Wissadula hernandioides Garcke

Field: Agricultural and Biological Sciences (Life Sciences)

Wissadula hernandioides (L’Hér.) Garcke , Zeitschr. Naturwiss. 63: 124 (1890) Figure 1 A–K Basionym. Sida hernandioides L’Hér., Stirp. Nov. 121– 122 (1789). Type. Stirp. nov. 2: 121, tab. 58. 1789 (lectotype, desig- nated by Areces and Fryxell 2007). New record. Brazil: Pernambuco, Caruaru, Experimental Research Station of the Agronomy Institute of Per- nambuco, margin of trail, 0 8°14'0 8ʺ S, 0 35°55'14ʺ W, 19/ IX/2017, C.A. Amorim, A.C. Ferreira, R.G.V.N. Lima 0 25 (PEUFR 54154) (Fig. 2). Only 1 individual was observed. Further collection efforts were made a year after the record in a radius of 500 m from the original point, but the plant was not relocated in the area. Identification. Perennial subshrub, erect, monopodial branching, ca 1.5 m tall. Branches pubescent, trichomes simple and stellate, ferruginous. Stipules 0.8–1 cm in length, long-lanceolate, indumentum tomentose, trichomes simple and stellate. Leaves alternating spirals, petiolate; lamina 15–18 × 6–15 cm, membrana- ceous, green, discolor, cordate, apex acute, acuminate or caudate, whole or slightly curly margin, base subcor- date or cordate, actinodromous venation, adaxial surface pilose with stellate trichomes distributed sparsely, abaxial surface tomentose with trichomes simple and stellate; petiole 10.5–14 cm long, tomentose, trichomes stellate. Inflorescence terminal, paniculate, broad syn- florescence, 21–38 cm in length, presenting 2 or 3 flow- ers; cordate bracts, sessile to subsessile. Flowers yellow bisexual, diclamideous, pedicellate; pedicel 0.2–0.4 cm in length, pubescent, trichomes simple and stellate; calyx 2–3 mm long, deltoid sepals joined until the median region; corolla 1–1.2 cm long, yellowish, ovate lobes; ovary with 4 or 5 locules, 3 ovules per locule; numerous stamens, partially fused at the base of the fillet, form- ing an androphore, staminal column ca 2 mm in length. Schizocarp 0.7–0.9 cm in diameter, 5 mericarps, hairy to pubescent, capsules dehiscent, 0.8–0.9 cm in diameter; inconspicuous constriction; mericarps with bristles ca 1 mm in length. Seeds ovate, 3 per mericarp, 1–2 mm in length, pubescent. Flowers and fruits were observed in September. Discussion A specimen of W. hernandioides was collected from an open anthropized area, at the margin of a Caatinga fragment at the IPA Experimental Research Station of Caruaru, in the Agreste physiographic zone of Per- nambuco. The site presents hypoxerophylic vegetation with arboreal-bush size in a good state of conservation. Several botanical studies have been carried out in this area, including the floristic study by Alcoforado-Filho et al. (2003), which recorded 96 species belonging to 41 families. Wissadula hernandioides occurs in the Americas, i.e. in the United States of America, Mexico, West Indies, Venezuela, Colombia, Bolivia, Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil (Bovini and Baumgratz 2016). In Brazil, this spe- cies occurs in the northern (Pará and Roraima), northeastern (Bahia, Sergipe and Pernambuco – new record), mid-western (Mato Grosso do Sul and Mato Grosso), south-eastern (Espírito Santo, Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo) and southern (Paraná and Rio Grande do Sul) regions. In these regions, it is associated with the Amazon, Cerrado, Atlantic Forest, and Pantanal phytogeographic domains (BFG 2018), with a new record for Caatinga domain, herein. In the northeast, the species was only recorded in the Cerrado (Bahia) and Atlantic Forest (Sergipe) areas. In this study, we recorded W. her - nandioides for the first time in the state of Pernambuco, located about 300 km from its closest previous record (Sergipe) (Fig. 2). Wissadula hernandioides was recognized by the shape and margin of its leaf, constriction, and spines of the mericarps, as well as the indumentum of the branches and petioles. This species is easily confused with W. amplissima (L.) R.E.Fr., differing by the indu- mentum of the branches, which are hirtellous and simple in W. amplissima and pubescent, simple and stellate in W. hernandioides. Through the confirmation of this new record, Wissadula is represented in the Caatinga domain and Pernambuco State by 6 species: W. amplissima, W. caribea (A. DC.) Bovini, W. contracta (Link) R.E.Fr., W. excelsior (Cav.) C.Presl., W. periplocifolia (L.) Thwaites, and now W. hernandioides. Regarding conservation, the phytogeographic domain of the Caatinga has been neglected, with only 1% of its territory belonging to conservation units (Leal et al. 2005) and little research is carried out, due to the belief that it presents low biological diversity (Moro et al. 2016). However, contrary to expectations, the Caatinga presents high species richness with a high degree of endemism, including vegetation that is widely diversified with more than 4,600 species of angiosperms, 20% of which are endemic (BFG 2015). Nevertheless, research on the flora of the Caatinga is still insufficient when considering the high richness associated with its environments (Souza et al. 2015). In this context, the new record of W. hernandioides for the Caatinga domain and Pernambuco State emphasizes the importance of expanding botanical collection efforts, especially in areas, as the Brazilian semi-arid, that are still unexplored from a floristic and taxonomic viewpoint. Furthermore, such increased collection efforts would help reinforce the importance of creating new conservation units in the Caatinga, as well as conserve and recover the biodiversity of this domain.