CATE Araceae, 17 Dec 2011. araceae.e-monocot.org
Plant with dormant stage; 40 – 50 cm tall, with fibrous cataphyll remnants at base. Rhizome erect, 2 – 4 cm long and 1 – 1.4 cm in diam., with very thick roots (tuberous after the collector’s notes). Leaves only one to two or three; petiole (17 –)20 – 30 cm long, above 3 – 4 mm in diam. and in basal part (including sheath) 5 – 10 mm wide, sheath 8 – 12 cm long with its lower part maculate, upper part of petiole green; leaf blade lanceolate, 18 – 23 × 5 – 7.5 cm, base cuneate, apex acute; venation reticulate, midvein very well-developed, primary lateral veins 6 – 7 on each side and running towards the apex, second order veins thinner and between the primary ones, forming a ± irregular net, with very thin third order veins between them. Cataphylls 5 – 9.5 cm long, apex acuminate, outside maculate and inside uniformly light coloured (whitish). Inflorescence unknown. Infructescence ± hypogeous (after the collector’s notes), somewhat ellipsoid, c. 1.3 cm long and 0.8 (immature?) – 1.4 cm in diam., with three (or two) spiral rows of fruits, without any spathe remnants; peduncle short, 2 – 2.5 cm long and 2 – 3 mm in diam.; berries c. 15 in one infructescence (in one specimen only 10 – 12); berry ± globose to somewhat depressed-globose, white (after the collector’s note), 3 – 4 mm (immature?) or 5 – 6(– 7) mm in diam., with short style and stigma remnant somewhat sunken in the centre, style c. 0.5 mm long, stigma (0.8 –)1 – 1.2(– 1.4) mm in diam.; seed ellipsoid to ovoid, 2.4 – 2.6 mm long and c. 1.5 mm in diam., testa costate and dark brown, endosperm copious and pure white, embryo small.
Petioli longi in parte inferiore maculati; lamina foliorum lanceolata, basi cuneata, apica acuta; baccae depresse globulatae; semina ellipsoidea, testa costata atrobrunnea, endospermio laete albo, embryone parvo. Stylochaeton malaissei differt a S. shabaensis laminis foliorum basi cuneatis; in S. shabaensis in contrario basi truncatis vel cordatis.
Stylochaeton malaissei is only known from Shaba, formerly Katanga, DR Congo, and from only two collections. One was made in a “dembo”, which is a seasonally flooded (during 2 to 5 months) savannah with a particular flora.
Further specimen seen. — DR Congo: Shaba, Lubudi – Nguba, km 81 (zone Lubudi), 26°27'E, 10°07'S, alt. 1080 m, forêt claire sur latérite, plante à racine tubéreuses, de 50 cm haute, fruits blancs, hypogés, 30.1.1986 (fruiting and sterile), P. Bamps & F. Malaisse 8450 (BR).
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
