Calathea maasiorum (Marantaceae), from French Guiana and Surinam

HELEN KENNEDY

a new species

Kennedy, Helen (Herbarium, Department of Botany, University of British Co- lumbia, B.C. V6T 1Z4, Canada). Calathea maasiorum (Marantaceae), a new spe- cies from French Guiana and Surinam. Brittonia 47:156-159. 1995.--Calathea maasiorum from French Guiana and Surinam is described as new. It belongs to Calathea section Breviscapus Bentham. The foliage is patterned with a light green band along the midrib above. This new species has previously been confused with C. cyclophora Baker from Amazonian Colombia, Brazil, Venezuela, and Guyana but it is distinguished from C. cyclophora by the absence ofbracteoles, the elliptic to obovate leaf blade, and shorter (1-2 cm long) bracts.

Key words: Calathea, French Guiana, Surinam

Calathea maasiorum H. Kenn., sp. nov. (Fig. 1)

TYPE: F R E N C H GUIANA. Saiil, vicini ty o fEaux Claires, Sentier Botanique, f rom en- trance to 450 m from entrance, non-f looded moist forest, ca. 250-350 m, 03~ 53 ~ 12'W, 10 Feb 1993, Mori, Maas & Maas et al. 22909 (HOLOTYPE: N-Y; ISOTYPES: CAY, NY!, U, UBC!).

A Calathea cyclophora Baker foliis ellipticis vel obovatis valde inequalibus, braeeteolis nullis et brac- teis 1-2 cm longis differt.

Acaulescent herb, 0.3-1.1 m high, bear- ing 1-2(3) basal leaves. Roots bearing tuber- like swellings terminally. Cataphylls nar- rowly ovate, innermost one 9-36 cm long, apex obtuse, apiculate, purple, puberulous. Leaf blade elliptic, occasionally obovate, unequal, (14)21-42 x 6-17 cm, apex obtuse with acumen, occasionally acuminate, base cuneate to obtuse or rounded and shortly attenuate. Leaf blade adaxially dark green with feathered light green to yellowish green band along midrib, glabrous, occasionally sparsely puberulous at base, midrib puber- ulous; blade abaxially deep purple or green tinged purple, puberulous along veins, pu- berulous throughout , or glabrous except the very margin o f the wider side and the apex

puberu lous , m i d r i b dense ly puberu lous . Pulvinus (0.5) 1-4 cm long, maroon or tinged with purple, strigulose along upper side, the rest glabrous, occasionally strigulose throughout. Petiole 0-35 cm long, purple or green tinged purple, rather densely sericeous along upper side, the rest very sparsely pu- berulous or glabrous. Leaf sheath not au- riculate, 5.5-14.5 cm long, sericeous, hairs longer near margin and more dense toward the base.

Inflorescence terminal on leafy shoot or borne on a separate shoot, 1 per shoot , el- lipsoid to cylindric, 3-5 x 1.5-3 cm. Pe- duncle 8-35 cm long, red-purple, or green tinged purple, ra ther densely puberulous oc- cas ional ly sparse ly puberu lous apical ly . Bracts 9-21, spirally arranged, imbricate, depressed ovate to broadly elliptic or broad- ly transverse elliptic, 1-2 x 1.5-3 cm, apex obtuse with an acumen, occasionally acu- minate in lower ones, upper margin and apex patent; each bract subtending 2-3 flower pairs, outer surface pink, green, or light green t inged purp le , r a t h e r dense ly se r iceous throughout or with the central and basal port ion sparsely puberulous or glabrous, in- ner surface puberulous apically. Bicarinate prophyllmembranaceous, obovate, 1-1.5 • 1-1.5 cm, ca. 0.5 cm wide between carina margins, apex obtuse, pale greenish, puber-

Brittonia, 47(2), 1995, pp. 156-159. ISSUED: 2 June 1995 �9 1995, by The New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, NY 10458-5126

19951 KENNEDY:CALATHEA 157

FIG. 1. Calathea maasiorum. A. Habit. B. Inflorescence with detail of bract margin and leaf base showing pattern and veining. C. Bicarinate prophyll (left) and secondary bract (righ 0. D. Flower with detail of style and stigma. E. Capsule and seed. (From Mori et al. 22909, N Y . )

158 BRITTONIA [VOL. 47

ulous ap ica l ly on sides only or on s ides and central p o r t i o n be tween the car inae . S e c -

o n d a r y b r a c t m e m b r a n a c e o u s , b r o a d l y el- l iptic, 1-1.5 x 0 .5-1 cm, apex r o u n d e d or v e r y s h a l l o w l y r e t u s e , s u b g l a b r o u s o r sparsely p u b e r u l o u s at apex. B r a c e t e o l e s ab- sent. S e p a l s na r rowly ell iptic, 12-15 .5 x 2 - 3 m m , apex acute , l ight green, g labrous . Co-

ro l la t ube 12-13 m m long, whi te , g labrous; coro l la lobes subequa l , el l ipt ic , ca. 8 rnrn long, a p e x acute , whi te to pale p ink, gla- brous . O u t e r s t a m i n o d e unguicu la te , obo- vate , ca. 9 x 4 m m , apex s l ight ly retuse. C a l l o s e s t a m i n o d e o b o v a t e - s p a t h u l a t e , ca. 7 x 4 m m , wh i t e t h r o u g h o u t o r wi th pur- pl ish s t r ipes (fide d e G r a n v i l l e 6369) . C u - c u l l a t e s t a m i n o d e ca. 4 x 3 ram. A n t h e r ca. 1 m m long. Style wh i t e or pu rp l e (fide d e G r a n v i l l e 6 3 6 9 ) . O v a r y ca. 2 x 1 m m , gla- brous. C a p s u l e o b o v o i d , ca. 7 x 6 m m ; c r o w n e d by a pe rs i s ten t calyx. Seeds 3 per capsule , ca. 6 x 4 m m , bear ing a wh i t e aril.

Additional specimens examined: FRENCH GUI- ANA. Along side road to Cacao, near turnofffrom Rte. N2, slightly disturbed primary rain forest, 8 Mar 1981, Andersson 1104 (CAY, GB); Rte. N2, ca. 5 km N of Crique Boulanger, swamp forest, 10 Mar 1981, An- dersson 1116 (CAY); Vicinity of Saiii, Trac_.6 Limonade, 2-4 km from the village, 23 Mar 1981,Andersson 1159 (GB, S); Route foresti~re de B~lizon, pk 10, chantier d'abattage en for6t primaire, 04"20'N, 52"22'W, Billiet & Jadin 4451 (BR); Safil, for6t primaire, 200 m, 03"38'N, 53012'W, Billiet & Jadin 5788 (BR); Savane Roche du Quatorze Juillet, Bassin du Bas-Oyapock, 50 m, 03"58'N, 51"52'W, 15 Apr 1991, Cremers 12134 (U), 17 Apr 1991, Cremers 12226 (CAY, U), 19 Apr 1991, Cremers 12317 (MO, P, U); Montagne de i'Inini, Bassin de i'Inini, 03"30'N, 53~ 7 Apr 1986, Feuil- let 3700 (CAY, US); ! 0 Apr 1986, Feuillet 3784 (CAY); Monts Atachi Bacca, for6t sur cr~te entre le sommet tabulaire et le sommel, 400-525 m. 8 Feb 1971, de Granville 828 (P sterile, U); SaiJl, Circuit ORSTOM, "Crique Limonade," Belle for6t, II Dec 1971, de Granville 868 (CAY); Sommet Tabulaire, versant ori- ental, haut de pente, +_ 45 km SE de Saiil, 700 m, 2 l Aug 1980, de Granville 3540 (P); Montagne de Kaw, piste de d6grad Limousin, for~t humide au bord de crique, 5 Apr 1981, de Granville 4503 (CAY, P); Mon- tagne de la Trinit6, sommet NE, 30 Jan 1984, de Gran- ville et al. 6369 (BR, GB, P, U, US); ca. 490 m, in forest along ct~-~ek, 6 Feb 1984, de Granville et a16566 (CAY, GB, P, U); Pied du Mont Galbao, Crique Canal Panama, 10 km/t I'Ouest, 180 m, 03"37'N, 53~ 8 Jan 1986, de Granville et al. 8435 (P, US); Clique Solitaire, Montagne de Kaw, versant nord de la Mon- tagne de Kaw, au niveau du pk 46, for6t de pente de basse altitude, en bas de pente,/t proximit6 des ruis- seaux, 100 m, 04~ 52"04'W, 14 Dec 1986, de

Granville 9081 (P, U, US); Mont Atachi Bacca, Regi6n de l'lnini, Est du plateau sommital, 680 m, 03~ 53"55'W, 23 Jan 1989, de Granville et al. 10889 (US); Chemin de fer Gar6-Tigre--Saint-Elie, pk 6 ~i pk 11, Bassin, for6t primaire de basse altitude, 20 m, 04"57'N, 53"09'W, 7 Al~r 1990, Hof fe t al. 6551 (CAY, U); in silvis paludosis, Conama, 1847, Leprieur s.n. (P); SMil, chemin du plateau "La Douane," fond de erique de terrain, bord de rivi6re, 18 Jan 1974, Lescure33 (CAY, U); Saiil, 3 Nov 1974, Maas et al. 2252 (U); Saiil, La Fum6e Mountain, La Fum6e Sud-est, non-flooded moist forest, ca. 200--350 m, 22 May 1986, Mort & Pen- nington 18102 (NY, P); Saiil, Grand Boeuf Mort trail, non-flooded moist forest, ca. 250-300 m, 15 Jun 1988, Mort & Gracie 18945 (NY); Saiil, Route de B61izon, between entrance to Grand BoeufMort Trail and Eaux Claires, non-flooded moist forest, ca. 250 m, 2 Feb 1990, Mort & Gracie 21093 (CAY, NY); Saiil, just N ofEaux Claires on the Route de B61izon, between aban- doned army camp and Eaux Claires, non-flooded moist forest, ca. 200 m, 21 May 1992, Mort et al. 22225 (NY); Route de Ste Marie des Mines, Cacao, env. 60 km S de Cayenne, 26 Feb 1965, Oldeman 1187 (CAY); Approuague, sur la crique lpoucin, au camp Salvat, for6t du bord de la rivi/.~re, 25 Feb 1969, Oldeman 2197 (CAY); Crique Counamary, basse Approuague, 22 Jan 1970, Oldeman 2832 (CAY); Rivi/~re Arataye (affluent de I'Approuague) au pied du saut Parar6 darts le layon de 1'O. N. F. direction Nord ~t environ 2 km dans vall6e d'une petite crique, bord de I'eau, 11 Feb 1969, Olde- man 3019 (CAY, P); Haut Oyapock, crique Eulepouss- ing (Ipusi), layon crique Kulumuli itu-Mt. St. Marcel, pinoti6re, 15 Mar 1976, Sastre 4402 (CAY, P); Haul Oyapock, Trois Sauts, layon conduisant h la crique Pusi, en pinoti~.re, 3 Apr 1976, Sastre 4663 (CAY, P); Fleuve Maroni, Montagnes Franc, aises (Gaa Caba), 04"33'N, 54"27'W, 26 Aug 1986, Sastre et aL 8068 (U, US); Without locality, 1819-1821, Poiteau s.n. (G).

SURINAM. Nassau Mts., Marowijne River in vi- cinity of Base Camp, forested slopes, herb of stream banks, frequent in secondary growth, 400-550 m, 10 Jan 1955, Cowan & Lindeman 39215 (F, NY, US); right bank of Marowijne River, across from Nassau Mt. landing, 10 Jan 1955, Cowan 39218 (P); Marow- ijne River, 16 Feb 1949, Lanjouw & Lindeman 2126 (GH, U); Marowijne River, level of Nassau Mts., 28 Feb 1949, Lanjouw & Lindeman 2381 (U, US); In montibus, qui dicuntur Nassau, 12 Mar 1949, Lanjouw & Lindeman 2643 (U); near small creek S of Km 7, in slope forest, ca. 450 m, 14 Mar 1949, Lanjouw & Lindeman 2683 (U); Lely Mountains, SW plateaus covered by ferrobauxite, along E road on plateau one, 550-710 rn, 29 Sep 1975, Lindeman et al. 537 (U, UBC); Nassau Mrs., Marowijne River, in forest on Line i 2, Plateau A, ca. 525 m, 28 Feb 1955, Maguire 40711 (NY).

C a l a t h e a m a a s i o r u m is k n o w n on ly f rom S u r i n a m a n d F rench G u iana . C lea r ly the de ta i l ed d e s c r i p t i o n g iven by J o n k e r - V e r - h o e f a n d J o n k e r (1957) refers to th is species r a the r than to C. c y c l o p h o r a Baker. F lo ra l

1995] KENNEDY:CALATHEA 159

measu remen t s and shapes given above are f rom their description. The i r inclusion o f Mexico in the dis t r ibut ion is probably taken f r o m S c h u m a n n ' s (1902) m o n o g r a p h wherein he cites two Mexican specimens as C. cyclophora. The Mexican species C. atro- purpurea Matuda and C. ovandensis Ma- tuda, al though closely related to C. maa- siorum, are distinct species. The species re- ferred to as C. cyclophora by Andersson and Kennedy (1986) in their key to the species o f Calathea f rom French Guiana is C. maa- siorum.

Calathea maasiorum belongs to Calathea sec. Breviscapus Benth. I t is distinguished f rom other Gu ianan species by the few (1 - 3) basal leaves, the uppe r surface o f the leaf pa t te rned with a light to yellowish green band along the midr ib and the lower surface purple or tinged purple, the spirally ar- ranged, adaxially puberulous bracts, and the absence ofbracteoles . Calathea maasiorum resembles the closely related C. cyclophora Baker and, when pressed, has been confused with it. Both species share a s imilar growth habi t and leaves pa t te rned with a light green band along the midrib. Calathea cyclophora is distinguished f rom C. maasiorum by the ovate vs. elliptic to obova te leaf blade, the longer (1.9-2.8 vs. 1.2-1.9 cm), adaxially glabrous bracts and the presence of clavic- ulate bracteoles. Al though there is an over- lap in bract number , 9-21 in C. maasiorum vs. 5-14, the major i ty o f individuals fall into either the -< 9 bracts or the > 10 bracts category.

Bract and flower color are variable within C. maasiorum, judging f rom the descrip- t ions on the labels. Both green (de Granville 10889, Andersson 1104) and pink-colored (Mori et al. 22909, Feuillet 3700) bracts are no ted on the labels; likewise, pure white (Andersson 1104, Oldeman 3019) corolla and s taminodes as well as white and purple (de Granville 6369) are noted. Whether this is a color p o l y m o r p h i s m or a change o f color

with age, as occurs in some species, is un- clear. The light green pat terning along the mid r ib o f the upper leaf surface may also be variable. Both pa t te rned and unpat- terned leaves are found in Calathea cyclo- phora. Baker (1895), in describing C. cyclo- phora, states that the " leaves [are] not at all variegated, so that it is not a striking species f rom a horticultural poin t o f view." The pa t te rned forms of C. maasiorum certainly would be o f hort icultural interest.

This species is n a m e d in the honor of Paul and Hiltje Maas o f the Herba r ium o f Utrecht Univers i ty , for their valuable contr ibut ions not only to the Flora o f the Guianas and our understanding o f the neotropical Zin- giberales but to neotropical bo tany in gen- eral.

A c k n o w l e d g m e n t s

I would like to thank Scott Mor i for pro- viding critical mater ia l and assistance with this project, Carol Grac ie for the color slides o f the species, the Fund for Neotropical Plant Research o f The N e w York Botanical Gar - den for providing the funds for the illustra- tions, and Bobbi Angel for providing the illustrations. I a m especially grateful to Paul and Hiltje Maas for their botanical , intel- lectual, and logistical assistance for some 20 years. I would like to thank the curators o f BR, CAY, NY, P, U, and US for loans and assistance critical to this study.

L i t e r a t u r e C i t e d

Andersson, L. & H. Kennedy. 1986. Four new species of Calathea (Marantaceae) from French Guiana. Nordic J. Bot. 6: 447--455.

Baker, J .G. 1895. Calathea cyclophora. Kew Bull. 1895: 17.

Jonker-Verhoef, A. M. E. & F. P. Jonker. 1957. Mar- antaceae. Pages 149-208. In: A. A. Pulle & J. Lan- jouw, editors. Flora of Suriname 1. Royal Tropical Institute, Amsterdam.

Schumann, K. 1902. Marantaceae. Pages 1-184. In: A. Engler, editor. Das Pflanzenreieh IV. 48. Engel- mann, Leipzig.