pittier: new genus of mulberry family 113 



Museum of the National Institute at Panama City it may be 

 inferred that its area extends to the westward as far as the Code 

 Mountains, on the Atlantic water-shed. 2 



Unfortunately, though the material now at hand is more 

 copious, it hardly throws more light on the systematic position 

 of the tree under consideration, because, notwithstanding strenu- 

 ous efforts, I have been unable to obtain specimens of the male 

 inflorescences. It is obvious, however, that this species cannot 

 continue figuring under Olmedia, which is characterized by hav- 

 ing its female flowers single in a many-bracteate, more or less 

 loose involucre, while in the former these are in clusters of 4 

 or more, connate, and with the receptacle bractless, or the 

 bracts coalescent so as to be singled out only with difficulty, 

 except for an occasional free tip. The next possible genus would 

 be Castilla, which, however, differs in having the many-flowered, 

 cuplike receptacles provided with several rows of imbricate 

 bractlets, and in the pulpous mesocarp of the nutlets. 



The aculeate limbs, bracts, petioles, and main nerves of the 

 leaves and the habit of the tree are secondary characters which 

 may be of some weight in justifying the recognition of this species 

 under a new generic name, Inophloeum, which I have selected 

 on account of the thick, fibrous bast, to which further reference 

 will be made later. 



Following are the characters of the proposed genus and a 

 description of its only species: 



Inophloeum Pittier, gen. nov. 



Flores dioici. Masc. ignoti. Fern.: Receptaculum pauciflorum 

 obsolete bracteatum, vel bracteae confertim coalescentes. Perianthia 

 crassa, tubulosa basi inter se connata, apice libera, 4-dentata. Ovarium 

 semiinferum uniloculare, ovulo unico ex apice cavitatis pendulo ana- 

 tropo. Stylus brevis, crassus, inclusus, stigmatibus 2 brevibus angus- 

 tis acutis. Nucula perigonio concrescente coriaceo obtecta. — Arbor 

 armata, foliis distichis 3-nerviis integerrimis, stipulis amplexicaulibus 

 aculeatis, inflorescentiis axillaribus, receptaculis parvis cum perianthiis 

 concrescentibus. Species unica panamensis. 



2 If I remember correctly, the specimen, consisting of a large piece of bark 

 made into a garment, is labelled: "Vestido de un Indio de Penonome, hecho de 

 La corteza de unapalmera," which, translated, means: "Clothing of a Penonome 

 Indian, made /rom the bark of a palm." This label had been written by a Dr (?) 

 Marquis, professor of botany and author of an extensive and extraordinary paper 

 on the palms of Panama! 



