Research Article |
Corresponding author: Eduardo Molinari-Novoa ( eduardomolinov@gmail.com ) Academic editor: Gabriele Galasso
© 2021 Eduardo Molinari-Novoa.
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Citation:
Molinari-Novoa E (2021) Poorly known names authored by Antonio Raimondi. Italian Botanist 11: 63-76. https://doi.org/10.3897/italianbotanist.11.61796
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Nine nomenclatural acts by Antonio Raimondi are assessed and commented. These include a new genus, six new species and two new combinations that are absent from or incorrectly cited in major databases. A new combination, Jacaranda acutifolia var. punctata is proposed for an endemic plant from central Peru. Lastly, Jacaranda punctata Raimondi and Puya raimondii Harms are neotypified and lectotypified, respectively.
Andean flora, endemism, nomenclature, Peruvian flora, taxonomy
Giovanni Antonio Raimondi dell’Acqua was born in Milan (currently in Italy) in 1824, the seventh child of a family of bakers (
During his exploration, he put together a considerable collection of minerals, pressed plants, skinned animals, and archaeological findings. Nevertheless, he was first and foremost a botanist (
A thorough bibliographic research was done on the published botanical work of Antonio Raimondi. Additionally, his herbarium preserved at USM (herbarium acronyms follow Thiers 2021+) was reviewed. For the Peruvian composites assessed here, the author also consulted the works of
Several short visits at former rural areas of Lima were made each summer to identify possible surviving individuals of Jacaranda punctata Raimondi, since it was the only plant that was not readily identified while reviewing the descriptions and herbarium material. A neotype is selected for the species, here considered a variety of J. acutifolia Bonpl.
No lectotypes were designated as no original material was found for most of the species listed below. Since every name by Raimondi, except J. punctata, is currently synonymised, no neotypes were selected for them.
Here, I present a full catalogue of the new plant species and combinations made by Antonio Raimondi in his scientific books published as a result of his expeditions in the Peruvian Andes: the two volumes of “Elementos de Botánica”, the first subtitled “Anatomía, fisiología y patología vegetal” (
In total, Raimondi published one new genus, six new species (one of which accepted here at the varietal rank, newly proposed as a new combination) and two new combinations.
Cryptochaete Raimondi, Elem. Bot. (Raimondi) 2: 187. 1857.
Type: Cryptochaete andicola Raimondi.
= Senecio L.
Cryptochaete andicola Raimondi, Elem. Bot. (Raimondi) 2: 187. 1857.
Type: not designated.
= Senecio violifolius Cabrera, Darwiniana 10: 577. 1954.
Type (holotype). Peru. Lima: prov. Yauyos, Huacracocha, 17 km de Tupe, 4400 m, 22 January 1952, E. Cerrate & O. Tovar 1222 (LP barcode LP000707 [digital image!]).
Raimondi named the new genus and species within the main text. Then, in the same page, he included a generic-specific description in a footnote.
The name Cryptochaete Raimondi is an earlier homonym to Cryptochaete P.Karst., a peniophoraceous genus of fungi currently synonymised under Peniophora Cooke (
Culcitium discolor Raimondi, Elem. Bot. (Raimondi) 2: 186. 1857 [as “discclor”].
Type: not designated.
≡ Senecio discoloratus Cuatrec., Fieldiana, Bot. 27(1): 43. 1950.
= Senecio tephrosioides Turcz. Bull. Soc. Imp. Naturalistes Moscou 24(2): 92. 1851.
Type (holotype). Ecuador. Pichincha: Quito, Antisana volcano, 3650 m, W. Jameson 846 (KW barcode KW001001543 [digital image!]).
Raimondi gave a brief diagnosis of the species and provided a few ethnobotanical notes in the main text. In the footnote, he gave a formal description in Latin. The protologue is short, so any element present was taken into consideration to interpret the name, recently considered of dubious identity by
Among the species of Senecio ser. Culcitium (Bonpl.) Cabrera, we searched for the following characteristics: plants villose, with discoloured leaves and campanulate involucrum, living in the central Peruvian Andes, with medicinal properties attributed. Taking all of these into consideration simultaneously narrowed the selection. While S. tephrosioides is sparsely hairy and does not always present discoloured leaves, specimens collected at high altitudes conform to Raimondi’s description. Furthermore, the common names in Quechua, which are words including “ticlla”, an adjective meaning “discolour” (
Jacaranda punctata Raimondi, Elem. Bot. (Raimondi) 2: 166. 1857.
Type (neotype, designated here). Peru. Lima: Santiago de Surco (WGS84: 12.1293783S, 76.9792395W), 68 m, 7 December 2020, Molinari 712 (MOL!; isoneotype: USM!).
≡ Jacaranda acutifolia var. punctata (Raimondi) Molinari & Mayta, comb. et stat. nov.
Raimondi wrote about the plant’s common name and ethnobotanical uses; he then gave the description in a footnote. Since no original material was traced, a neotype is here designated.
For comparison, living material was taken from a tree belonging to the author of this article, raised from seed in and bought from the Forestry Vivarium of La Molina National Agrarian University to ensure its correct taxonomical placement. Additionally, the types of J. acutifolia and J. mimosifolia D.Don. were consulted.
To clarify the identity of this species, I surveyed the former rural areas of Lima, the place where Raimondi found this plant in cultivation. A healthy tree, fully corresponding the description, was found in an old garden at Santiago de Surco, a district which, in Raimondi’s time, was outside the city, dotted with villas and manorial houses (Fig.
The tree differs from J. acutifolia by its leaves with suborbicular-elliptical, strongly apiculate leaflets with non-revolute margins and a dusty appearance on both sides. Additionally, the vein impression is visible on the adaxial side, and small, cylindrical secretions of dry resin, ca. 1 mm wide, appear on the abaxial side (Fig.
The impression on the leaves places the plant close to J. mimosifolia, the sister species of J. acutifolia (
Comparison of pinnae from Jacaranda mimosifolia and Jacaranda acutifolia var. punctata. Note the difference in the length of the pinnae and the general form of the leaflets. The leaf of J. mimosifolia was taken from a cultivated tree in the author’s garden, the leaf of J. acutifolia var. punctata was taken from the tree from which the neotype was collected.
Comparison of flowers from Jacaranda mimosifolia and Jacaranda acutifolia var. punctata. Note the difference in the colour of the corolla, the latter being slightly darker. The flower of J. mimosifolia was taken from a cultivated tree in the author’s garden, the flower of J. acutifolia var. punctata was taken from the tree from which the neotype was collected.
After confirming the specific identity of the collection, it became apparent that it differs from the type of J. acutifolia by the smaller leaves with fewer pinnae; shorter, rounder, thicker leaflets with obtuse bases, resin secretions on the abaxial side and strong vein impressions on the adaxial side resembling those of J. mimosifolia; the colour of the corolla paler than the typical variety and not consistently purple but becoming greyish towards the base of the tube. For a comparison with the autonymic variety of J. acutifolia and the widely cultivated J. mimosifolia, see Table
Diagnostic characters of J. acutifolia var. punctata. Compared with the autonymic variety and J. mimosifolia, a species of the genus common in Lima. Description based on the examined plants and
Morphological traits | Jacaranda acutifolia var. acutifolia | Jacaranda acutifolia var. punctata | Jacaranda mimosifolia |
---|---|---|---|
leaves | pinnae 2.0–3.0 cm apart | pinnae 1.0–2.0 cm apart | pinnae 1.3–2.1 cm apart |
pinnae | 11–33 leaflets | 9–17 leaflets | 13–41 leaflets |
leaflets | 5–16 mm long, 2–4 mm wide, narrowly elliptic, sharply acuminate, the base cuneate, chartaceous, the surface smooth above | 2–5 mm long, 1–3 mm wide, suborbicular, apiculate, the base obtuse, coriaceous, with vein impressions above, resin dots below | 3–12 mm long, 1–4 mm wide, narrowly elliptic, sharply acuminate, the base cuneate, chartaceous, with vein impressions above |
corollas | deep purplish blue, consistently so through the length of the tube, or becoming slightly paler towards the base | somewhat paler than the typical variety, becoming greyish towards the base | pale purplish blue, becoming white towards the end, with the tube white inside |
When treating the Bignoniaceae, leaf differences are essential to determine subspecific taxa:
Jacaranda acutifolia var. acutifolia. Peru. Cajamarca: in calidis fluvii Guancambamba prope Sn. Phelipe, A. Humboldt & A. Bonpland s.n. (B [digital image!], type of Jacaranda acutifolia). Huánuco: Acomay, 3200 m, 11 November 1964, Ferreyra 16116 (USM!). Lambayeque: 13 km E of Olmos on road to Pucara, 410 m, 10 Junuary 1978, A. Gentry 22683 (USM!). Lima: Canta, Santa Rosa de Quives, 940 m, 2011, P. Gonzales 1742 (USM!).
Jacaranda mimosifolia. Argentina. Tucumán: raro prope La Cruz, 1872, P. Lorentz s.n. (GOET [digital image!], type of Jacaranda chelonia). Brazil: cultivated near Bayswater, England, Bot. Reg. 8: pl. 631, 1822 (type of Jacaranda mimosifolia). Peru. Arequipa: Provincia de Arequipa, distrito de Cayma, cultivada, 2400 m, 2019, H. Carrillo s.n. (HUSA!); Provincia de Arequipa, distrito de Uchumayo, cultivada, 1970 m, 2019, H. Carrillo s.n. (HUSA!). Lima: Jardín Botánico “Octavio Velarde Núñez”, La Molina, August 2010, A. Arista 9 (MOL!).
Pourretia gigantea Raimondi, Perú 1: 295. 1874.
Type: not designated.
= Puya raimondii Harms, Notizbl. Bot. Gart. Berlin-Dahlem 10: 213. 1928.
Type (lectotype, designated here). Peru. Áncash: Cajamarquilla, auf der Cordillera negra bei Huaraz, 3800 m, 16 November 1903, A. Weberbauer 3746 (MOL!; isolectotype: B barcode B-100247173 [digital image!]).
Probably the best-known plant described by Raimondi, the description starts on page 295 and continues with ecological and phenological data to end, on page 297, with the formal naming of the species. All the botanical description is interlayered with geographical information, personal impressions, travel anecdotes and reflections about the Andean landscape. More information on the description of the species can be found in
The authority of the species is incorrectly listed in IPNI (2021+) as “Pourretia gigantea Raimondi ex Herrera”. No original material was found in the Raimondi herbarium at USM.
Other specimens examined (syntypes). Peru. Áncash: Huaraz, Umgebung des Dorfes Aija, grasige, etwas steinige Abhainge, 4000 m, April 1903, A. Weberbauer 2955 (B barcodes B-100247174 [digital image!], B-100247175 [digital image!], B-100247176 [digital image!].
Carica integrifolia Raimondi, Elem. Bot. (Raimondi) 2: 230. 1857.
Type: not designated.
= Vasconcellea candicans (A.Gray) A.DC., Prodr. [A. P. de Candolle] 15(1): 417. 1864.
Type (holotype). Peru, Lima: Amancaes Mts., in ravines between Lima and Obrajillo, Wilkes Exploring Expedition s.n. (US barcode US- 00115148 [digital image!]).
Raimondi provided a Spanish diagnosis of this species within the text, comparing it with the better-known C. papaya L., and pointed to a footnote where he proposed a formal description.
This species was previously described three years earlier by
Chloraea undulata Raimondi, Elem. Bot. (Raimondi) 1: 143. 1857.
Type (lectotype, designated by
= Chloraea pavonii Lindl., Gen. Sp. Orchid. Pl.: 404, 1840.
Type (holotype): “Chile” [Peru]: Pavon s.n. (BM barcode BM000095631 [digital image!]).
Raimondi provided his description after casually naming the species a page before, as an example of plant with gynostemia, and referred to a footnote with a Latin protologue, preceded by a brief introduction in Spanish.
This name is commonly attributed to Miguel Fernández de Colunga, specifically in the second volume of his “Lecciones de botánica” (Fernández
Niphobolus ccallahuala (Ruiz) Raimondi, Elem. Bot. (Raimondi) 2: 57. 1857 [as “calaguala”].
≡ Polypodium ccallahuala Ruiz, Disert. Ratánhia Calaguala Canchalagua: 37. 1796, nom. rej. prop.
Type (lectotype, designated by
= Campyloneurum densifolium (Hieron.) Lellinger, Amer. Fern J. 78(1): 19. 1988, nom. cons. prop.
≡ Polypodium angustifolium f. densifolium Hieron., Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 34(4): 532. 1904.
Type (lectotype, designated by
The new combination was made effective by an indirect reference in the text, where Raimondi named both the basionym and its author,
The basionym of this name has been proposed for rejection by
Notholaena flavens (Sw.) Raimondi, Elem. Bot. (Raimondi) 2: 59. 1857 [as “Nothoclaena flava”], probable isonym.
Notholaena flavens (Sw.) T.Moore, Index Fil. (T.Moore) 2: LXX. 1857 [April 1857] [as “Nothoclaena”].
≡ Acrostichum flavens Sw., Syn. Fil. (Swartz): 16 (204). 1806.
Type (holotype): “America Meridional.” [Panama]: Cavanilles s.n. (S barcode S06-1742 [digital image!]).
= Argyrochosma nivea var. tenera (Gillies ex Hook.) Ponce, Hickenia 2(38): 177. 1996.
≡ Notholaena tenera Gillies ex Hook., Bot. Mag. 58: pl. 3055. 1831.
Type (holotype): Argentina, Mendoza: cultivated from spores collected near Villavicencio, February 1821, Gillies s.n. (K barcode K-000633290 [digital image!]).
The combination was made effective by an indirect reference to the basionym accompanied by a short description, complemented with a justification for the nomenclatural novelty in a footnote of the same page. Raimondi used the orthographic variant “Nothoclaena” by
The same combination was made by
The referred name is currently considered a synonym for Argyrochosma nivea var. tenera in major floristic works (
Raimondi was a notable botanist with an acute knowledge of the Peruvian flora, whose precision was hindered only by the lack of access to updated literature from Europe and the United States. In fact, he proposed new species that were total novelties at the time, but which were subsequently forgotten by later researchers. Despite all of this, Raimondi is mostly remembered as a geologist and geographer, and the reappraisal of his botanical skills came much later. May this work add to the knowledge of that aspect of this remarkable Italian explorer.
The author invested over five years in this little piece of research, to honour properly the memory of the great Raimondi. In his path, he was aided by some of the foremost scientists of Peru: Hamilton Beltrán (USM), who helped with the identification, taxonomy, and nomenclatural information of Asteraceae, Severo Baldeón and Mario Benavente, for granting access to the Raimondi Herbarium and the general collection at USM since 2014, Luis Mayta (HUSA), the co-author of the new combination based on Jacaranda punctata. Also, the staff of the Raimondi Museum is to be acknowledged, especially its director Luis Felipe Villacorta, who gave privileged access to their collections and bibliographic material. Finally, the author is grateful to the editor, Gabriele Galasso, Stefania Biondi and two anonymous reviewers for their comments, criticisms, and suggestions, which helped to greatly improve this work.
Protologues and combinations by Antonio Raimondi
Data type: Nomenclatural information
Explanation note: Here we present the full protologues by Antonio Raimondi. The orthography and punctuation have been updated, but we tried to respect both the archaic prosodic tone of the text as well as its format.