SYNGONIUM MERIDENSE
PROTOLOGUE: Syngonium meridense , published in Acta Botanica Venezuelica 10(1/4): 324 (1975).
Syngonium meridense Bunting, sp. nov. Herba scandens usque 2-3 m longa, foliis multis integris! Caulis in parte frondosa viridis usque 2.6 cm diam., internodiis 3-4 cm longis. Petiolus succosus viridis usque 36-47 cm longus, in parte inferiore 26-32 cm longa late vaginatus alis erectis laete viridibus persistentibus, vagina aperta, in parte superiore non vaginata fere semiteres ventraliter interdum ad centrum leviter porcatus, prope apicem late canaliculatus (in stirpe juvenili parte non vaginata omnino ventraliter canaliculatus). Foliorum lamina subtiliter subcoriacea laevis ambitu triangulari-ovata vel suboblongo-ovata ad basim oblique cordata (lobis posticis raro angulari-rotundatis), ad apicem obtusa cum acumine brevi, usque 32 cm longa et 21 cm lata, sinu 2.6-4.3 cm profundo, margine fere plana, adaxiale impolita saturate viridis costa angulari-canaliculata, abaxiale pallide viridis, nervis lateralibus primariis usque ca. 8-10 cum secundario único inter quodque par sub angulo 40-45° abeuntibus arcuato-adscendentibus et a margine valde proximis usque ad apicem continuis, vel nervis superioribus in nervum collectivum antemarginalem conjunctis, nervis minoribus subtilibus et vagis, nervis primariis descendentibus utrinque ca. 3 prope basim in costulam brevem conjunctis. Inflorescentiae binae vel ternae. Pedunculus 9-12 cm longus, valde compressus. Spathae tubus (post anthesin) fusiformis 8 cm longus et 2.6 cm latus, extra viridis intra viridis pallidissimus. Spathae limbus et pars staminata spadicis caduca et non visi. Typus: G. S. Bunting 4381, Carretera Caño Zancudo–La Azulita, en el margen del Caño Blanco (Puente Hierro), en selva húmeda, 7 Apr. 1971 (holotypus, MY). Paratypus: G. S. Bunting 2800, Edo. Mérida, Carretera Caño Zancudo–La Azulita, 6 kms arriba de Caño Zancudo, 16 Dec. 1967 (MY).
DISTRIBUTION: Venezuela (Mérida): Mérida, Venezuela.
DISTRIBUTION NOTE: Venezuela: Mérida.
SPECIES DESCRIPTION:
Juvenile plants with stems less than 1 cm diam., not glaucous; petioles 10–15 cm long, subterete above the sheath; blades oblong-elliptic, usually broadest in the middle, somewhat inequilateral, subacute to acuminate and apiculate at the apex, narrowed to a weakly lobed base; primary lateral veins 4–5 pairs, sharply ascending to the apex, each forming a distinct collective vein; posterior lobes 10–17 cm long, narrowly rounded to acutely angular. Adult plants with stems green in the apical portion, usually to 2.5 cm diam.; internodes 3–4 cm long; petioles usually 36–47 cm long, sheathed ca. ⅔ their length, the sheath open, 26–32 cm long, persistent; blades held in same plane as the petiole, thinly coriaceous, drying chartaceous, simple, suboblong-ovate to triangular-ovate, abruptly acuminate at the apex (the acumen bluntly rounded at the tip with a short apiculum), obliquely cordate at the base, 25–32 cm long, 15–21 cm wide, dark green, matte above, light green, matte below, the posterior lobes broadly rounded or rarely obtusely angular, 6–9 cm long (from the tip to the apex of the sinus), the sinus arcuate with a decurrent petiole; primary lateral veins 5–9 pairs, ascending at 40–45° angle, each forming a distinct collective vein; tertiary veins very distinct on the lower surface, almost obscure on the upper surface; basal veins 5–6 pairs, free or nearly so to the base.³
INFLORESCENCE:
Inflorescences 2 or 3 per axil; peduncles 9–12 cm long, compressed; spathe (juvenile) 12 cm long; spathe tube fusiform, 2.5 cm long, 1.3 cm diam., dark green on the outside, pale green within; spadix (juvenile) 5 cm shorter than the spathe, subsessile; pistillate portion of the spadix 1.8 cm long, 9 mm diam. at the base, 8 mm diam. at the apex; staminate portion of the spadix somewhat clavate, 5.7 cm long, 9 mm diam., narrowed above the sterile staminate flowers (ca. 1 cm above) to 6.5 mm diam., the remainder ca. 8.5 mm diam., obtuse at the apex. Infructescences (immature) 8 cm long, 2.6 cm diam., dark green on the outside, pale green within.³
ECOLOGY:
A specimen with an immature inflorescence was collected in mid-December and a presumably full-sized fruit was collected in early April.³
ETYMOLOGY:
Named for the state of Mérida in the Venezuelan Andes, to which the species is confined. The Latinized ending-ense means "from that place." George Bunting described the species from Mérida in 1975.³
NOTES:
1. Syngonium meridense is recognized by its simple leaf blades with short, rounded posterior lobes and basal veins free or nearly free to the base. It is most closely related to Syngonium chocoanum from northern Colombia and western Panama. It differs from that species by its broader sinus and in having the tertiary veins distinct and wavy and in lacking any major branches from the primary lateral veins. The tertiary veins are obscure, close and markedly parallel, not distinct, remote and wavy as in Syngonium meridense. It can also be confused in South America with Syngonium crassifolium which differs in having larger leaves with longer, more angular lobes and basal veins which are united into a distinct rib (posterior rib).³
REFERENCES:
1. Plants of the World Online, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew — Syngonium meridense
2. Acta Botanica Venezuelica 10(1/4): 324 (1975) — protologue.