.4 cm, with entire margins). <i>Terrestrial shrub,</i> 1.5 m tall. <i>Stems</i> unbranched, subterete, up to 0.5 cm diam., woody at base, densely hirsute, internodes 3.0–11.0 cm. <i>Leaves</i> opposite, pairs subequal; petioles 1–4 cm long, green, densely hirsute; leaf blades oblanceolate, 18–30 × 7.3–11.4 cm, chartaceous, apex attenuate, base long-attenuate, margin sparsely serrate; adaxial surface dark green, hirsute; abaxial surface pale green, puberulous; secondary veins in 7–1 1 pairs. <i>Inflorescence</i> axillary, cymose, epedunculate, with 3–7 flowers per node; pedicels terete, 1.2–2.3 cm long, orangish, hirsute. <i>Calyx</i> lobes 5, fused at base and imbricate for 3/4 of length, adherent to corolla base, essentially equal, ovate, 12–14 × 3–5 mm, orange, hirsute, apex obtuse, margin entire-ciliate. <i>Corolla</i> erect with respect to calyx, 18–27 mm long, tubular, slightly ventricose, yellow, outside puberulous, inside glabrous, tube contracted at base, 5 mm wide at base, 7 mm wide at middle, 5 mm wide at apex; limb regular, lobes 5, patent, yellow, unequal, the 2 larger ones 4 × 4 mm, the 3 smaller ones 2 × 3 mm, obtuse, margin entire, ciliate, pilose. <i>Nectary</i> annular, 1 mm wide, glabrous. <i>Stamens</i> 4, includ- ed; filaments 8–10 mm long, epipetal, adnate to base of corolla for 4 mm, glabrous but pilose at insertion; anthers 2 × 2 mm, longitudinally dehiscent; staminode 2 mm long. <i>Ovary</i> ovoid, 2–4 × 2–4 mm, pilose; style included within corolla throat, 9 mm long, pilose; stigma bifid, puberulent. <i>Fruit</i> not seen. <i>Brittonia</i> 69 (2): 241–245 (2017), DOI 10.1007/s12228-017-9464-6 ISSN: 0007-196X (print) ISSN: 1938-436X (electronic) © 2017, by The New York Botanical Garden Press, Bronx, NY 10458-5126 U.S.A. Published Online: 15 February 2017 <i>Habitat and distribution.— Besleria iara</i> is currently known only from the Javari River, in the municipalities of Atalaia do Norte and Benjamin Constant, Amazonas, Brazil, and from Loreto department, Peru (Fig. 3). It occurs in the understory of lowland Amazonian rainforests on terra firme, along the margins of small streams, at about 50 m elevation. We observed few individuals at the type locality. The larger area of distribution is poorly known from a floristic context. It is expected that additional fieldwork in the region will result in the discovery of additional populations. <i>Phenology.—</i> Flowers recorded from October to February. <i>Etymology.—</i> The specific epithet B <i>iara</i> ^ is a reference to the Brazilian indigenous legend of the water spirit <i>yîara</i>, meaning BLady of the waters^ in the Tupí-Guaraní language. <i>Yîara</i> is generally envisaged as a beautiful young lady, similar to a mermaid (Chiaradia, 2008). <i>Conservation status.—</i> Endangered (EN) B1ab, according to the IUCN criteria, based on the extent of occurrence estimated to be less than 5,000 km 2 from only 4–5 locations and due to continued habitat loss (IUCN, 2012; IUCN Standards and Petitions Subcommittee, 2016). <b>Additional specimens examined. BRAZIL. Amazonas:</b> Município Atalaia do Norte, localidade de São Joaquim, Rio Javari, fronteira entre Brasil e Peru, 18 Jan 1989, <i>C. A.C. Ferreira et al. 993 3</i> (CEN, INPA, NY, US); Município Atalaia do Norte, Estirão do Equador, Rio Javari, 20 Oct 1976, <i>P. I. S.</i> <i>Braga &amp; J. R. Nascimento 3273</i> (INPA). <b>PERU. Loreto:</b> Rio Javari, 2 hours above Rio Javarizinho, 24 Oct 1976, <i>G. T. Prance et al. 24081</i> (INPA, MG). <i>Besleria iara</i> and <i>B. aggregata</i> (Mart.) Hanst. are sympatric and share the same habitat and vegetative characters. Both species occur in the understory of humid forest, close to streams, and are shrubs completely covered by indumentum. However, <i>B. iara</i> has a yellow, tubular-ventricose corolla, ovate calyx lobes with the obtuse apices adherent to the corolla base, wider leaf blades (7.3–11.4 cm wide) with sparsely serrate margins, and densely hirsute indumentum on the stems, whereas <i>B. aggregata</i> has an orange to scarlet, ventricose-urceolate corolla, lanceolate calyx lobes with the attenuate apices spreading from the corolla, narrower leaf blades (5.5–6.4 cm wide) with entire margins, and sericeous indumentum on the stems (Table 1). <i>Besleria iara</i> is also morphologically similar to <i>B. obtusa</i> C. V. Morton, known only from the type collection (<i>J. Cuatrecasas 4636</i>, Colombia, Meta, 1939). Both species have oblanceolate leaves and a yellow corolla, but <i>B. iara</i> can be distinguished from <i>B. obtusa</i> by having a longer petiole (1.0– 4.0 cm long vs. &lt;1 cm long), hirsute leaf blades (vs. glabrous with tomentose-hirsute midrib), sparsely serrate margins (vs. entire-ciliate), longer pedicels (1.2–2.3 cm long vs. 0.5 cm long), ovate calyx lobes with the obtuse apices adherent to the corolla (vs. calyx lobes linear-lanceolate with the long-acuminate apices spreading).
description: Published as part of <i>Gabriel Emiliano Ferreira, Andréa Onofre De Araújo, Michael John Gilbert Hopkins &amp; Alain Chautems, 2017, A new species of Besleria (Gesneriaceae) from the western Amazon rainforest, pp. 241-245 in Brittonia 69 (2)</i> on pages 241-245, DOI: 10.1007/s12228-017-9464-6, http://zenodo.org/record/924479
description: {"references": ["Chiaradia, C. 2008. Dicionario de palavras brasileiras de origem indigena. Limiar.", "IUCN. 2012. IUCN Red List categories and criteria. Version 3.1. Second edition. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK. Available at: www. iucnredlist. org / technicaldocuments / categories-and-criteria.", "IUCN Standards and Petitions Subcommittee. 2016. Guidelines for using the IUCN Red List categories and criteria. Version 12. Available at: http: // www. iucnredlist. org / documents / RedListGuidelines. pdf."]}