1963] 



BOTANY OF THE GUAYANA HIGHLANDS PART V 



119 



Distribution. Tree of varying height small, medium or large (60 m), bearing 

 panicles of widely differing size and shape consisting of few to many white 

 flowers, generally from the Guianas westward in Venezuela at low altitudes with 

 a few collections known from Bolivar and Amazonas in Venezuela in the sand- 

 stone area up to 1220 m, and westward to the Macarenes of Colombia; also in 

 northern Venezuela and adjoining Colombia, and south into Bolivia. VEN- 

 EZUELA. Bolivar : wooded ravine below edge of mesa escarpment between Santa 

 Teresita de Kavanayen and wooded quebrada about 8 km northwest of Kavan- 

 ayen, Steyermark 60471 (fl. F), along Rio Karuai, at base of Sororopan-tepui, 

 west of La Laja, 60792 (fl. F) ; selva pluvial climax, al SE de Santa Elena, 

 Bernardi 6754 (y. fr. NY) ; selvas el Rio Uonan, afluente del Ikabaru, Caroni, 

 Car dona 1699 (fl. US), bosques del Rio Ictebe, 2181 (fl. US), bosques del Rio 

 Ikabaru, 2194 (fl. US) ; en el margen del Caura, Temblador, Williams 11612 

 (fl. F) ; Amazonas: in mixed forest near Base Camp, Cerro Sipapo (Paraque), 

 Maguire & Politi 28001 (fr. NY) ; Rio Orinoco, 1-10 km below San Fernando 

 de Atabapo, Level 65 (fl. NY) ; along Rio Orinoco just below mouth of Rio 

 Atabapo, Wurdack & Adderley 42798 (fl. NY), along river just above Tama- 

 Tama, 43127 (fl. NY), occasional along Yavita-Pimichm Trail, near Yavita, Rio 

 Atabapo, 42902 (fl. NY), occasional along Rio Siapa between mouth and Cano 

 Manapiare, 43489 (fl. NY) ; Rio Vasiva, tributary of Rio Casiquiare, Cardona 

 1492 (fr. US). COLOMBIA. Intendencia del Meta: dense forest on bank of Rio 

 Guapaya, Sierra de la Macarena, Philipson, Idrobo & Fernandez 1624 (fl. NY), 

 and Cano Entrada, 1918, (fl. NY) ; Comisaria del Vaupes — Intendencia del Meta: 

 Rio Guaviare, San Jose del Guaviare, margen rio, Cuatrecasas 7458 (fl. F). 



This widespread and variable species is constant in bearing branchlets that 

 for the most part maintain minute, appressed, fulvous pubescence through the 

 flowering stage,. becoming sparingly pubescent in fruit; and inflorescences with 

 large flowers which have triangular, usually papillose anthers with a fleshy con- 

 nective, the cells in an arclike formation in the lower portion. The inflorescences 

 are usually shorter than the leaves and may be few- to many-flowered, often more 

 or less corymbose. The oblong, ovoid, or subglobose ovary is usually equal in 

 length to the style, and the fruit is ellipsoid. Few fruiting specimens are available. 



The material which I have seen from British Guiana, representing the typical 

 N. pisi Miquel vegetatively, is consistent in having fulvous pubescence on branch- 

 lets and inflorescences. The flowers are densely pubescent without, the stamens 

 with densely papillose, fleshy anthers; those of series I and II are broadly or 

 triangularly ovate with rounded or slightly obtusely subacuminate tips; those 

 of series III are short and obovate or obovate-truncate ; and the ovary is usually 

 subglobose, occasionally ovoid, and usually equals the style. These characteristics 

 accord very well with Schomburgk 896 and Sagot 811, syntypes of N. vaga /3 

 vulgaris and y major of Meissner, which I have seen. Blanchet 1544bis, and 1863, 

 holotype of N. globosa var. barbeyana Mez ; both represent N. pisi. 



I have not examined Miquel's type of N. pisi, based on Focke's specimen, but 

 the illustration is not in conflict with the inclusion of the numbers cited by Mez, 

 excluding his reference to Aublet's Laurus globosa for which no specimen is 

 mentioned. 



The Macarena specimens cited show leaves with 8 or 9 pairs of veins, 

 glabrescent, reddish-brown, angular branchlets, and slightly smaller flowers with 

 the structure typical of the species. Material from Vaupes (Cuatrecasas 7458) 

 and some numbers from northern Colombia not here cited, also show leaves with 

 this number of veins, but the stamens of series I and II consistently have long- 



