(Ird) Zygotritonia bongensis

Zygotritonia bongensis (Pax) Mildbr., Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 58: 230 (1923).

See below:

• * References
• * Synonyms

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Synonyms:

Homotypic Names:

• * Tritonia bongensis Pax, Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 15: 153 (1892).

• * Basionym/Replaced Synonym

Heterotypic Synonyms:

• Zygotritonia bongensis var. robusta Mildbr., Bot. Jahrb. Syst. 58: 230 (1923).
• Zygotritonia crocea Stapf, Hooker's Icon. Pl. 32: t. 3120 (1933).

References:

Adansonia 1989"Plants 18-40(-65)cm high. Corm 15-25 mm in diam., tunics red-brown, with a thick subfibrous texture, the outer laters becoming irregularly broken,decaying to become coarsely fibrous. Cataphylls usually 3, firm- textured, the uppermost longest, 5- 12 cm long, the apices acute. Leaves synanthous, lanceolate, plicate, rigid to fairly soft, with 3-6 major veins,(l-)2-3,the lower 1 or 2 more or less basal, the lowermost largest (sometimes the only one with an expanded lamina), (12-) 15-40 mm wide, reaching to about the middle of, or shortly exceeding the spike, the second leaf sometimes much smaller, even almost entirely sheating, the third if present, cauline and more or less bract-like. Stem simple or with 1-3 branches. Spike with 12-25(-40) flowers on the main axis, fewer on the branches ; bracts more or less coriaceous, usually brown at anthesis and probably dry, not papillate, 4-5 mm long, the outer about as long or slightly shorter than the innen Flowers whitish to cream with the distal parts of the tepals reddish to purple ; perianth tube 3-4 mm long, widening gradually from base to apex; tepals more or less linear-spathulate, broadest in the upper third, the upper ca. 12 mm long, slightly wider in the upper third and about 3 mm wide, the other tepals 7-8 mm long, recurving and twisted loosely, the margins undulate. Filaments 8-10 mm long; anthers 2.5-3 mm long. Ovary ca. 2 mm long. Capsule depressed globose-trigonous (if all locules with seed), ca. 4 mm long, more or less woody, dark brown, nearly smooth to strongly warty; seeds l(-2) per locule, globose but slightly angled by pressure, ca. 2.4 mm long, 2 mm at the widest diam. Flowering time: May to June. Distribution West Africa from Guinea and Mali Nigeria to southern Sudan and northeastern Zaire (Fig. 2). It is apparently poorly collected or is rare in Guinea, Mali Beni, Cameroon, and Sudan from which there are no more than one or two records. Zygotritonia bongensis has not been found in Ivory Coast, Togo or Congo where it might be expected to occur. Zygotritonia bongensis and Z. crocea were treated as separate species in the two editions West tropical Africa., but after examining the type specimens, I can find no taxonomically significant difference between them. They correspond closely in size, leaf shape and Hower and inflorescence structure. The variety robusta of Z. bongensis described by Mildbraed from western Central African Republic is unusual and most specimens assigned in the past to Z. bongensis (notably excepting the type) correspond closely with the form represented by var. robusta. Lower stature, narrower leaves, usually 1-2 cm wide, with a brown pellucid dotted surface and spikes of 12-25 flowers appear to separate typical Z. bongensis from the taller, more floriferous variety. The leaves of the latter also appear to be of a thinner texture and are usually 3-4 cm wide, and strongly plicate. However, there are a number of intermediates that cannot be assigned with confidence to either and the utility of preserving the variety as a formal taxon remains to be demonstrated when more material is collected."

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-- BobPries - 12 Feb 2019