Name changes for Malesian species of Chionanthus (Oleaceae)

7 Pages·1998·0.64 MB·English

by  Kiew, Ruth

BLUMEA 43 (1998) 471-477
Name changes for Malesian species of
Chionanthus(Oleaceae)
Ruth Kiew
SingaporeBotanic Gardens,ClunyRoad,Singapore259569
Summary
Newcombinations underChionanthus L.aremadeforLinociera beccarii,L.brassii,L. clementis,
L. gigas,L. hahlii,L. kajewskii, L. nitida,L. remotinervia,L. riparia,L. rupicola, L. salicifolia,
L. sessiliflora and L. stenura. Linociera cumingianais synonymous withC. ramiflorus,L. novo-
guineensisand L. ovalis withC. rupicolus, L.papuasicawith C.sessiliflorus andL.pubipanicu-
latawith C. mala-elengisubsp.terniflorus.Linociera macrophyllasensu Whitmore proves tobe
C.hahlii.
Key words'. Malesia,Chionanthus,Oleaceae.
Introduction
ThereductionofLinociera Sw. to ChionanthusL. (Steam, 1976)necessitates name
changes tobemadeforspecies describedinLinociera.Inaddition,as thefamily has
beenstudied ona geographical ratherthancountrybasis, several species proveto be
synonyms. Insomecases,notablyforaVidaltypeandtwo Ledermanntypes,neotypes
havehadtobe chosenbecausetheholotype is nolonger extantandisotypes have not
beenlocated.
1.Chionanthusbeccarii(Stapf) Kiew, comb. nov.
Linociera beccariiStapf,KewBull.(1915) 115.—Type:BeccariPS826 (holoK;isoL), Sumatra,
Padang,Ayer Mancior.
Distribution— Malesia: Sumatra(G. Leuser,G. Sagu, Padang andAsahan).
Note—Apparently a ratherrare tree, itis known only fromthe northernhalfof
Sumatrawhereitgrowsinmountainforestbetween360and 1200m.Its largefruit is
unique among Malesian Chionanthusin being flattenedlaterally as well as being
ridged. Its strongly flattenedtwigs, long petioles, narrowly obovate leaves with an
acuteapex, androtundfoliaceousbracts combineto makeita distinctive species.
2.Chionanthusbrassii(Kobuski)Kiew, comb. nov.
Linocierabrassii Kobuski, J.ArnoldArbor. 21(1940)333.—Type:Brass11234(holoA;isoBM,
L,LAE), New Guinea,Lake Habbema.
Distribution— Malesia: Papua New Guinea(Eastern Highlands, Morobeand
CentralProvinces).
Notes— Ithasbeen mostcommonly collected fromthehighlands above 1000m
butalsooccasionally fromthelowlands at500m.
472 BLUMEA Vol. 43, No. 2, 1998
Initsnarrowlyelliptic leaf,C.brassiimostcloselyresemblesC. salicifoliusexcept
thatits leavesarebroader(2.8-3.8 cm as opposed to 0.7-1.7 cm inC. salicifolius)
anditsracemes tendtobeshorter, theflowersmorecrowded andthepedicels arealso
shorter.
3.Chionanthusdementis(Quisumb. & Merr.) Kiew, comb. nov.
Linociera clementis Quisumb.& Merr.,Philipp. J.Sci. 37 (1928) 189.—Type: Clemens 16785
(holoUC).
Thisis aremarkablespecies ofChionanthusasitresemblesLigustrumstenophyllum
initswillow-likeleavesandterminalinflorescences.Thislatteris avery unusualchar-
acter for Chionanthus.Thereis no doubtthatitis atrue species ofChionanthusas it
hastypicalflowerswithacorollawithavery shorttubeandnarrowinduplicate lobes,
sessile anthersanda very shortstyle.
Both L. stenophyllum and C. clementisareendemic to thePhilippines and were
collectedfromMtMoises, IsabelaProvince,whereClemensrecordedthatC. clementis
is astreamshoreshrub,whichsuggeststhatthesetwo species mayowetheirsimilarity
tobothbeing rheophytes.
4.Chionanthusgigas (Lingelsh.) Kiew, comb. nov.
Linociera gigasLingelsh.,Bot. Jahrb.61 (1927)14;Kobuski, J.Arnold Arbor.21 (1940)335. —
Type: Schlechter 18039 (Bt;holoL;isoA,BM,K, US),New Guinea: Madang,Finisterre Mts.
Distribution— Malesia,endemicto NewGuinea.
Notes— Chionanthus gigas is well-characterisedby its large coriaceous leaves,
its condensedinflorescences of sessile flowers with long corolla lobes, and large
unridged fruits. It is an extremely rare species. Atpresent it isknown from three
collections, the type, one fromOssima, W Sepik (,Streimann & Kairo NGF 39225)
andanotherfromLake Kutubu, SHighlands (KatikLAE70780).
Among NewGuinea species, C. sessiliflorus is similarin its condensedinflores-
cences with sessile flowers but the two species can be separated on leaf size (the
laminaof C. gigas ranges from 21-50cm long, that ofC. sessiliflorus is usually
12-18 cm long with a range of6-26 cm) and fruit shape (ovoid and unridged in
C. gigas, ellipsoid andridged in C. sessiliflorus).
5.Chionanthushahlii(Rech.) Kiew, comb. nov.
Linociera hahlii Rech.,FeddesRep. 11 (1912)185;Bot.Zool.Ergeb.Wiss. Forsch.;ReiseSamoa
(1913)589 & t.27; Lingelsh.,Bot. Jahrb.61 (1927) 13;Sleumer,Notizbl. Bot.Gart. Berl. 13
(1936)258;Whitmore,GuideForests Brit.Solomon Is.(1966) 188;Foreman, ChecklistVase.
PI.Bougainville (1971)52.—Type:Rechinger4913 (W), Bougainville.
Linociera macrophyllaauct.nonWall.:Whitmore,I.e. 188.
Distribution—Samoa, SolomonIs.andMalesia: Papua NewGuinea [Bismarck
Archipelago (NewBritain)].
Notes—Although common intheSolomonIs. as farwest as Bougainville, only a
single collectionisknownfrom Malesia(New Britain, FrodinNGF 26249).
This species isreadily recognised by itswhite twigs, large leaves,by itsraceme
withwell-spaced opposed flowers andits unridged ellipsoid fruits.
R.Kiew: Name changesin Chionanthus 473
6.Chionanthuskajewskii (Sleumer) Kiew, comb. nov.
Linociera kajewskii Sleumer,Notizbl. Bot, Gart. Berl. 13 (1936) 258. —Type: Kajewski 2159
(Bf;holo L;isoA, BRI,SING),Bougainville.
Distribution SolomonIslands.
—
Note—Thisspecies is includedbecauserecentcollectionsfromNewBritainhave
extendedtherangeofC. hahliiintoMalesiaanditis likely thatiC.kajewskii, whichis
commoninBougainville inrainforestat 1500m, willalso bediscoveredinMalesia.
7. Chionanthus mala-elengi (Dennst.) P.S. Green subsp. terniflorus (Wall, ex
G.Don) P.S.Green., Kew Bull.51 (1996) 767.
LinocierapubipaniculataMerr.,PapersMich.Acad.Sci. 19(1934)187.—Type:Rahmat siToroes
111 (holoUC), Sumatra(Karoland).
Distribution India, Burma,Thailand,Laos,VietnamandCambodia.InMalesia:
—
NESumatra(Brastagi, Caroe,LakeTawar,Lan-RakitMedanandPetjeren Karoland).
Habitat—Open areas onlakeshore,rocky land andfromaravine.
Notes —Among MalesianChionanthusspecies, itis unique in its flower, which
has asparsely tomentose ovary anda corollawherethepairs oflobes arenot divided
almosttothebase butinsteadarejoined foraboutathirdofthelengthofthecorolla,
anditscalyx, whichis densely greytomentose. Inaddition,theinflorescenceisunusual
as the flowersformtight clusters atthetips ofthe inflorescencebranches.
Green (1996) recognises three subspecies. The Sumatrantaxon most resembles
subsp. terniflorus initslarge leaves (11-18 cm long) with8-10pairs oflateral veins
andanacuminateapex,longerinflorescences(3.5-6 cmlong). However,thedifference
in corollalength, 4-6 mmin subsp. mala-elengi and6-8 mmin subsp. terniflorus,
thatGreengives inhiskey asoneofthecharacterstodistinguish thesubspecies isnot
supported byexaminationofspecimens. As Kerr(1939)hadalreadynoted,thecorolla
on asingle collectioncan show considerablevariation, e.g., Parkinson 6114,where
ondifferentinflorescencescorollalength rangesfrom2-5mm.IntheThaipopulation
ingeneral forsubsp. terniflorus, therangeofcorollalength is 3-9mm; forSumatran
specimens itis5-6mmlong.
8.Chionanthusnitidus(Merr.) Kiew, comb. nov.
LinocieranitidaMerr.,Philipp.J.Sci.,Bot. 10(1915)339. —Type:ReilloBS15406 (holoUS; iso
BM,K), Philippines,Basilan.
Note—Although knownonly fromthe typespecimen, there is no doubtthat itis
adistinctspecies beingunique inpossessing whitetwigs, shinyleavesthat dry chestnut
brownbeneath,and initsshortinflorescences.
9.ChionanthusramiflorusRoxb., Hort.Beng. (1814); Fl. Ind. 1 (1820) 106.
LinocieracumingianaVidal,Phan. Cuming.Philipp. (1885)185;Rev. PI.Vase.Filip. (1886) 180;
Merr.,Philipp. J.Sci. 1,Suppl.(1906) 115;Philipp. J.Sci., Bot. 3 (1908)427;Elmer, Leafl.
Philipp.Bot.5(1913)1651.—Mayepeacumingiana(Vidal)Merr.,Govt.Lab.Publ. (Philipp.)
6 (1904) 11.—Type:Cuming972, Philippines (W).
474 BLUMEA Vol. 43, No. 2, 1998
Distribution India,Burma,Thailand,IndochinaandTaiwan,throughoutMalesia
—
toAustralia(Queensland) andtheSolomonIslands.
Notes— This is themost commonand widespread ofall Chionanthusspecies in
Malesia, frequently collectedfrom coastal andriverine vegetation as well as from
lowlandsecondary forest. Itisoccasionally collectedataltitudesofupto2200m.Itis
not surprising thenthat itshows considerablevariationthroughout itsrange. Inleaf
size, whilealmostallplants fallwithinthe rangeof9-15cm long and4-7cm wide,
occasionalplants with exceptionally large leaves (up to29 by 10.5cm) havebeen
collectedfrom Papua NewGuinea,whileplantswith smallleaves (6.5 by 2cm) are
rathercommon fromthe Philippines.
Itis thesesmall-leavedPhilippinespecimens thathavebeencalledL.cumingiana.
Theirleaves also have amore pronouncedly acuminateapex and some plants have
short, less branched inflorescences 1-2 cm long compared with the usual much
branchedone3-13cmlong. However,thereis noconsistentcorrelationbetweenleaf
sizeandinflorescencelength so thatthistaxon cannot bemaintainedas distinctfrom
thegeneral population ofC. ramiflorus. Thereis insufficientfielddata tobe ableto
determinewhether theproduction ofsmallerleaves and shorter inflorescences is a
response to edaphic factors or to higher altitudes (some specimens were collected
above 1000m altitude).
10. Chionanthusremotinervius(Merr.) Kiew, comb. nov.
Linociera remotinervia Merr.,Philipp. J.Sci.,Bot. 13(1918)324.—Type:Fenix BS29933 (holo
US; isoBM, K,L),Philippines,PangasinanProv.,Mt.SanIsidro.
Notes—This is amostunusualspecies ofChionanthusbecauseitsexceptionally
coriaceous leaves with veins that areobscure onboth surfaces and thegrey-green
colouron dryingremarkablyresemblethoseofOlea species. However,ithas charac-
teristicflowersandfruits ofChionanthus.
Afteranintervalof75 years,thespecies wasrecollectedbutfromthePalananarea
in NE Luzon [Ridsdale, Baquiran et al. ISU 434 (L), 438 (L)], a considerable
disjunction in geographic distribution.C. Ridsdale(pers. comm.) drewmyattention
tothepossibilitythatthiswas duetothespecies beingconfinedtoareaswithultramafic
soil.Thegnarledhabitwithcongested internodesandtheextremely coriaceousleaves
are featuresoftenseenin plants that growonultramaficsoils.
11.Chionanthusriparius (Lingelsh.) Kiew, comb. nov.
Linociera ripariaLingelsh., Bot. Jahrb.61 (1927) 12.—Neotype:SchramBW7937(holoL;iso
A,LAE).
Distribution— Malesia; New Guinea,W Irian (Vogelkop), Papua New Guinea
(MorobeandMilneBay).
Notes — Thisis amost distinctive species on account ofits large, oblong leaves
that dry chestnut brown,its shortly stalked panicle withcrowded flowersand large
fruits, leaving no doubtregarding theidentity ofthisspecies.
Although the inflorescence is paniculate, as only one or two fruits mature,the
thickened infructescence appears unbranchedandmay thereforebe mistakenfora
raceme. None ofthecollectionshas fully ripe fruits soit is not possible toknow
R.Kiew: Name changes in Chionanthus 475
whethertheapiculatefruitapexwillexpand andbecomerounded(as itdoesinother
Chionanthus).
Theoriginal typespecimen (Ledermann8794)wasdestroyed atBerlin.Theneotype
hasbeenchosen as it most conformswiththetype description.
12. Chionanthusrupicolus (Lingelsh.) Kiew,comb. nov.
Linociera rupicolaLingelsh.,Bot.Jahrb.61 (1927)9;NovaGuinea 14(1927)330,t.37;Kobuski,
J.ArnoldArbor. 21 (1940)333. —Type:Lam 1912 ('792',holo L;iso BO,K), NewGuinea,
Irian Jaya,Mt. Doorman.
Linociera novoguineensisLingelsh.,Bot. Jahrb.61 (1927)9.—Type:Schlechter18198(holoBf;
A,BM, K). New Guinea,Finisterre Range.
Linociera ramiflora(Roxb.)Wall. var.coriacea Lingelsh., NovaGuinea 14(1927)329.—Linociera
ovalisKnobl.,Notizbl. 11(1934)1029.—Type:Gjellerup704(BO,L),NewGuinea,Hollandia.
Distribution—Malesia:Celebes,Moluccas (Morotai andObi),NewGuinea.
Notes — Thegeographic distributionofthis species is centredon New Guinea,
whereit hasfrequently beencollectedfromsubmontaneforestabove 1000m up to
mossyforestat2500m,including swampsanddisturbedforest.There arealsoseveral
collections fromthelowlands,eitherfromriverbanks or sea shore.In someplaces it
isreported as common e.g.,insubmontaneforestonMorotai(Kostermans 1252),on
riverbanks inMorobe(Rau567),on limestoneinNewIreland(Coode & SandsNGF
46102)andVogelkop (Versteegh BW7442),or is evendominante.g., inthelowlands
on Japen Is.(Iwanggin BW 10031) andonObi Is. (de Vogel4269).
Apartfromthewidespread <C. ramiflorus withfruitsthataredescribedassweetish
and veryjuicy fleshthatare saidtobe eatenby birds, thisis theonly otherMalesian
species forwhichthereisreferencetofruitdispersal.Fieldnotes on specimen Pullen
5991 recordthatthefruitsare"saidto be eatenby birds."
Thespecies shows somevariationinleafsize. Somecollectionsfromthelowlands
haveunusually large leaves, 17-18.5by6.5-7.5 cm. Thesematchthose ofLingels-
heim'sL. ramiflora var. coriacea,whichbelongs toiC. rupicolus becauseofits coria-
ceous leavesand narrowly linearcorollalobes.[Var. coriaceawas subsequently raised
tospecific levelby Knoblauch(1934) andrenamedastherealreadyexistedaL. coria-
cea Vidal fromthe Philippines.] Both these names thereforebecome synonymous
withC. rupicolus.
Plantsthatgrowonlimestone(e.g., inVogelkop or NewIreland) or ontheshoreof
Lake Matona,Celebes, have particularly narrow leaves, 8 by 2.3 to 13 by 4 cm.
However, in no othercharacter doeither ofthese extreme forms differfrom more
averagespecimens.
Chionanthusrupicolus is awell-definedspecies with coriaceous leaves withthe
veinsvery finely impressed aboveandwith large globose axillary buds. Thesechar-
actersmakeiteasy toidentify sterilespecimens.
Linocieranovoguineensis is thesameas C. rupicolus as neitherofthedifferences
in Lingelsheim's descriptions of the two species - leaftexture (subcoriaceous in
L.novoguineensis, coriaceousinL. rupicola)andsexualityoftheflowers(hermaphro-
diteinL. novoguineensis, unisexualinL.rupicola) - is areliabletaxonomiccharacter.
Leaftexture varies with habitat, particularly for a species thathas great altitudinal
amplitude. However, there is no clear relationship in this species, i.e., leaves of
specimens fromhigher altitudesarenot more coriaceous.Chionanthus rupicolus is a
476 BLUMEA Vol. 43, No. 2, 1998
polygamous species. Lingelsheim's descriptionof flowersofL. rupicola includethat
ofthemaleflower,however, thatforthefemaleflowerdoesnot describethecorolla
towhichthestamens areattachedindicatingthatthe description is ofimmaturefruit.
13. Chionanthussalicifolius(Lingelsh.) Kiew, comb. nov.
Linociera salicifolia Lingelsh., Bot. Jahrb. 61 (1927) 12. —Neotype: Carr 11569(holoL; iso
BM,LAE), New Guinea,Kanosia.
Distribution— Malesia:New Guinea, W Irian (Jayapura), Papua New Guinea
(Kanosia, WSepik andESepik).
Notes—Duplicates ofLingelsheim's type(Ledermanns.n.) havenot beenlocated.
However, there is no doubtas to the identity ofthis species as no other Malesian
Chionanthushas suchnarrow,willow-likeleaves(7-11cmlongand0.7-1.7cmwide).
Thethree recent collectionsall conform toLingelsheim's description except thathe
recordstheleafas larger(10-15 cmlong by 1.5-3cm wide)andtheinflorescenceas
longer(2-3 cm long). Inflorescencesofrecent collectionsrangefrom0.5to 1.5cm
long.
Van Steenis(1981: 330)lists thisspecies. Fieldnotes record itas asmalltree 2.3m
tallfrombanks andislandsintheriver(Carr 11569,andthereis debriscaught among
thefruitsofthisspecimen) oris asmallleaning tree 8-10mtallfrombesidetheriver
{Kerenga & LeleanLAE73966). The third specimen (Sinke 15) is fromforest near
riverandisreported as 16 mtall and90 cm indiameterandas usedforfirewood.It
doesnotthereforeappeartobeanobligate rheophyte.
14. Chionanthussessiliflorus(Hemsl.) Kiew, comb. nov.
Linociera sessiliflora Hemsl.,Ann. Bot. 5 (1891)504; Lingelsh.,Bot. Jahrb.61 (1926) 13;Nova
Guinea 14(1927) 330; Kobuski, J.ArnoldArbor. 21 (1940)335; K. Schum.& Lauterb.,Fl.
Schutzgeb. Stidsee (1900) 497;Whitmore,Guide Forests Brit. Solomon Is. (1966) 188.—
Type:Comins 130 (holoK), Solomon Is., San Christobal.
Linociera pallidaK. Schum. in K. Schum. & Lauterb.,Fl.Schutzgeb.Stidsee (1900)497: Gilg,
Nova Guinea 8(1910)409. —Type: Rodatz& Klink 35 (Bf),NE NewGuinea.
Linociera papuasicaLingelsh.,Bot. Jahrb. 61 (1927) 14;Nova Guinea 14(1927) 330, t. 38 —
Syntypes: Gjellerup226 (Bf,L), NewGuinea,Irian Jaya; Lederman 9446,9833 (Bt,L), New
Guinea,PapuaNewGuinea,Sepik.
Notes—This species is commoninNew Guineaandis readilyrecognised by its
large ridgedfruits. VonLingelsheim (1927) reducedL.pallidatothisspecies.(This is
not thesameasMerrill'sMayepea pallida, whichnamehechanged toLinocieraphi-
lippinensis andwhichinfactis aspecies ofOlea.)
VonLingelsheim distinguished anewspecies, L.papuasica, fromC. sessiliflorus
byitsmuchlarger, subcordateleaves, largerflowersandless massive fruit.However,
theleafsizeandshape andcorolla length ofthespecimens hecitesallfall withinthe
rangeof variationofthe widespread C. sessiliflorus. In addition, itis commonfor
Chionanthusspecies to beginflowering at2m(L. papuasica is recordedas ashrub
1.5-2m tall) but eventually to growto a medium-sizedtree. The smallerfruit is
probably due to itsbeing immatureas he reported it as whitish-green, otherwisein
drying ridged and brown to reddish-violetit is typical ofC. sessiliflorus. Thus
L. papuasica cannot bemaintainedas aspecies distinctfrom C. sessiliflorus.
R.Kiew: Name changesin Chionanthus 477
15. Chionanthusstenurus(Merr.) Kiew, comb. nov.
Linociera stenuraMerr.,J.ArnoldArbor. 35(1954) 151.—Type:Kjellberg2120(holoS;isoBO,
L), Celebes: Waraoe Malili.
Distribution— Malesia:Celebes,endemic toMaliliarea.
Note—Thisis ararespecies apparently withaveryrestricteddistribution.Recent
collectionssuggest thatit is confinedto limestoneoutcrops. Its stenurous, slightly
shiny leaveswithobscure veinsandshort petioles makeit a distinctivespecies.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I amextremely gratefultothe Curators ofthe Herbaria atA,BM, BO, BRI,K,L,LAE,PNH, S,
UC,US andWforpermissiontoexaminespecimensintheircareandtoAAUCS,theFloraMalesiana
Foundation andUniversiti Pertanian Malaysia who providedfinancial assistance.
REFERENCES
Green,PS. 1996.Taxonomic NotesonAsiaticChionanthus (Oleaceae).Kew Bull. 51: 765-770.
Kerr,A. 1939.In:W.G.Craib,Flora Siamensis Enumeratio 2: 411. Siam Society, Bangkok.
Knoblauch,E. 1934.Neue und selteneOleaceen ausdenTropischenAfrika, Neu-Guinea,China
und Indo-China. Notizbl. Bot.Gart.Mus. Berl. 11: 1027-1031.
Stearn,W.T. 1976.Union ofChionanthus andLinociera (Oleaceae).Ann. Missouri Bot.Gard. 63:
355-357.
VanSteenis,C.G.G.J.1981.RheophytesoftheWorld.Sijthoff&Noordhoff,AlphenaandenRijn.
Von Lingelsheim,A. 1927.Oleaceae. NovaGuinea 14:329-331.
Index
Thenumbersrefer tothe number ofthespecies where eachnamecanbefound. Newcombinations
arein bold,acceptednamesin roman, andsynonyms arein italics.
Chionanthus beccarii (Stapf)Kiew 1 (Linociera)
brassii (Kobuski)Kiew 2 gigasLingelsh. 4
dementis (Quisumb. & Merr.)Kiew 3 hahlii Rech. 5
gigas(Lingelsh.)Kiew 4 kajewskii Sleumer6
hahlii (Rech.)Kiew 5 macrophyllaauct. 5
kajewskii (Sleumer)Kiew 6 nitida Merr. 8
mala-elengi(Dennst.)P.S.Green novoguineensisLingelsh. 12
subsp.terniflorus P.S.Green 7 ovalis Knobl. 12
nitidus (Merr.)Kiew 8 pallidaK.Schum. 14
ramiflorus Roxb. 9 papuasicaLingelsh. 14
remotinervius (Merr.)Kiew 10 pubipaniculataMerr.7
riparius (Lingelsh.) Kiew 11 ramiflora(Roxb.)Wall.
rupicolus (Lingelsh.)Kiew 12 var. coriaceaLingelsh. 12
salicifolius (Lingelsh.) Kiew 13 remotinervia Merr. 10
sessiliflorus (Hemsl.)Kiew 14 ripariaLingelsh. 11
stenurus (Merr.)Kiew 15 rupicolaLingelsh. 12
Linociera beccarii Stapf 1 salicifolia Lingelsh. 13
brassii Kobuski 2 sessiliflora Hemsl. 14
clementis Quisumb. & Merr. 3 stenuraMerr. 15
cumingianaVidal 9 Mayepeacumingiana(Vidal)Merr. 9