Trichilia pallens C.DC.

  • Authority

    Pennington, Terence D. 1981. Meliaceae. Fl. Neotrop. Monogr. 28: 1-359, 418-449, 459-470. (Published by NYBG Press)

  • Family

    Meliaceae

  • Scientific Name

    Trichilia pallens C.DC.

  • Type

    Type. Warming s.n. (3205 in herb. C), Brazil, Minas Gerais, Lagoa Santa, fl (holotype, C).

  • Synonyms

    Trichilia selloi C.DC., Trichilia levis C.DC., Trichilia brachythyrsus Harms, Trichilia orgaosana C.DC., Trichiltia fragrans C.DC., Trichilia glabriramea C.DC., Trichilia petiolulata C.DC., Trichilia puberulanthera C.DC., Trichilia columnata Girardi

  • Description

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    Species Description - Young branches appressed puberulous (trichomes basifixed) or short pubescent, becoming glabrous, brown, usually with pale lenticels. Bud scales absent. Leaves imparipinnate or rarely trifoliolate, 7-20 cm long; petiole and rhachis semiterete, often broadened below insertion of leaflets, glabrous or subglabrous; petiolule 2-5(-8) mm long. Leaflets opposite, (3-)5-7(-9), oblanceolate or elliptic, apex narrowly acuminate or attenuate, base narrowly cuneate or attenuate, sometimes long decurrent, chartaceous, 6.9-17[ 11.9] cm long, 2-5(-6)[3.9] cm broad, glabrous above, lower surface with tufts of long hairs in axils of secondary veins and midrib otherwise glabrous except for a few stiff appressed hairs on midrib and sometimes with some granular red papillae on lamina, nearly always glandular-punctate and -striate; venation eucamptodromous, midrib prominent or flat; secondaries 10-16 on either side of midrib, ascending, usually arcuate and slightly convergent; intersecondaries and tertiaries usually obscure. Flowers unisexual, plant dioecious; inflorescence axillary or less frequently several clustered on a short axillary shoot, 5-16(-27) cm long, a rather laxly-branched, slender or broadly pyramidal panicle or thyrse, flowers densely clustered at ends of widely spreading lateral branches, sparsely puberulous to glabrous; pedicel 1-1.5(-2.5) mm long. Calyx nearly always patelliform, 0.5-1.25 mm long, with 5 broadly ovate, acute, obtuse or rounded lobes, 1/2-3/4 length of calyx, or occasionally sepals free, aestivation usually open, or sometimes slightly imbricate at base, sparsely puberulous, ciliate, persistent in fruit. Petals 5, free, imbricate or quincuncial, 2.5-4 mm long, 1-1.5 mm broad, oblong or oblong-lanceolate, apex nearly always rounded, rarely acute, usually appressed puberulous on outer surface rarely glabrous. Staminal tube cyathiform; filaments completely fused, 1-2 mm long and broad, margin subtruncate or with very short rounded or acute lobes alternating with anthers, outside with crisped puberulous hairs in upper half or glabrous, coarsely hairy to barbate in throat or rarely glabrous; anthers 8-10(-12), 0.8-1 mm long, puberulous or glabrous; antherodes slender, without pollen, not dehiscing. Nectary a fat glabrous annulus immersing the pistillode, in 2 flowers reduced to a small annulus around base of enlarged ovary. Ovary ovoid, 3(-4)-locular, loculi with 1-2 collateral ovules, glabrous; style short, stout, bearing a discoid style-head with a ± columnar stigmatic area; pistillode slender-conical immersed in fleshy nectary, containing small non-functional ovules. Capsule broadly ovoid to globose, often slightly trigonous, apex rounded, base truncate or cordate, smooth or slightly verruculose, densely papillose, sometimes intermixed with few puberulous hairs, 1-1.3 cm long, 1-1.6 cm broad, 3-valved; pericarp ca. 1 mm thick; endocarp tough, cartilaginous. Seeds 1-2, collateral in each valve, 0.8-1 cm long, with fleshy arillode surrounding upper half of seed only; seed coat membraneous, shining dark brown. Embryo with plano-convex, collateral cotyledons; radicle apical, included. Endosperm absent.

  • Discussion

    Relationships

    Trichilia pallens is allied to T. casaretti and their differences are discussed under the latter. It is also very close to T. elegans subsp, richardiana,, which is, however, geographically distinct except for a small region of overlap in Rio de Janeiro. The differences are slight but consistent:

    T. pallens

    Leaflet base ± symmetric Flower bud oblong, rounded; petals usually oblong, apex nearly always rounded Anthers often puberulous Ovary loculi often 1-ovulate Style-head ± columnar Capsule as broad or broader than long

    T. elegans subsp. richardiana

    Leaflet base usually asymmetric Flower buds lanceolate, acute; petals lanceolate, apex usually acute Anthers glabrous Loculi always biovulate Style-head conical Capsule longer than broad

    Field Characters: Small treelet to 5 m. Flowers white, from December to April and again in August. Fruit in May and December.

  • Distribution

    Lowland coastal rain forest from Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Parana, Santa Catarina to northern Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. It is also present in southeastern Minas Gerais (from where the type was collected) but information on its ecology there is not available. & Klein 5975, fl, fr, (B, FHO, NY). SW 2849: Santa Catarina, Orteaes, Reitz 1729, fl, (FHO, GH). SW 2950: Rio Grande do Sul, Osorio, Rambo 1307, fl, (B).

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