Mastigostyla torotoroensis Huaylla & Wilkin

First published in Kew Bull. 65: 245 (2010)
This species is accepted
The native range of this species is Bolivia. It is a bulbous geophyte and grows primarily in the seasonally dry tropical biome.

Descriptions

Huaylla, H., Wilkin, P. & Weber, O.. 2010. Mastigostyla I. M. Johnst. in Bolivia: three new species and new data on M. cardenasii R. C. Foster. Kew Bulletin: 65 241. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12225-010-9199-y

Type
Bolivia, Potosí, Charcas, Torotoro, camino al Cañon de Vergel, saliendo de Torotoro, cerca de la entrada del cañon [18°06′07″S, 65°46′47″W], fl. 24 March 2005, Wood, Atahuachi & de la Barra 21952 (holotypusK!; isotypi BOLV!, HSB!, K! (two sheets), LPB!).
Morphology General Habit
Perennial herb, 17 – 60 cm in height, erect; bulb 2.2 – 3 × 1.2 – 1.5 cm, ovoid or rounded, tunics papery, dark shiny chestnut-brown to very dark brown, neck c- 3 – 6 cm long, of narrowly linear divided tunic segments
Morphology Leaves
Leaves basal and cauline, linear, the apex acuminate, parallel-veined and longitudinally plicate, scabrid on the veins and margins, plant otherwise glabrous; basal leaves usually 1; stem leaves 1 or 2; lamina in both 14 – 44 × 0.1 – 0.25 cm
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences
Inflorescence cymose, 2 – 6 flowered; peduncle 64 – 95 mm long, sulcate; bracts 2, 19 – 28 × 3 – 5 mm, lanceolate, yellow-green to dark green or grey-green, appearing to turn russet-brown in fruit at the apex only, clasping each other at base for up to 8 mm, apex acuminate, margins translucent; pedicels 22 – 35 mm long, filiform, both peduncles and pedicels erect so flowers are erect with both whorls of tepals spreading; perianth 25 – 28 mm in diam., tepals free; outer 13 – 16 × 3 – 7 mm, ovate-elliptic, dark to light blue with a white blotch at the base, sometimes with darker speckling elsewhere, base cuneate, not differentiated at all into a claw and blade, apex obtuse to acute or apiculate; inner tepals 8 – 11 × 2 – 3 cm, oblong-lanceolate, concolorous with outer tepals, apex acute; filaments united to form a 4 – 7 cm long, erect column; anthers 3 – 5 mm long, narrowly oblong, flat or falcate, each between a pair of the 3 style branches; style branches, 3 – 6 mm long, each branch divided (fused at base for at most 1 mm) into filiform arms, the arms 2.5 – 4 mm long, filiform, white to bluish, more pigmented towards the apex, stigmatic at the apex which is capitate and golden-yellow; ovary 6 – 9 × 2 – 6 mm, obovoid, sulcate. Fruit and seeds not seen
Distribution
Endemic to Torotoro National Park in Bolivia.
Ecology
Locally frequent in grikes between limestone rocks and in calcareous clay between rocks on open stony ridges with scattered low vegetation; 2550 – 2750 m (Map 1B).
Conservation
This species is restricted to the Torotoro Nacional Park in Bolivia’s Potosí Department. Although very local in distribution the populations of this species are quite extensive so no immediate threat is obvious and we consider it to be of Least Concern (LC). Since it is one of the botanical jewels of this protected area, regular monitoring is desirable to ensure populations maintain their numbers.
Phenology
Flowers very briefly towards the end of the rainy season centred on the month of March. Visits in both January and May failed to reveal any flowering plants.
Note
Mastigostylatorotoroensis is a surprisingly variable species in the shape of both outer and inner tepals, to the extent that we believed that there were two different species involved after seeing the oldest two collections of this species. However careful examination of plants in the field in March 2007 demonstrated clearly that the different forms were continuous in their variation. Tepals vary from dark to light blue. The outer tepals vary from ovate, acuminate to obovate, truncate to subemarginate while the inner tepals vary from oblong, acute, much longer than broad to ovate or elliptic, only slightly longer than broad. Some of this variation can be appreciated in Figs 5 and 6. This observation has considerable implications for the taxonomy of the Tigridieae in South America. Many species are only known from the type. In his accounts of Mastigostyla and Cardenanthus, four out of ten species recognised by Foster (1962) in the former genus and seven out of eight species in the latter were only known from the type collections. Clearly single collections make assessment of variation impossible. Given the difficulties of examining dried material of Iridaceae, which has been mentioned earlier, there is a clearly a need for a lot more photographic and herbarium records before species in the Tigridieae can be satisfactorily delimited. Mastigostylatorotoroensis is very different in its reproductive morphology from the other three species described here. It is readily distinguished by its spreading inner tepals which are relatively large in comparison to its outer tepals and the styles in which the branches are divided almost to the base into two free, filiform arms, which are stigmatic at the tips. It has an anther between each pair of style branches. All the other species possess lorate style branches, which are divided for at most half of their length and have the anthers appressed to them.
[KBu]

Kew Species Profiles

General Description
Found only in Torotoro National Park in Bolivia, Mastigostyla torotoroensis is a bulbous perennial herb with eye-catching blue flowers.

Mastigostyla torotoroensis is an attractive and newly discovered member of the iris family (Iridaceae) from Bolivia. It flowers very briefly towards the end of the rainy season, especially in March. The shapes of both the outer and inner tepals are rather variable, so much so that it was initially thought there were two different species. The generic name is derived from the Greek words mastigos, meaning 'whip', and stylos, meaning 'style'.

Species Profile
Geography and distribution

Restricted to Torotoro National Park in Bolivia, where it is found from 2,550 to 2,750 m above sea level.

Description

An erect, perennial herb reaching 17-60 cm in height. The dark, shiny chestnut-brown to very dark brown bulb is ovoid or rounded with papery tunics. The bulb is 2.2-3 × 1.2-1.5 cm with a neck about 3-6 cm long. The plant is hairless with the exception of the leaf veins and margins which have a covering of minute stiff hairs.

The linear leaves have parallel veins and longitudinal folds and taper to a long tip; there is normally one basal leaf and one or two leaves arising from the stem. The leaf-blades are 14-44 × 0.1-0.25 cm.

The 2-6 flowered inflorescence is cymose with a grooved peduncle (stalk) 64-95 mm long and two bracts of 19-28 × 3-5 mm, which are yellow-green to dark green or grey-green, and turn russet-brown at the tip when in fruit.

The erect flowers have spreading, free tepals. The outer tepals are 13-16 × 3-7 mm, and dark to light blue with a white blotch at the base, sometimes with darker speckling elsewhere. The base is not differentiated into a claw and blade. The inner tepals are 8-11 × 2-3 cm, and are the same colour as the outer tepals. The filaments are united to form a 4-7 cm long, erect column. The anthers are 3-5 mm long and are each sited between a pair of the three style branches. The style branches are 3-6 mm long and divided into slender, white to bluish arms 2.5-4 mm long with a golden-yellow head. The egg-shaped ovary is 6-9 × 2-6 mm and is grooved.

Details of the fruit and seeds are unknown. 

Threats and conservation

Mastigostyla torotoroensis is only found in the Torotoro National Park in Bolivia's Potosí Department. Despite being very local in distribution it is considered to be of Least Concern (LC) according toIUCN Red List criteria, because the populations of this species are quite extensive, and no immediate threat is obvious.

It has been recommended that regular monitoring be carried out to ensure populations do not decline, as M. torotoroensis is of special botanical interest in this protected area due to it being endemic to the Park and an attractive and charismatic plant.

This species at Kew

Pressed and dried specimens of Mastigostyla torotoroensis are held in the Herbarium, one of the behind-the-scenes areas of Kew. Details, including images, of some of these can be seen online in the Herbarium Catalogue.

Distribution
Bolivia
Ecology
Locally frequent in grikes (fissures) between limestone rocks, and in calcareous clay between rocks on open stony ridges with scattered low vegetation.
Conservation
Least Concern (LC) according to IUCN Red List criteria.
Hazards

None known.

[KSP]

Extinction risk predictions for the world's flowering plants to support their conservation (2024). Bachman, S.P., Brown, M.J.M., Leão, T.C.C., Lughadha, E.N., Walker, B.E. https://nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/nph.19592

Conservation
Predicted extinction risk: threatened. Confidence: confident
[AERP]

Uses

Use
None known.
[KSP]

Sources

  • Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions v1

    • Angiosperm Threat Predictions
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
  • Herbarium Catalogue Specimens

    • 'The Herbarium Catalogue, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet http://www.kew.org/herbcat [accessed on Day Month Year]'. Please enter the date on which you consulted the system.
    • Digital Image © Board of Trustees, RBG Kew http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0
  • Kew Bulletin

    • Kew Bulletin
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0
  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    • The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants 2024. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and https://powo.science.kew.org/
    • © Copyright 2023 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Vascular Plants. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0
  • Kew Species Profiles

    • Kew Species Profiles
    • http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0