(St), T. Plowman 12780 (CEPEC, F, four duplicates to be 

 distributed). 



Etymology: Ervthroxylum LeaJ-costae is named in honor of 

 Dr. Alexandre Leal Costa, dedicated collector of the flora of 

 Bahia who first collected the species in 1975. 



Distriiution: Known only from the type locality in an 

 extremely limited area. 



Ecology: Ervthroxvfum Leal-costae is confined to a small 

 area within a region of dune scrubland near the town of Itapua 

 next to the airport of the city of Salvador, Bahia. This vegetation 

 is included in the broad concept of "restinga" but has been des- 

 cribed by Eiten (1968) as "evergreen broadleaf open clumped 

 scrub. "The restinga of Itapua consists mainly of evergreen shrubs 

 and small trees with dense, tortuous branches and coriaceous, 

 evergreen leaves, including Guet tarda pJatypoda DC, Kiel- 

 meyera argentea Choisy, Crotun Sellowii Baill., Emmotwii a/fine 

 Miers, Tcrnstroemia sp., and several Myrtaceae. A recent study 

 of plant dispersal and succession at this site (Morawetz, in press) 

 listed 94 species in some 84 genera and 51 families, but this 

 Ervthroxylum apparently was overlooked. A number of other 

 species are thought to be endemic at the restinga of Itapua, 

 including Aechmea itapoana W. Till & Morawetz, Hyptis Blan- 

 chetii Benth., and possibly Kielmeyera reticulata Saddi. 



Phenology: Flowering material oi Erythroxylum Leal-costae 

 has been collected in late March and fruiting specimens in May. 



Common Names and Uses: No common names or uses are 

 reported for this species. 



Relationships: Erythroxylum Leal-costae di^x^cdiv^ to be-long 

 to Sect. Rhahdophyllum based on its having striated stipules, but 

 its relationships within this large and diverse group are uncertain. 

 Erythroxylum Leal-costae may be related to two other restinga 

 species also occurring in Bahia: E. passerinum Mart, and an 

 undescribed species {Plowman & Carvalho 12795). These two 

 species are easily distinguished from E. Leal-costae by having 

 more slender branchlets (ca. 2 mm. diameter), chartaceous leaves 

 and longer pedicels (5 8 mm. long). Superficially, E. Leal-costae 

 resembles several species of Sect. Archerythroxylum occurring in 

 Brazilian restingas and related habitats, including E. ovalifolium 



lie 



