branched or not, herbaceous to soft-wooded. Leaves alternate, petiolate, clustered at ends of stems; blades palmately compound (Jacaratia) or simple and palmately lobed with palmate veins at base (Carica); stipules lack- ing. Corymbs, cymes, or racemes upper-axillary; flowers actinomorphic, few (pistillate) or many (staminate); calyx small, 5-lobed; corolla tubular and 5-lobed (staminate) or 5-lobed to near base (pistillate), showy; stamens 8 or 10, in 2 series; anthers 2-celled, dehiscing longitudinally;
ovary superior, unilocular, 5-carpellate; placentation parietal, often intruding; ovules numerous; stigmas 5, free, linear, simple or branched. Fruits large berries;
seeds many, with fleshy endosperm.
These pachycaulous, soft-wooded trees, which may look like overgrown herbs, are not confused with any other plants on the island.
The natural method of pollination is unknown. A number of different birds and insects, including hum- mingbirds, butterflies, Trigona bees, hawkmoths, and noctuid moths, have been seen taking nectar from stam- inate flowers (Traub et al., 1942; Allan, 1963). In con- trast, pistillate flowers have no nectar and are less scented, but they have been observed being visited by moths and mosquitoes (Baker, 1973). Parthenocarpy has also been reported for Canca (Badillo, 1971), at least for C. papaya.
Although there is no Carica papaya growing wild on the island, the tasty fruits of C. cauliflora become soft enough to be pecked open by birds and would be attrac- tive to other animals also. The bats Carollia perspicillata and Artibeus jamaicensis (Phyllostomidae) eat fruits of C. papaya in Trinidad (Goodwin & Greenhall, 1961).
The cultivated C. papaya on BCI attracts opossums and prehensile-tailed porcupines (N. Smythe, pers. comm.).
Four genera and 31 species (Badillo, 1971), mostly of the genus Carica; mostly in the neotropics (one genus with two species in Africa).
CARICA L.
Carica cauliflora Jacq., Hort. Schoenbr. 3:33, t.
311. 1798
Unbranched dioecious tree, 3-6 m tall, to 10 cm dbh, mostly glabrous. Leaves in a dense terminal crown; peti- oles mostly more than 50 cm long, hollow, with slightly milky sap; blades ovate, shallowly 5-lobed when mature, cordate, 30-70 cm long, the lobes acute at apex, often broadly incised; palmate veins at base 5. Staminate inflo- rescences dichotomously branched, ca 30 cm long; pedi- cels very short; flowers many, ca 3 cm long; calyx deeply 5-lobed, ca 1.5 mm long, green; corolla light yellow, 5-lobed, the lobes spreading, linear-oblong, 12-20 mm long; anthers 10, nearly sessile, linear-spatulate, to 4 mm long. Pistillate inflorescences contracted, ca 7-flowered, 2.5-5 cm long; calyx lobes ca 2 mm long; corolla 5-lobed to base, ca 2.5 cm long, white or yellowish, the apices reddish; ovary glabrous; style ca 3 mm long; stigmas 5, linear, ca 1 cm long. Fruits maturing well below leaves, sometimes near base of trunk, borne on thick warty pro- tuberances, the fruiting pedicels to 5 cm long and 8 mm diam; berries obovate, ca 8 cm long and 6 cm wide, mi- nutely apiculate, becoming orange; exocarp to 7 mm thick, forming whitish droplets when cut; mesocarp sweet, pithy, white to translucent, with aroma of fresh grapes; seeds many, ovate, 10-12 mm long, the ridges 5 or 6, deep, corky. Foster 1394.
Rare; collected once by Aviles and once by Foster near the shore between the ends of Zetek and Armour trails.
Flowers in the dry season (February and March). Some fruits have been seen in June and November.
Southern Mexico to Colombia and Venezuela; Trini- dad. In Panama, known only from tropical moist forest in the Canal Zone, Veraguas, and Darien.
See Fig. 409.
Carica papaya L., Sp. PL 1466. 1753 Papaya
Unbranched tree, mostly to 6 m tall, essentially glabrous, dioecious or rarely polygamous or monoecious. Leaves in a dense terminal crown; petioles to 70 cm long; blades ovate, deeply 5-9-lobed, cordate at base, the lobes broadly pinnatifid when mature, 20-40 cm long, obscurely acumi- nate; palmate veins at base 7-9. Staminate inflorescences axillary; flowers many, short-pedicellate, ca 2 cm long;
sepals 5, ca 1 mm long, green; corolla cream-yellow, the tube slender, the limb 5-lobed, the lobes oblong;
stamens in 2 series, ca 2.5 mm long. Pistillate inflores- cences of 1-3 flowers on pedicels to 2.5 cm long; calyx
KEY TO THE SPECIES OF CARICACEAE
Leaves compound; trees more than 20 m tall Jacaratia spinosa (Aubl.) A. DC.
Leaves simple, lobed; trees less than 8 m tall, soft-wooded:
Leaves shallowly lobed, the palmate veins at base 5 Carica cauliflora Jacq.
Leaves deeply lobed, the palmate veins at base 7-9 Carica papaya L.
lobes ca 1 mm long, green; corolla 5-lobed to base, 5-7 cm long, cream-yellow; style to 1 cm long; stigmas 5, usually with 1 or 2 short branches. Fruits maturing within crown of leaves; berries variable. Croat 5907.
Cultivated at the Laboratory Clearing. Flowers sporad- ically year-round.
Sex changes in the flowers are reported under different ecological conditions (Percival, 1965).
Native to the American tropics; now widespread in cultivation. In Panama, known from tropical moist forest in the Canal Zone, Bocas del Toro, Veraguas, Panama, and Darien, from premontane moist forest in the Canal Zone, from premontane wet forest in Panama (Chiman), and from tropical wet forest in Colon (Portobelo).
JACARATIA CDC.
Jacaratia spinosa (Aubl.) A. DC, Prodr. 15(1):419. 1864 Dioecious tree, 20-40 m tall; trunk 0.8-1 m dbh, armed or unarmed, branched near apex, the branches slender, short, ascending, armed with short, stout, conical spines at least near their ends. Leaves palmately compound;
petioles 10-25 cm long; leaflets 5-12, lanceolate, acumi- nate at apex, narrowly attenuated at base to an obscure petiolule 6-18 cm long, 2-6 cm wide, dark green above, glaucous below. Staminate inflorescences pedunculate, laxly cymose, 7-9 cm long; peduncles 6-12 cm long;
bracts minute; pedicels 3-4 mm long; flowers many, tubular; calyx tube 1 mm long; corolla greenish-white, the tube 10-14 mm long, 3-4 mm wide, the lobes ovate- rounded, 7-8 mm long; stamens 8, in 2 unequal series, united in a short tube; filaments pilose; pistillode filiform, to 11 mm long. Pistillate flowers usually solitary, the other flowers not developing; peduncles 8-10 cm long; bracts 11-13 mm long; calyx tube 1-1.5 mm long; corolla divided almost to base, the tube 2 mm long, the lobes fleshy, 2-3.3 cm long, 7 mm wide; ovary narrowly ovoid, sub- pentagonal, 11-20 mm long; styles lacking; stigmas 5, narrowly linear, 7-8 mm long. Fruits ± ellipsoid, some- times ovoid, obtuse or sometimes apiculate at apex, obtuse at base, to 12 cm long and 3.5 cm diam, pendent, yellow or orangish; seeds many, ovoid. Foster 2816.
Collected once on Balboa Trail. Seasonal behavior uncertain. Some flowers have been seen in March and mature fruits in September.
Nicaragua and the Guianas to northern Argentina, probably from Colombia and Venezuela. In Panama, known only from tropical moist forest on BCI and from tropical wet forest in Colon.
ioo.
BEGONIACEAE/BEGONIA639 100. BEGONIACEAE
Fleshy, monoecious, annual or perennial, erect or scan- dent, terrestrial, epiphytic, or semiaquatic herbs. Leaves
alternate, petiolate; blades simple, serrate, mostly asym- metrical at base; venation pinnate and usually also pal- mate at base; stipules present. Cymes terminal or axillary, bracteate; flowers few, unisexual, usually slightly zygo- morphic; staminate flowers with 2 or 4 tepals, when 4, the outer pair valvate, the inner pair imbricate; stamens numerous in many whorls, free or basally connate, in- serted on the receptacle; anthers 2-celled, basifixed, longi- tudinally dehiscent; pistillate flowers with 4 or 5 separate, undifferentiated, imbricate, showy tepals; ovary inferior, 3-locular; placentation axile; ovules numerous, anatro- pous; styles 3, bifid; stigmas spiraled, strongly papillose on all sides. Fruits unequally 3-winged, loculicidal cap- sules; seeds many, minute, lacking endosperm.
In Panama the family consists of only Begonia, which can be recognized by its succulent stems, asymmetrical leaves, unisexual flowers with four unequal tepals, and asymmetrical winged fruits.
Pollination system is unknown.
Though the fruits are winged, they are not themselves dispersed. At maturity the walls of the fruit split open along the bottom on all three sides, allowing the seeds to pass through slowly. Seeds are minute, dispersed at least in part by the fluttering of the fruit in the wind. The wing causes the fruit to flutter, ensuring that most seeds fall out only when there are air currents to carry them away. Seeds are also partly dispersed by rain wash (Ridley, 1930).
Five genera and over 800 species, mostly of Begonia;
widespread in the subtropics and tropics.
BEGONIA L.
Begonia filipes Benth., Bot. Voy. Sulphur 101. 1845 Ala de angel, Hierba de agua
Weak, monoecious, annual herb, 15-60 cm tall, usually epiphytic; stems juicy, glabrous, reddish, weakly ridged.
Petioles to 5 cm long; stipules oblong-ovate, 6-12 mm long, translucent, the apex very slender; blades very asymmetrical, semiovate, acuminate, rounded at base, 3—10 cm long, 1—5 cm wide, appressed-pilose above, glabrous below, the margins crenate-dentate, ciliate.
Cymes axillary or terminal; flowers white, few; bracts with deeply lacerate margins; staminate tepals 2, ovate, to 3.5 mm long, their margins sealed before anthesis;
stamens to 18, on a short column; pistillate tepals 4(5),
KEY TO THE SPECIES OF BEGONIA
Leaves cordate, not strongly asymmetrical; herbs growing in marshy habitats B. patula Haw.
Leaves not cordate, strongly asymmetrical; herbs not growing in marshy habitats:
Plants suffrutescent perennials; all tepals more than 5 mm long; largest wing on fruit more than 1.2 cm wide B. guaduensis H.B.K.
Plants herbaceous annuals; pistillate tepals less than 5 mm long; wings of fruit less than 1.2 cm wide B. filipes Benth.
64O DICOTYLEDONEAE
ca 2 mm long; styles 3, bipartite; stigmas spiraled, recep- tive before opening of staminate tepals. Capsules gla- brous, 3-winged, the wings very unequal, the largest to 1 cm wide; seeds ± round, minute, very numerous.
Croat 4318.
Occasional, in clearings and in somewhat open areas of the forest, loosely rooted in soil or more commonly epi- phytic on mossy tree trunks; possibly locally abundant.
Flowers and fruits all year, but flowering begins princi- pally in the late rainy season. Most fruits mature in the early dry season. Leaves sometimes fall when plants have mature fruits.
Costa Rica to Colombia. In Panama, known from tropical moist forest in the Canal Zone, Colon, Chiriqui (San Felix), Panama, and Darien.
Begonia guaduensis H.B.K., Nov. Gen. & Sp.
7:178. 1825 B. serratifolia C. DC.
Monoecious, erect or scandent, perennial herb, to 1(2) m long; stems woody at base, glabrous. Stipules oblong- ovate, acuminate, ca 8 mm long; petioles 2-20 mm long;
blades strongly asymmetrical, lanceolate to elliptic- lanceolate, somewhat acuminate, inequilateral at base, one side cuneate, the other rounded, 5-9 cm long, 1.5-4 cm wide, membranaceous, glabrous, the margins doubly crenate-serrate, ciliate. Cymes dichotomously branched;
flowers pinkish-white; bracts often deciduous, ovate, ca 5 mm long; staminate tepals 4, unequal, the outer 2 ovate, 8-15 mm long, the inner 2 elliptic-lanceolate, about half as long as outer; stamens numerous; pistillate tepals
5, subequal, elliptic, to 10 mm long; styles 3, bipartite;
stigmas branched and finally spiraled. Capsules elliptic- oblanceolate, 3-winged, the wings very unequal, the largest triangular, ascending, 1.5 cm wide; seeds very numerous, elliptic, 0.3 mm long. Croat 7374.
Rare, in the forest. Flowers as early as September but usually not until December. The fruits develop quickly, some of mature size usually occurring with flowers on the same inflorescence. Plants are often leafless or nearly so when the plant is in full fruit.
Panama to Colombia and Venezuela. In Panama, known from tropical moist forest in the Canal Zone,
Chiriqui (San Felix), Los Santos (Tonosi), and Darien and from premontane wet forest in Veraguas (west of Sona).
Begonia patula Haw., J. Wash. Acad. Sci. 40:245. 1950 B. ciliibracteola C. DC; B. fischeri Schrank var. tovarensis (Klotzsch) Irmsch.
Erect, monoecious, perennial herb, sometimes aquatic, to 1.2 m tall, fleshy; stems red, sparsely brown-pilose to glabrous. Stipules ovate-oblong, to 1 cm long, caducous;
petioles 5-45 mm long; blades weakly asymmetrical,
± broadly ovate, acute or rounded at apex, cordate at base, 2-9 cm long, about as broad as or broader than long, glabrous above, mostly brown-pilose below, the margins crenate-serrate, ciliate; veins palmate at base.
Inflorescences cymes of few flowers; bracts persistent, ovate, 2-4 mm long; staminate tepals 4, the outer 2 orbic- ular and ca 8 mm long, the inner 2 smaller, narrowly obovate; stamens numerous; pistillate tepals 5, obovate, 3-6 mm long; styles 3, bipartite, stigmas spiraled. Cap- sules 10-15 mm long, the 3 wings decurrent, very un- equal, the largest ascending, often hooked, to 23 mm wide; seeds minute, fusiform. Bailey & Bailey 644, Ken- oyer 460.
At least at one time a component of the floating masses of vegetation that border the shores, but not seen in recent years. Probably flowers and fruits throughout the year.
Mexico to Colombia, Venezuela, Peru, and Bolivia;
Cuba. In Panama, known from marshy areas in tropical moist forest in the Canal Zone and Panama and from premontane wet forest in Code (El Valle).
101. CACTACEAE
Epiphytic succulent herbs or shrubs, climbing by roots;
stems chlorophyllous, terete to angled or flattened, with watery sap; areoles generally naked. Leaves lacking.
Flowers bisexual, actinomorphic, solitary, sessile on the side of the stem; tepals 5 to many, petaloid, weakly dif- ferentiated, connate in a hypanthium; stamens twice as many as the tepals or numerous, spirally attached to hypanthium; anthers 2-celled, dehiscing longitudinally;
ovary superior, 1-locular, 3- to many-carpellate; placentas
KEY TO THE TAXA OF CACTACEAE
Stems terete; flowers minute, white; fruits round Rhipsalis cassytha Gaertn.
Stems terete only at base, mostly angulate or prominently flattened:
Flowers 7.5-9(11) cm long; filaments white to yellowish Epiphyllum phyllanthus (L.) Haw. var. columbiense (Weber) Kimn.
Flowers 24-29 cm long; filaments white or orange to reddish:
Filaments orange; tepals 4-5 cm long; fruits 4.5-7.5 cm long Epiphyllum phyllanthus (L.) Haw. var. rubrocoronatum Kimn.
Filaments white; tepals mostly 2-3 cm long (rarely to 4); fruits 7-9 cm long Epiphyllum phyllanthus (L.) Haw. var. phyllanthus Epiphyllum phyllanthus var. phyllanthus, which occurs in the Canal Zone,
may occur on the island. Some specimens (Aviles 103b) appear closest to that variety, but since they are sterile it is impossible to be certain.
102. LYTHRACEAE
64I
few to several, parietal; ovules numerous, anatropous;
style 1; stigmas as many as carpels, radiating. Fruits fleshy berries; seeds few to many, the endosperm viscid (Rhip- salis) or lacking.
The generally epiphytic, leafless aspect of the plants makes them hard to confuse with any other family.
Although nothing is known of the pollination of Rhip- salis cassytha, it can be concluded with little doubt that Epiphyllum phyllanthus is pollinated by hawkmoths (Porsch, 1939). Kimnach (1964) reported that flowers of Epiphyllum open at night and have a strong fragrance exuded during the night. Both of these features are strongly correlated with hawkmoth or other moth polli- nation. Moreover, because the nectar source is at the base of the very long, slender floral tube, the hawkmoth is probably the only pollinator capable of reaching it.
The fruits have tiny seeds embedded in a sweet sticky matrix. The larger fleshy fruits of Epiphyllum have been observed being pecked open by birds. There is no reason, however, to believe that they are not also dispersed by other arboreal animals. The small sticky seeds, which must germinate on tree branches, are most ideally suited to bird dispersal.
Genera mostly ill defined and of uncertain number, species about 1,800; almost all native in subtropical and tropical America.
EPIPHYLLUM Haw.
Epiphyllum phyllanthus (L.) Haw. var. columbiense (Weber) Kimn., Cact. Succ. J. (Los Angeles) 36:114. 1964
Leafless epiphyte, glabrous; stems green, usually flexible and pendent, 3-sided in basal half, flattened and to 3 cm wide distally, the margins ± regularly and obtusely serrate-lobed. Flowers borne along margins of ultimate stems, 7.5-9 (11) cm long, the limb 4.5-6 cm wide; peri- anth tube white, 5.5-9.5 cm long, bracteolate, the bracte- oles slender, appressed at base, recurved at apex; tepals many, the outer 1.5-3 cm long, the inner 2-2.5 cm long;
stamens many, cream-colored to yellow; filaments ca 7 mm long; anthers ca 1 mm long; style 6.5-8 cm long;
stigma lobes ca 5 mm long. Berries green, 4-4.5 cm long, to 2.5 cm wide; seeds numerous, ca 2.5 mm long, the sur- face with closely spaced pits. Croat 8256, Shattuck 603.
Frequent, high in the canopy of the forest. Seasonal behavior not determined.
Costa Rica to Colombia and Ecuador. In Panama, known only from tropical moist forest in the Canal Zone and Chiriqui (Puerto Armuelles).
Epiphyllum phyllanthus (L.) Haw. var. rubrocorona- tum Kimn., Cact. Succ. J. (Los Angeles) 36:110. 1964 Leafless epiphyte, glabrous, often occurring in association with ant nests; stems green, usually stiff and pendent, terete at base, becoming 3-sided and mostly less than 2.5 cm broad, at apex 2-edged and to 7(9) cm wide and less than 5 mm thick, the margins regularly and obtusely
crenate-lobed. Flowers borne along margins of ultimate stems, 24-29 cm long, the limb 9-11 cm wide; perianth tube usually pinkish, 21-26 cm long, slenderly bracteo- late; tepals many, slender, 4-5 cm long, the outer pinkish, the inner white and broader than the outer; stamens many, orange; filaments exserted 2-3 cm; anthers ca 3 mm long; style exserted 2.5-4 cm above throat; stigma lobes 9—13, 5-6 mm long, both style and stigma orange.
Berries angulate, 4.5-7.5 cm long, to 3 cm wide, magenta, the bracteoles persisting; seeds numerous, ca 3 mm long.
Croat 14059.
Apparently uncommon, though possibly common since it usually grows high in the canopy at 10-30 m, some- times on branches in the crotch of a tree but generally on top of the canopy in association with Aechmea tilland- sioides var. kienastii (22. Bromeliaceae). Seasonal behav-
ior uncertain. Some flowers have been seen in the dry season. Some fruits have been seen in the late dry and early rainy seasons.
Panama, Colombia, and Ecuador. In Panama, known only from tropical moist forest in the Canal Zone.
RHIPSALIS Gaertn.
Rhipsalis cassytha Gaertn., Fruct. & Sem. PL 1:137. 1788
Mistletoe cactus
Slender, leafless epiphyte, 1-2 (9) m long; stems green, succulent, terete, pendent, sparsely branched, dichoto- mous or in false whorls, ca 5 mm thick, the areoles very inconspicuous, glabrous to minutely puberulent. Flowers lateral, solitary, sessile, greenish-white; tepals ca 2 mm long, the segments few (sometimes as few as 5), ± free, usually spreading; stamens shorter than and about twice as numerous as tepals; filaments inserted on margin of hypanthium; style longer than tepals; stigmas 3 or 4.
Berries fleshy, depressed-globose, to 9 mm long and 6 mm wide; exocarp thin; seeds several, to 1.3 mm long, about twice as long as broad, usually curved, dark brown, embedded in a sweet, sticky, watery matrix. Croat 6742.
Occasional, high in the canopy. Seasonal behavior not determined.
The fruits are probably dispersed by birds. Removing the fruit usually squeezes the seeds from the lower end, an action which probably frequently results in seeds' sticking to the outer edge of a bird's beak. Later, when the bird cleans its beak or feeds on bark insects, the seeds are deposited where they can germinate.
Throughout tropical America; Ceylon, tropical Africa.
In Panama, known only from tropical moist forest in the Canal Zone and Bocas del Toro.
102. LYTHRACEAE
Trees, shrubs, or herbs. Leaves opposite, petiolate; blades simple, entire, sometimes punctate; venation pinnate;
stipules present, minute. Flowers with a hypanthium, bisexual, actinomorphic (slightly zygomorphic in Cu- phea), sometimes glandular, solitary and terminal (in
642
DICOTYLEDONEAEKEY TO THE SPECIES OF LYTHRACEAE
Flowers large, fleshy, parted 12 or more times, white to yellow; fruits woody capsules more than 4 cm diam with winged seeds; trees usually more than 5 m tall Lafoensia punicifolia DC.
Flowers small, 3-6-parted, white to magenta or violet; fruits small capsules less than 1 cm diam with wingless seeds; trees or herbs less than 2.5 m tall:
Plants with small orange punctations on leaves, flowers, and fruits (black when dry), shrubs or small trees more than 1 m tall; petals white Adenaria floribunda H.B.K.
Plants lacking punctations, herbs less than 50 cm tall; petals violet to reddish-violet or violet- purple Cuphea carthagenensis (Jacq.) Macbr.
Lafoensia) or in axillary clusters; calyx 4-6- or many- lobed (Lafoensia); petals showy, free, of the same number as and alternate with calyx lobes, arising from upper inner surface of hypanthium, crumpled in bud; stamens twice as many as petals, in 2 series, usually unequal;
anthers 2-celled, introrse, dorsifixed, dehiscing longitu- dinally; ovary superior, 1- or 2-locular, 2-carpellate;
placentation axile; ovules many, anatropous; style 1;
stigma capitate. Fruits capsules, variously dehiscent, sometimes explosively so; seeds many, sometimes winged (Lafoensia), lacking endosperm.
A small but diverse family. The BCI species seemingly have little in common and are apparently diverse in both their pollination and diaspore strategies. Their only common features are the hypanthium, the superior ovary, and the crumpled petals. All are distinct species not confused with any other.
The flowers of both Cuphea and Adenaria are hetero- stylous and seem suited to insect pollination. Cuphea, which is zygomorphic, is probably pollinated by small bees. H. Baker (pers. comm.) reports some Cuphea and Adenaria to be self-pollinated, however. Lafoensia punici- folia is bat pollinated (Vogel, 1958; Baker, 1973). I have
seen petals falling from open flowers in the early morn- ing, which also suggests nocturnal pollination.
The fruits of Adenaria floribunda, though several- seeded, are apparently indehiscent. The thin exocarp shatters easily, usually causing the cluster of fruits to break up as well. I suspect the fruits are taken by birds, which scatter some of the seeds and eat others. Diaspores of Cuphea are autochorous; those of Lafoensia are wind dispersed.
Some 22 genera and 500 species; in all regions, but most numerous in the American tropics.
ADENARIA Kunth
Adenaria floribunda H.B.K., Nov. Gen. & Sp.
6:188. 1824 Fruta de pavo
Shrub, to 2.5 m tall; stems pubescent and glandular, the younger ones often tetragonal and purplish-red. Petioles short, ca 5 mm long; blades lanceolate, acuminate, acute to obtuse at base, mostly 5-13 cm long and 2-5 cm wide, sparsely glandular on both sides (drying as black dots), glabrous to inconspicuously but densely puberulent above, puberulent below, the trichomes larger below and chiefly on veins. Flowers 4- or 5-parted, many, tristylous,
in axillary short-pedunculate clusters; peduncles 1-7 mm long; pedicels 5-7 mm long; hypanthium campanulate, 2-4 mm long; calyx lobes deltoid; petals obovate, white, to ca 2.5 mm long in the short- and long-styled flowers, to 4 mm long in the intermediate-styled flowers; stamens 8 or 10, the short-styled flowers with the stamens 3-4.5 mm long, the style to 1 mm long, the intermediate- styled flowers with stamens 4.5-5.5 mm long, the style to 1.5 mm long, the lorig-styled flowers with stamens to 3 mm long, the style to 3 mm long; ovary ovoid, short- stipitate; ovary and style pubescent; outside of hypan- thium, calyx, petals, ovary, and style with orange glands (drying black). Fruits thin-walled, indehiscent capsules, ovoid or globose, bearing the persistent style, becoming red at apex, ca 4-5 mm long; seeds many, clustered in a globular mass, ca 1 mm long, broadest at apex, tapered to narrow base. Croat 8325, 14942.
Occasional, in clearings. Flowers from March to No- vember. The fruits probably mature within 3 or 4 months.
Mexico to Argentina. In Panama, known from tropical moist forest in the Canal Zone, Colon, Panama, and Darien and from premontane moist forest in the Canal Zone and Panama.
CUPHEA P.Browne
Cuphea carthagenensis (Jacq.) Macbr., Publ. Field Columbian Mus., Bot. Ser. 8:124. 1930
Herb, to 50 cm tall, mostly erect; stems brownish, with long, straight, glandular trichomes interspersed with short curved trichomes, subwoody at base in age. Stipules minute; petioles less than 5 mm long; blades lanceolate to elliptic or ovate, acute at apex, acute to attenuate at base, 1-5 cm long, 0.5-2 cm wide, strigose and scabrous below, bearing sparse, long, straight trichomes above, the margins bearing short trichomes. Flowers 6-parted, generally solitary in reduced interpetiolar cymes, the leaves on the inflorescence much reduced near apex;
peduncles and pedicels short; hypanthium ± swollen on one side and weakly gibbous at base, to 7 mm long, prominently ribbed, with long trichomes on ribs, enclos- ing fruit at maturity; calyx lobes short, deltoid; petals spatulate, violet to reddish-violet or violet-purple, to 3 mm long, borne on upper margin of hypanthium, spread- ing; stamens (11)12, unequal, attached about midway on hypanthium, included; anthers violet, minute, introrse;
ovary thin-walled; style to 1 mm long; stigma broader than style. Fruits capsules, bursting at maturity under