Prestoea simplicifolia Galeano

Distribution

Western slope of the Cordillera Occidental in Colombia (Antioquia); forest on steep slopes at 950-1600 m. This area may be a center of endemism - e.g., Wettinia disticha (R. Bernal) R. Bernal, Zamia wallisii Regel - and many Erieaceae are known only from this locality.

General Description

Stems solitary or cespitose, erect, 2-8 m tall, 5-7 cm diam., brown. Leaves 4-12, ± erect; sheath open and not forming a crowns haft, persistent, 52-67 cm long, red or light-brown, with yellow to reddish brown scales, fibrous on the margins; petiole 7-10 cm long, with scales like those of sheath; rachis 1.4-1.8 m long, with scales like those of sheath; blade simple, oblongcuneate, bifid at the apex, 1.9-2.5 m long, 58(-90) cm wide, glabrous or with a few, seallered hairs abaxially, with 36-42 prominent primary veins on either side, with poorly developed ramenta on veins abaxially. Inflorescences corymbose, interfoliar or infrafoliar, recurved at anthesis; peduncle 48-86 cm long, 1.3-1.5 cm diam., subterete, with reddish brown, appressed scales, glabrescent, curved; prophyll 25-34 cm long, ca. 7 cm diam.; peduncular bract 1-1.6 m long including a 2-3 cm long umbo, 7 cm diam.; rachis 60-69 cm long, with appressed, crusty hairs; rachillae 32-48, to 74 cm long proximally, 2.5-6 mm diam. in fruit, zigzag, covered with very small, brown, branched crustose hairs; flowers in triads almost throughout rachillae, paired or solitary staminate flowers only on distal few cm; triad bracteole apiculate; first triad bracteole low, apiculate, second and third flower bracteoles ± equal , apiculate, 1 mm high; staminate flowers 4-6 mm long, sessile; sepals ovate to ovate-triangular, 1-2 mm long, gibbous, minutely ciliate; petals triangular to lanceolate, 4-5.5 mm long; stamens arranged on a short receptacle; filaments 3 mm long, flattened; anthers 2-3 mm long; pistillode 1.5-2 mm long, deeply trifid apically; pistillate flowers 3-4 mm long; sepals very widely ovate, 3 mm long; petals very widely ovate, 4 mm long; staminodes digitate. Fruits globose to subglobose, 0.9-1.4 em diam., the stigmatic remains lateral; epicarp purple-black' at maturity, densely and minutely tuberculate; seeds subglobose, 7-8 mm diam.; endosperm ruminate; eophyll bifid.

Vernacular

Colombia: lindona.

Bernal, R., Gradstein, S.R. & Celis, M. (eds.). 2015. Catálogo de plantas y líquenes de Colombia. Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá. http://catalogoplantasdecolombia.unal.edu.co

Distribution

Colombia