Revision of Begonia (Begoniaceae) from the Melinau Limestone in Gunung Mulu National Park and Gunung Buda National Park, Sarawak, Borneo, including thirteen new species
Author
Sang, Julia
Botanical Research Centre, SARAWAK FORESTRY, Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia; e-mail: juliasang @ sarawakforestry. com; conniegeri @ sarawakforestry. com
juliasang@sarawakforestry.com
Author
Kiew, Ruth
Forest Research Institute Malaysia, Kepong, Malaysia; e-mail: ruth @ frim. gov. my
Author
Geri, Connie
Botanical Research Centre, SARAWAK FORESTRY, Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia; e-mail: juliasang @ sarawakforestry. com; conniegeri @ sarawakforestry. com
juliasang@sarawakforestry.com
text
Phytotaxa
2013
2013-05-09
99
1
1
34
http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/phytotaxa.99.1.1
journal article
10.11646/phytotaxa.99.1.1
1179-3163
5072471
10.
Begonia rhodoneura
S.Julia
,
spec. nov.
(
Figure 13
)
Sect.
Petermannia
In habit and leaf shape, this species resembles
Begonia kachak
K.G.Pearce
from Niah National Park but it is different in its more or less sessile inflorescence with
one female
flower in the leaf axil that is distally much branched with many small white male flowers. The male tepals measure 4.5–5 ×
5 mm
compared with the longer inflorescence of
B. kachak
that is up to
29 cm
long of which the peduncle is
14 cm
long. The female flowers are in pairs and the tepals measure 7 ×
5.5 mm
. In addition, its fruits are much narrower (19–)22(–30) × 10–13(–17) mm compared with ca. 19 ×
16 mm
for
B. kachak
.
Type:
—
MALAYSIA
. Borneo.
Sarawak
.
Marudi District
:
Gunung Mulu National Park
,
Gunung Benarat
,
15 April 2012
,
Julia
et al.
SFC 2801
(
holotype
SAR
!; isotypes
E
!,
K
!,
KEP
!,
L
!,
SAN
!,
SAR
!,
SING
!)
.
Scrambling horizontally to
1.5 m
tall, bushy and branching, sometimes creeping on rock surfaces or tree trunks. Stems reddish brown, slender, woody, minutely ferrugineous, slightly swollen at nodes, reddish, internodes (2–)
2.5–5.5 cm
long,
5–9 mm
diameter. Stipules brownish red, lanceolate, ca. 14 ×
3 mm
, margin entire, apex setose, caducous and leaving a circular scar. Leaves alternate, distant or arranged close together. Petioles minutely ferrugineous and dark red,
7–9.5 cm
, slender. Laminas dark green, paler beneath, slightly velvety above, fleshy when fresh, papery when dried, very oblique, broadly ovate, 6–14.5 ×
6–13.5 cm
, asymmetric, broad side
7–9.5 cm
, base cordate overlapping, basal lobes rounded,
1.5–2 cm
, margin minutely toothed, apex acuminate. Venation palmate, main veins glabrous beneath, 2 pairs at the base, with 2 pairs along the midrib and 2 veins in basal lobe, branching twice before reaching the margin, impressed above, slightly prominent beneath, veins red below, dark red above. Inflorescences axillary, red, erect and shorter than petioles, protogynous, with
one female
flower directly in the leaf axil with the male flowers above on a panicle with a total length (3.5–)7(–11.5) cm long. Bracts elliptic, pale green, ca. 12 ×
5 mm
, margin entire, caducous. Uppermost bracts below the male flower greenish, ovate, ca. 10
8 mm
, margin entire, caducous. Male flower: pedicel red ca.
7 mm
; tepals 2, red at the base becoming white towards the tip, glabrous outside, rounded, 4.5–5 ×
5 mm
, margin entire, apex rounded; stamens more than 40, cluster globose, stalk
1 mm
long; filament ca.
1 mm
long, anthers pale yellow, obovate, ca. 1 ×
0.5 mm
, apex emarginate. Female flower: pedicel
10 mm
, pink, with short hairs; ovary greenish, oblong, ca. 12 ×
5 mm
, minutely ferrugineous, wings 3, equal, locules 3, placental branches 2 per locule; tepals 5, greenish, elliptic, ca. 10 ×
7 mm
, margin toothed, apex acute; styles ca.
2 mm
long, free to base and bifurcating with greenish papillose stigma forming a continuous twisted band. Fruits pendent; pedicel
10–12 mm
long, stiff and recurved; capsule oblong, 19–22(– 30) × 10–13(–17) mm, glabrous, locules 3, wing unequal, narrowed proximally,
2–5 mm
wide, stiffly papery, dehiscing between the wings and locules. Seeds barrel-shaped, ca.
0.5 mm
long, collar cells more than half the seed length.
Distribution:
—
MALAYSIA
. Borneo.
Sarawak
. Marudi District: Gunung Mulu National Park and Gunung Buda National Park. Endemic in the Melinau limestone. Widespread from Lobang Cina, Gunung Benarat, Bukit Agung and Gunung Buda.
Habitat:
—Common. In lowland limestone forest on limestone boulders or mossy rock faces, at
102–235 m
elevation.
Etymology:
—It takes its name from its conspicuous fine dark red veins that contrast with the bright green lamina.
FIGURE 13.
Begonia rhodoneura
. A. habit; B. juvenile plant; C. male flowers; D. female flower taken from specimen preserved in spirit; E. fruit taken from specimen preserved in spirit. Photos from SFC 2801 by Julia Sang.
Additional specimens examined (
paratypes
):
—
MALAYSIA
. Borneo.
Sarawak
.
Marudi District
:
Gunung Mulu National Park –Bukit Agung
,
Julia
et al.
SFC 2813
(
SAN
,
SAR
,
SING
),
SFC 2822
(
K
,
SAR
);
Gunung Benarat
,
Beai
et al.
SFC 2833
(
E
,
K
,
KEP
,
SAR
),
Abang Mohtar
et al
S
49472
(
K
,
KEP
,
L
,
SAR
);
Lobang Cina
,
Abang Mohtar
&
Othman
S
49413
(
SAR
),
Anderson
&
Keng
S 4452
(
K
,
SAR
)
.
Gunung Buda National Park – Gunung Buda
,
Julia
et al.
SFC 2824
(
KEP
,
SAR
,
SING
),
Burtt
B 8342
(
E
,
SAR
)
.
Notes:
—The most common begonia on limestone outcrops and isolated boulders at Lobang
Cina
, Gunung Benarat, Gunung Buda and Bukit Agung.