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1 January 1999 Some Comments and Corrections on the Asclepiadaceae in the Upland Kenya Wild Flowers By A.D.Q. Agnew and S. Agnew
Ulrich Meve, David Goyder, Sigrid Liede
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SOME COMMENTS AND CORRECTIONS ON THE ASCLEPIADACEAE IN THE UPLAND KENYA WILD FLOWERS BY A.D.Q. AGNEW AND S. AGNEWUlrich MeveLehrstuhl für Pflanzensystematik, Universität BayreuthD-95440 Bayreuth, GermanyUlrich.meva@uni-bayreuth.deDavid GoyderThe Herbarium, Royal Botanic Gardens, KewSurrey, Richmond TW9 3AB, EnglandSigrid LiedeLehrstuhl für Pflanzensystematik, Universität BayreuthD-95440 Bayreuth, GermanySigrid.Liede@uni-bayreuth.deINTRODUCTIONThe new edition of "Upland Kenya Wild Flowers" (Agnew & Agnew, 1994) will become a standard reference for all East African botanists, both amateur and professional. The work deals with the flora of East Africa which, although not exceptionally diverse, is still insufficiently known in some areas. In recent years drastic changes have occurred to the taxonomy of some families. The Asclepiadaceae sensu UKWF, now more correctly referred to as the three most derived subfamilies of the Apocynaceae, subfamilies Periplocoideae, Secamonoideae and Asclepiadoideae (Endress & Bruyns, in press) is one such group, and we undertake to point out a few corrections concerning this family, and also to update the nomenclature in those groups that have seen major revisions lately.CORRECDTIONS AND UPDATESp. 174: CurroriaCurroria volubilis has been transferred to the new genus Buckollia Venter & Verhoeven to become B. volubilis (Schltr.) Venter & Verhoeven (1994).p. 174: EctadiopsisVenter & Verhoeven (1997) include this genus within Cryptolepis. The appropriate combination in this genus is C. oblongifolia (Meissn.) Schltr.p. 175: MondiaAgnew & Agnew treated Mondia ecornuta (N.E. Br.) Bullock as a synonym of Mondia whitei Skeels, but since Venter & Verhoeven (1997) accept the second species of Mondia, one has to deal with M. ecornuta in Kenya as well.p. 175: TacazzeaT. galactogoga Bullock has been recognised as a synonym of Tacazzea conferta N.E. Br. (Venter et al., 1990).p. 175: ParquetinaRecently, Venter & Verhoeven (1996) concluded that P. nigrescens in its traditional circumscription included two distinct species. The necessary split resulted in a West and Central African taxon, Periploca nigrescens, and a predominantly West and East African taxon, Omphalogonus calophyllus Baillon, the latter representing the western Kenyan taxon.p. 175: SchlechterellaSchlechterella (and the congeneric Triodoglossum) are distinctively characterised by possessing pollinia instead of granular pollen masses (Meve, unpubl.; Venter & Verhoeven,, in press).p. 176: XysmalobiumThe correct name for X. reticulatum N.E. Br. is X. heudelotianum Decne. Saxymolbium (listed in synonymy) is a manuscript name that has never been validly published.p. 176: AspidoglossumThe correct spelling of A. massaicum (N.E. BR.) Kupicha is without the double 's', A. masaicum.p. 178: PachycarpusFollowing the revision of the genus by Goyder (1998a) a number of changes are required for the Flora of Upland Kenya: Pachycarpus fulvus (N.E. Br.) Bullock has been excluded from Pachycarpus by Goyder (1997, 1998a). It is most closely related to a group of southern African species currently placed in Asclepias. Until this group has been revised and its generic placement clarified, the species should be referred to as A. fulva N.E. Br.Pachycarpus grantii (Oliv.) Bullock and P. eximius (N.E. Br.) Bullock are reversed. P. grantii represents the taxon possessing paired teeth on the corona lobes.P. rhinophyllus (K. Schum.) N.E. Br. is conspecific with the South African P. concolor E. Mey.; the latter name has priority.P. lineolatus (Decne.) Bullock has been confused with P. schweinfurthii (N.E. Br.) Bullock. The correct name for P. lineolatus sensu Agnew and others is P. bisacculatus (Oliv.) Goyder, and P. schweinfurthii becomes P. lineolatus.p. 178: StathmostelmaGoyder's revision of Stathmostelma (Goyder, 1998b) brought light to some necessary changes within this genus: Stathmostelma praetermissum Bullock is to be included within S. gigantiflorum K. Schum. Stathmostelma propinquum (N.E. Br.) Schltr. is a totally different plant. The taxon described on p. 179 represents a new species, S. diversifolium Goyder, which inhabits a range from southern Ethiopia to the Masai steppes of northern Tanzania.p. 179: MargarettaAccording to Mwanyambo (1996), Margaretta rosea Oliv. should be listed as M. rosea subsp. rosea. Agnew's "sp. A" is M. rosea subsp. bidens. The critical difference is the absence of a third basal corona tooth in the latter subspecies.p. 179: PentarrhinumPentarrhinum sp. A represents P. abyssinicum Decne. subsp. angolense Liede & Nicholas (Liede & Nicholas, 1992).p. 179: CynanchumLiede (1991) has shown that the correct name for Cynanchum tetrapterum (Turcz.) R.A. Dyer is C. gerrardii (Harvey) Liede.Cynanchum defoliascens K. Schum. has been shown to be a synonym of Blyttia fruticulosum (Decne.) D.V. Field & J.R.I. Wood (Liede, 1996a).Cynanchum hastifolium N.E.Br, has been put into synonymy with C. clavidens N.E. Br.Key:1. stylar head well exserted beyond the corona ......subsp. clavidens1'. stylar head hardly exserted beyond the corona .. subsp. hastifoliumSubsp. hastifolium in Kenya is more of an upland taxon, while subsp. clavidens prefers low-lying areas (Liede, 1996b).Cynanchum sp. A has been shown to be identical with C. gonoloboides Schltr. (Liede, 1996b), and the species has been transferred to Pentarrhinum (P. gonoloboides (Schltr.) Liede (Liede, 1997).Cynanchum validum N.E. Br. has been transferred to Schizostephanus. It is now Schizostephanus alatus N.E. Br. (Liede, 1994).p. 180: SarcostemmaS. subterranea Adams & Holland has been shown to be a synonym of S. vanlessenii Lavranos (Meve & Liede, 1996).Of the many subspecies of S. viminale, three are known to occur in the Kenyan Upland area (Meve & Liede, 1996):1. Plants erect or scrambling, but never twining with a corkscrew.........subsp. stipitaceum1'. Plants twining, usually forming a main stem.........................................................22. Inflorescences borne on short (1-3 cm long) laterals........................subsp. odontolepis2'. Inflorescences sessile on the nodes................................................subsp. suberosumSubspecies odontolepis is widespread along the Kenyan coast; in the highlands it has been recorded very rarely from the Nairobi area.Subspecies suberosum represents the most frequent Sarcostemma viminale taxon in the area.Subspecies stipitaceum [partly named as "S. andongense Hiern" in Agnew & Agnew (1994)] is frequent in the drier areas. However, two other elements are widespread but not really frequent: 1) a tangling and creeping, very thick-stemmed Sarcostemma with rather unpleasant smelling, large und densely clustered flowers (incorrectly named as S. andongense in Agnew & Agnew, 1994); 2) an erect growing, thick-stemmed but markedly striate and hairy form, which might also be hiding within what is presently called subsp. stipitaceum. The character of striation, while easily seen in living specimens, vanishes in dried specimens. This has hampered a satisfactory account of this complex.p. 180: TylophoropsisThis genus has been sunk into synonymy with Tylophora; the relevant combination for the Kenyan taxon concerned is: Tylophora heterophylla A. Rich. (Liede, 1996a).p. 181: TylophoraTylophora sp. B corresponds to T. anomala N.E. Br.pp. 181 & 182: Gongronema and DregeaThe African species of Gongronema have been transferred to Marsdenia R. Br., and Dregea has been reduced to a section of the genus Marsdenia (Omlor 1998). The following names have been reinstated: Marsdenia angolensis N.E. Br., M. steleostigma K. Schum., M. schimperi Decne., M. abyssinica (Hochst.) Schltr., M. rubicunda (K. Schum.) N.E. Br. and M. macrantha (Klotzsch) Schltr. (Omlor, 1998).The key presented on p. 181 is a little confused with leads 4 and 5 in conflict regarding fruit morphology. If fruits are present, the following sections or species pairs can be identified immediately: In sect. Obscurae Omlor (which comprises the former African Gongronema species) the follicles are smooth and narrowly cylindrical. These contrast with the follicles of sect. Dregea (E. Mey.) Omlor, which are always much broader. They may have a striate appearance at least when dry (Marsdenia macrantha and M. schimperi), possess eight or more strongly wrinkled wings (M. abyssinica) or four straight wings (M. stelostigma and M. rubicunda).p. 183 & 184: CeropegiaC. devecchii has been sunk into synonymy with C. variegata Decne. (Bruyns, 1988). Corolla morphology is very variable over the entire geographic range of this taxon, whose wide distribution extends as far as Saudi Arabia.C. brosima is probably better treated as a synonym of the extremely variable and widespread C. bulbosa Roxb. (Masinde & Meve, unpubl.).Ceropegia sp. B from Nairobi has been published as C. intracolor (Newton, 1995).C. succulenta E.A. Bruce cannot be distinguished from C. albisepta var. bruceana H. Huber or from C. robynsiana Werderm. 1908. Therefore, the latter name should be regarded as the correct name for the African vicariant of the Madagascan C. albisepta Jum. & H. Perrier.p. 184: BrachystelmaThe description of Brachystelma lineare and the drawing on plate 72 are not in accordance with Richard's original description. This element from the Nairobi area is conspecific with the recently described new species, B. pellacibellum Newton, for plants from the Laikipia District (Newton 1996) or it represents another undescribed species.p. 185: CarallumaPlowes (1995) transferred all of the Kenyan Caralluma species to a confusingly large number of mostly newly created genera. This revision is obviously based on very personal judgements of morphological characters only, and seems to be too artificial. Plowes' work has been so far not accepted by professional botanists.Newton (1998) described a new species, Caralluma flavovirens, for the Taita Hills area. The new species is similar to C. arachnoidea and C. gracilipes. However, it differs in its more roundish stems with persistent leaf rudiments of 4 × 2 mm, yellow-green corolla lobes of up to 8 mm length, and bifid, subulate and spreading interstaminal corona lobes. C. flavovirens is rare in soil pockets on gneissic rocks; alt. 600 m. KAJ.p. 186: PachycymbiumAll eight species of Kenyan Pachycymbium given by Agnew & Agnew (1994) were transferred to the genus Angolluma Munster (cf. Plowes, 1994). However, the delimitation of Angolluma against Pachycymbium and Orbea is vague and still unresolved.LiteratureAgnew, A.D.Q. & S. Agnew (1994). Upland Kenya Wild Flowers, 2nd ed. East African Natural History Society, Nairobi.Bruyns, P.V. (1988). The genus Ceropegia in Arabia. Notes from the Royal Botanical Garden, Edinburgh 45: 287-326.Endress, M.E. & P.V. Bruyns (in press). A revised classification of Apocynaceae. Bot. Rev.Goyder, D.J. (1997). The status and generic position of Pachycarpus fulvus (N.E. BR.) Bullock. Kew Bulletin 52: 247-248.Goyder, D.J. (1998a). A revision of Pachycarpus E. Mey. (Asclepiadaceae: Asclepiadeae) in tropical Africa with notes on the genus in southern Africa. Kew Bulletin 53(2): 335-374.Goyder, D.J. (1998b). A revision of the African genus Stathmostelma K. Schum. (Apocynaceae: Asclepiadeae). Kew Bulletin 53(3): 577-616.Liede, S. (1991). Cynanchum gerrardii - a new combination for a well-known African species (Asclepiadaceae). Taxon 40: 113-117.Liede, S. (1994). Myth and reality of the subtribe Astephaninae K.Schum. (Asclepiadaceae). Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society 114: 81-98.Liede, S. (1996a). Cynanchum-Rhodostegiella-Vincetoxicum-Tylophora: new considerations on an old problem. Taxon 45: 193-211Liede, S. (1996b). A revision of the genus Cynanchum (Asclepiadaceae) on the African mainland. Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 83: 283-345Liede, S. (1997). Phylogenetic analysis of a large dataset: African Cynanchum (Asclepiadaceae). Systematic Botany 22(2): 347-372.Liede, S. & A. Nicholas (1992). A revision of the genus Pentarrhinum E. MEY. (Asclepiadaceae). Kew Bulletin 47(3): 475-490.Meve, U. & S. Liede (1996). Sarcostemma R. Br. in East Africa and Arabia. Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society 120: 21-38.Mwanyambo, M.L. (1996). Infraspecific variation in the African genus Margaretta (Asclepiadaceae-Asclepiadoideae). Kew Bulletin 51(4): 717-728.Newton, L.E. (1995). A new species of Ceropegia in Kenya. Bradleya 13: 35-37.Newton, L.E. (1996). The genus Brachystelma (Asclepiadaceae) in East Africa, with a new record and description of a new species. Bradleya 14: 94-98.Newton, L.E. (1998). Two new stapeliads in Kenya. Asklepios 74: 23-25.Omlor, R. (1998). Generische Revision der Marsdenieae (Asclepiadaceae). Aachen: Shaker Verlag.Plowes, D.C.H. (1994). The taxonomy of the genera Pachycymbium Leach and Angolluma Munster (Stapelieae: Asclepiadaceae). Excelsa 16: 103-123.Plowes, D.C.H. (1995). A reclassification of Caralluma R. Br. (Stapelieae: Asclepiadaceae). Haseltonia 3: 49-70.Venter, H.J.T. & R.L. Verhoeven (1994). Buckollia, a new genus in the Periplocaceae. South African Journal of Botany 60: 93-98.Venter, H.J.T. & R.L. Verhoeven (1996). The 'minor confusion' around Parquetina nigrescens (Periplocaceae). South African Journal of Botany 62: 23-30.Venter, H.J.T. & R.L. Verhoeven (1997). A tribal classification of the Periplocoideae (Apocynaceae). Taxon 46: 705-720.Venter, H.J.T. & R.L. Verhoeven (in press). A taxonomic revision of Schlechterella (Periplocoideae, Apocynaceae). South African Journal of Botany.Venter, H.J.T., R.L. Verhoeven & J.D.S. Kotze (1990). A monograph of Tacazzea (Periplocaceae). South African Journal of Botany 56: 93-112.

Ulrich Meve, David Goyder, and Sigrid Liede "Some Comments and Corrections on the Asclepiadaceae in the Upland Kenya Wild Flowers By A.D.Q. Agnew and S. Agnew," Journal of East African Natural History 88(1), 85-90, (1 January 1999). https://doi.org/10.2982/0012-8317(1999)88[85:SCACOT]2.0.CO;2
Published: 1 January 1999
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