Table Of ContentBLUMEA 42 (1997) 191-248
Arevision of Parsonsia R.Br. (Apocynaceae) inMalesia
David+J. Middleton
DepartmentofBotany,Trinity College,Dublin 2,Ireland1
Summary
The genus Parsonsia isrevised in theMalesian region.Lyonsia, Helygia,Cudicia, Chaetosus,Del-
phyodon, andGrisseea areincluded in synonymy and 27 speciesarerecognised,oneofwhich has
7 varieties.There are9newspecies, 4newvarieties,2newcombinations and2newstatuses, oneof
which is also anewcombination.
Introduction
Parsonsiawas first describedby Robert Brownin his seminalwork onthegenera
oftheApocynaceae and Asclepiadaceae (1810). Thenamecommemorates Dr James
Parsons. Healso describedLyonsia, a genuswhosestatus asdistinct fromParsonsia
hasoftenbeen disputed. Itis now generally accepted thatLyonsia is not distinctfrom
Parsonsiaandtheseparation ofthe two wasoriginally basedona misinterpretationof
some characters(see Markgraf, 1927:213). Blume(1826) describedaspecies under
thegenusHelygia andtwo species inParsonsia. Theselattertwo species havenow
beenremovedfromParsonsiato Parameriaand Urceola.Helygia was subsequently
misspelledas Heligme andseveralmorespecies added,particularly by Miquel(1857).
Thisgenushasnobasis atall andmustnowbeincludedinsynonymy"despite an at-
tempttoreviveitdueto thecompeting claimsforthenameParsonsia. Parsonsiain
theApocynaceae hasbeenconservedagainst ParsonsiaintheLythraceae.
Grisseeawas describedwithasingle species by Bakhuizen vandenBrink(1950)
afterhis earlierDutchlanguage description (in Backer, 1948). Thecombinationof
charactersheused to distinguish thegenus fromParsonsia are foundinmanyPar-
sonsia species. These includedthe densetuftofhairsat thethroat,theinsertionof
the filamentnearthebaseofthecorollatubeandthe fact that thefilamentsare not
strongly twisted, a suiteof characters which,farfrom excluding thespecies from
Parsonsia,place itsquarely insectionGastranthus.
Delphyodon was descibedwith asingle species by Schumann(1898). He com-
pared hisnew genustoEpigynum and Aganosma from which itdifferedinthefour
points ontopoftheovary, theshape ofthedisc, theformofthecolletersandthesyn-
carpous ovary. He didnot compare it to Parsonsia whichhas all these featuresto
varying degrees. Theonly uniquecharacterin thesingle species described, Delphyo-
don oliganthus, is thevery unusual fruitwhich has large irregular spine-like out-
growths all over it. This single character, however, is not enough to maintainthe
entiregenusandDelphyodon oliganthus shows aremarkablesimilarity toParsonsia
flavescens inits otherfeatures.
I) Present address: Rijksherbarium/Hortus Botanicus,Einsteinweg2, P.O.Box9514, 2300RA
Leiden,The Netherlands.
192 BLUMEA Vol. 42, No. 1, 1997
Thenumberofspecies inthegenus variesconsiderably betweenauthors. Pichon
(1950), inareview ofthegenus, suggested 83 species whilsttworecent authorities
give widely differentassessments of50species (Leeuwenberg, 1994)and 130spe-
cies (Williams, 1996).Williams'higher figure is partlybasedonhisrecent work for
thegenus in Australiawhich includes 19new taxa.All but 2ofthe 35 species in
Australiaareendemic.Mybelief, however,is thatthecorrect figure is closestto that
ofPichon.Thisgenusproved tobeanexception amongsttherecently revisedMale-
sian generaofApocynaceae asinthesetherehaslargely beenareductioninthenum-
berofspecies recognised and very fewnew species described(Middleton, 1996a,
1996b). Therelatively high numberofnew species inParsonsiamay be dueto the
fact thattheMalesianelementofParsonsiaappearstobecentred moreinNewGuinea
whichhasbeenrelatively poorly collected, particularly inIrianJaya.
Pichon(1950a) removedParsonsiapenangiana fromthis genusandplaced itin
Artiaandmadeanewsection Oppositae to containitandArtiabalansae fromNew
Caledonia.Thisseems most curiousas P. penangiana is undoubtedly closeto P. al-
boflavescens (to theextentthatithasrecently beentreatedas a varietyofthisspecies)
anditbears littleresemblancetotheotherspecies ofArtia.Itwouldseemsensibleto
typifyArtiasect. Oppositae withA. balansaesothatthesectiondoesnot become a
synonymofParsonsia. The status ofthewholegenusArtia, not found in Malesia
once P. penangiana is removed,needs tobe clarifiedin relationto Parsonsia. Par-
sonsiapenangiana is insect.Helygia.
Pichon(1950a) suggested asubclassificationofthegenusbasedonthe43species
hehadrepresented inthe ParisMuseumanddescriptions oftheotherspecies. He di-
videdthe genusinto8 sections ofwhichtheMalesianspecies fallintohis sections
GastranthusandHelygia. In additionto thesesectionsthe genusDelphyodon would
forma distinctsection withinParsonsiawithtwo species, P. oligantha andP.flaves-
cens. Pichon'sschemeis limitedby thescopeofhiswork whichis concentratedon
theNewCaledonianspecies. Many oftheMalesianspecies were notexaminedandit
seems tomethatproperallocationofeachspecies inPichon's schemeis notpossible
withouta thorough reviewoftheentiregenus. My own cursoryobservations inthe
genusoutside MalesiaandcontinentalAsialeadsmetoquestion Pichon's distinction
betweenthesectionsandseriesfoundinNewCaledoniaandthosefoundelsewhere.
Thereare a numberofproblematic areas inMalesianParsonsia.In thisrevision I
havetreatedP. alboflavescens broadly as thereappeartobeno discontinuitieswhere
boundaries couldbeclearly drawn. Thishasled, however,toan extremely variable
species. On theotherhandP. sanguinea fromNewGuineashows anumberoflocal
varietieswhicharedistinctenough tobe recognised atvarietallevel, withonly oneof
the varieties, P. sanguinea var. brassii, being otherthanlocally restricted. This,of
course, will needto bereviewed whenfarmorecollections areavailablefromNew
Guinea, particularly fromIrianJaya.
Pichon(1950b) placed Parsonsiain thetribeParsonieae, subtribeParsonsiinae
along withThenardiafromMexicoandArtiafromNewCaledonia(although healso
suggested this genusmaybeinAsiawhichis unlikely).Leeuwenberg (1994) placed
thegenusintribeEchiteae,subtribeParsonsiinaewithDewevrella, Thenardia, Pott-
siaandIsonema.
D. J.Middleton: Revision of Parsonsia 193
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Herbariummaterialwas studied fromthefollowing herbaria:A,AAU,ABD,B, BK,
BKF,BM,BO, BR, BRI,C, CANB,CGE,E, G,GH,H,K,KEP,KLU,K-W, L,LAE,
NSW,NY,M, MEL,MO, P,S, SING,SINU, TCD,TI, U,UC,UPS,US,W, WRSL,Z
(Holmgren etal., 1990).Allspecimens citedhavebeenseen unlessotherwisestated.
Thedimensionsgivenin thedescriptions are fordriedmaterialexcept forthegy-
noeciumandandroeciumcharacters whichare forflowersrehydrated withwater.
PARSONSIA
Parsonsia R.Br.,Asclepiadeae(1810)53,nom.cons, nonP.Brown(1756).—Typespecies: Par-
sonsiacapsularis(G.Forst.)R.Br.
Lyonsia R.Br.,Asclep. (1810) 55.—Typespecies:Lyonsiastraminea R.Br.[= Parsonsia strami-
nea(R.Br.)F.Muell.].
HelygiaBlume,Bijdr. (1826) 1043.— HeligmeMiq.,Fl.Ind. Bat. 2(1857)429, sphalm.—Type
species:HelygiajavanicaBlume [=Parsonsiaalboflavescens (Dennst.)Mabb.].
Cudicia Buch.-Ham. [ex G.Don,Gen. Syst. 4(1837)80,nom. illeg. (insyn.)] exDillwyn, Index
Hort.Malab. (1839)41.—Typespecies: Cudicia trichotoma Buch.-Ham. exDillwyn [= Par-
sonsiaalboflavescens(Dennst.)Mabb.].
Chaetosus Benth.,Hook. Lond. J.Bot. 2 (1843)226. —Typespecies: Chaetosus volubilis Benth.
[=Parsonsiaalboflavescens (Dennst.)Mabb.].
DelphyodonK.Schum.,Bot. Jahrb. 24 (1898)Beibl.59: 31.—Typespecies:Delphyodonoligan-
thusK.Schum.[=Parsonsia oligantha(K.Schum.)D. J.Middleton],
Grisseea Bakh.f., [in Backer,BeknopteFl.Java,Afl.7, Fam.172 (1948)49,nom. inval. (noLatin
description)]Blumea 6 (1950)392. —Typespecies:Grisseea apiculataBakh.f.[=Parsonsia
apiculata(Bakh.f.)D.J.Middleton],
Climbing shrubs; bark variable.Branches with orwithoutlenticels; branchlets gla-
brous, puberulent ortomentose. Leaves opposite or in whorlsof3ormore, thoseof
apairequal, entire; colletersintheaxilsandfrequently in aring aroundthestem. In-
florescenceaxillary orterminal,corymbose, pedunculate andseveraltimesbranched
or with flowersclustered atthe inflorescenceends, few- to many-flowered. Bracts
small, linearorovate. Flowers 5-merous. Sepals connate atthevery base, erector
reflexed, ovate to linear,with colletersinside. Corollaactinomorphic; lobesoverlap-
ping to right in bud, often so very slightly as to appearvalvate; tubecylindrical or
somewhatinflated; lobes reflexed, spreading orerect;outsideandinsidepubescent
orglabrous. Stamensexserted, inserted anywhere on thecorollatube fromthebase
to nearthethroat;filamentsstraight,bentor strongly twisted, mostoftenpubescent;
anthers usually narrowly triangular, sometimes oblong, apex acuminate, basesagit-
tate,sterileatbaseandapex,adnateto theheadofthepistil. Discof5 lobes, some-
timesfused into an annularring, oftenwithcomplex development ofteeth at the
apex.Pistil glabrous. Ovary ovoid, of2connate carpels, often4-toothedat apex.
Style narrow; pistil headovoid. Ovules many.Fruitofonefollicleclearly composed
oftwo locules; linearto fusiform.Seeds roughly triangular incross section, long and
narrow, bearing a comaattheendtowardstheapexofthefruit.
Distribution— Circa82 species fromIndiaandSri LankatoChina, southwards
through IndochinaandMalesiato the western Pacific Islands, Australiaand New
Zealand;27 species inMalesia.
194 BLUMEA Vol. 42, No. 1, 1997
KEY TO THE SPECIES
la. Leaves inwhorlsof3or more 7. P.curvisepala
b. Leaves opposite 2
2a. Leavesdensely pubescent allover beneath 3
b. Leaves glabrousor onlypubescent onmidribandnerves beneath 14
3a. Corollatube> 10mmlong 10. P. grandiflora
b. Corollatube< 8 mmlong 4
4a. Corollatubepubescent inthroat 5
b. Corollatubeglabrous inthroat 15. P. novoguineensis
5a. Corollacampanulate 26.P. velutina
b. Corollasubcylindrical, salverform, rotateor urceolate 6
6a. Hairs oncorolla tubedenserufousbrown 8
b. Hairson corollatube very shortand cream colouredor pale fawn, or corolla
tubeglabrous outside 7
7a. Corollatube glabrous outside, lobes 3.9-5.6xas long as tube, strongly re-
flexedwhen mature.Lesser SundaIslands 23.P.sundensis
b. Corollatube puberulent or glabrous outside, lobes 0.7-2.2x as long as tube,
erector spreading whenmature;widespread P. 1.alboflavescens
8a. Tips of corollalobes glabrous outside; flowers densely clustered at inflores-
cenceends 8.P. densiflora
b. Tipsofcorollalobespubescent outside; flowers laxlyarranged orclustered 9
9a. Corollatube>5.4mmlong; not inNewGuinea 5.P. celebica
b. Corollatube< 6 mmlong, those> 3mmlong only inNew Guinea 10
10a. Corollatubesomewhatinflated, widerthanhead inbud; antherswithlargeboss
ontheback 22.P.schoddei
b. Corollatubenot inflated, narroweror samewidthas headinbud; no largeboss
onanthers 11
11a. Hairs oninflorescencespreading 12
b. Hairs on inflorescenceappressed 13
12a. Leafbasecuneate toobtuse 7.P. curvisepala
b. Leafbase cordate 12.P. lata
13a. Inflorescence 14-20cm long; mature corollatubec. 2mmwide
3. P. appressa
b. Inflorescence 3.5-13cm long; mature corollatube3-4mmwide
27.P. warenensis
14a. Stamens subsessileorwithvery shortfilaments 15
b. Stamens withwell developed filaments 17
15a. Leaves withoutprominent venation; disclobes free 21. P.sanguinea
b. Leaves withprominentvenationabove; disclobesfused 16
16a. Corollapinkish or reddish, witharoundedor apiculate headinbud;fruitspiny
16. P.oligantha
b. Corollayellow, withanacuminateheadinbud; fruitsmooth
9.P.flavescens
17a. Filamentstwisted aroundthestyle 1. P. alboflavescens
b. Filamentsstraight or, ifbent, nottwistedaround thestyle 18
D.J.Middleton: Revision ofParsonsia 195
18a. Flowers hourglass-shaped (seeFig. 2); corolla tube>7mm long
6.P. constricta
b. Flowers not hourglass-shaped; corollatube<6 mmlong 19
19a. Flowersfleshy, corollalobes strongly overlapping inbud; sepal lobes rounded
toobtuse 19. P. philippinensis
b. Flowers not fleshy, corollalobesonly slightlyoverlapping or appearing valvate
inbud;sepalsacuminatetoobtuse 20
20a. Anthersexserted completely beyond mouthofcorollatube; lobes 2.4-5.6x as
longas tube 21
b. Anthers partially includedin corollatube orlocatedatmouthofcorollatube;
lobes0.4-3.1 x as long as corolla tube 22
21a. Inflorescence delicate, with flowers clustered at inflorescence branch ends
forming rounded heads; fruits fusiform, < 12cm long. Lesser SundaIslands
23.P.sundensis
,
b. Inflorescencemore robust, flowers not forming roundedheads; fruitslinear, >
15 cm long. Moluccas, New Guinea 4. P. buruensis
22a. Filamentswith large projections on thesides; driedleaves usually somewhat
glaucous abaxially 20. P.rubra
b. Filamentswithoutlargeprojections on thesides; driedleaves not glaucous 23
23a. Corollabeardedin throat with brown hairs, usually densely brown pubescent
outside, rarely glabrous 24
b. Corollaglabrous or pale-coloured pubescent inthroatandglabrous, brown pa-
pillose or shortly puberulent outside 27
24a. Sepals erectoronly slightly spreading atapex; corollatube4.2-5.4mmlong
27.P.warenensis
b. Sepals strongly reflexed; corollatube 1.9-4.5mmlong 25
25a. Leafbase cuneate,rarelyto obtuse;leaves 1.8-4.8x as long as wide
7. P. curvisepala
b. Leafbasecordatetorounded;leaves 1.1-2x as long as wide 26
26a. Inflorescence2.7-6.7cm long; corollatube 1.9-2.2mm long. JavatoFlores
2.P. apiculata
b. Inflorescence7-18.5cm long; corollatube2.9-3.2mmlong. BismarckArchi-
pelago 17. P.pedunculata
27a. Corollawithdownwardpointinghairsinthroat 30
b. Corollaglabrous or withupward pointinghairsinthroat 28
28a. Budsovoidin shape; oftenpapillose outside; discentire 18. P.penangiana
.
b. Budscylindrical or club-shaped; not papillose outside; disc usually of5 sepa-
rate lobes 29
29a. Inflorescence 3-21 cm long, flowersnot forming a denserounded clusterat
ends l.P. alboflavescens
b. Inflorescence 1.1-4cm long, flowers forming a denseroundedclusteratends
24.P. tenuiflora
30a. Opencorollacampanulate or subcampanulate 31
b. Open corollasalverformor withnarrow tubeanderectlobes 33
31a. Tertiary venationdensely reticulate 32
b. Tertiary venationlargely obscure, occasionally slightly prominent 34
196 BLUMEA —Vol. 42, No. 1, 1997
32a. Corollalobes 1.8-3.1 xas long as tube 13. P. Iongiloba
b. Corollalobes0.7-1.3 x as longas tube 11.P.hebetica
33a. Corollatube 1.3-2mm long; leaves 1-4.4cm long 25.P. vaccinioides
....
b. Corollatube2.1-3.4mm long; leaves2.1-10.8 cm long . 14. P. marginata
34a. Corollatubemuchnarrowerthancorollabudhead;inflorescenceshortand deli-
cate 24. P. tenuiflora
b. Corollatube widerthantomoreor less samewidthascorollabudhead 35
...
35a. Leaves dryingdullochreadaxially, 2.1-3.2xas longas wide(infrequent) ...
11. P.hebetica
b. Leaves not drying dullochreadaxially, 1.7-18x as long as wide
21.P.sanguinea
1. Parsonsiaalboflavescens (Dennst.) Mabb.— Map 1
Periploca alboflavescens Dennst.,Schlussel (1818) 12,23, 35.—Echites laevigataMoon,Cat.
(1824)20,nom.illeg. —Parsonsia laevigata(Moon)Alston,Ann.Roy. Bot.Gard.Peradeniya
11 (1929)203, nom.illeg. —Cudicia gyrandra Buch.-Ham. exDillwyn, Index Hort.Malab.
(1839) 41, nom. illeg. —Parsonsia alboflavescens (Dennst.) Mabb.,Taxon 26 (1977)532;
Williams in P.I.Forst.& J.B.Williams,Fl.Australia 28 (1996) 188. —Type: Illustration in
Rheede,Hort. Mai. 9:t. 9.
Apocynum vincifolium Burm.f.,Fl.Ind.(1768)71. —Type: Garcin in Herb. Burman (G holo),
nom. prop. rej.
HelygiajavanicaBlume,Bijdr. (1826)1043.—HeligmejavanicaMiq.,Fl.Ind.Bat. 2(1857)429,
sphalm. —Parsonsia javanica(Blume)K.Schum. in Engl.& Prantl,Nat. Pflanzenfam. 4, 2
(1895) 184,nom. illeg.—Type:Blume s.n.(Llecto,sh.898.111-191,designatedhere).
Parsonsia acuminata Wall., Num. List (1829)n. 1634,nom. nud.—Type: Wallich 1634 (K-W).
Parsonsiapauciflora Wall.,Num. List 1635 (1829) 1635,nom.nud. —Type: Wallich1635 (K-W).
Parsonsia spiralis Wall, exG.Don,Gen. Syst. 4 (1837)80; S.Vidal,Sin.Gen. PI.Lenos. Filip.
(1883) t.66;Warb., Bot. Jahrb. 13(1890)406; King& Gamble, J. As.Soc. Beng.74 (1907)
456;Ridl.,Fl.MalayPenins. 2 (1923)350. — Heligme spiralis (Wall, exG.Don) Thwaites,
Enum. PI.Zeyl.(1860) 193.—Type: Wallich 1631 (K-Wlecto;K iso).
ParsonsiaoblongaWall, exG.Don,Gen.Syst. 4(1837)80;Bakh.f,Blumea6(1950)392.—Type:
Wallich 1632(K-Wlecto [as 1632.2]).
Parsonsia helicandra Hook.& Am., Bot. Beech. Voy. (1837) 197;Peekel, Fl.Bismarck Archip.
(1984)451;Kaneh. &Hatus.,Bot.Mag.Tokyo55(1941)498; Merr.&Perry, J.Arnold Arbor.
24(1943)216. —Type:nottraced.
Cudicia trichotoma Buch.-Ham exDillwyn, Index Hort. Malab. (1839) 41.—Heligmerheedei
Wight,Ic.4(1848) t. 1303,nom. illeg.; Naves in Blanco,Fl.Filip. ed. 3, 1 (1877) t. 310. —
Parsonsia rheedei Fern.-Vill.,Novis. App. (1880) 130,nom. illeg. —Type: Illustration in
Rheede,Hort.Mai.9: t. 10.
Chaetosus volubilisBenth.,Hook. Lond. J.Bot. 2(1843)226. — Type:Hinds 1841 (Kholo),Pa-
puaNew Guinea.
Parsonsia cumingianaA.DC.,Prodr. 8 (1844)402;Merr.,Fl.Manila(1912)374.— Type:Cuming
1490(G-DC holo;K,P,Wiso).
Echites spiralis Blanco,Fl.Filip. ed. 1 (1837) 110.—Parsonsia confusaMerr.,Philipp. J.Sci. 1,
Suppl.(1906) 118.—Type:Blanco types unknown. Neotype:MerrillSp. Blanc. 1014 (Aneo;
BM,BO, GH,K, L,MO,NY, P,US, Wisoneo).
Aganosmaconcanensis Hook., Ic.PI.5 (1851)t. 841. —Type: Dalzell s.n.(lecto K, designated
here;iso K).
Heligmekorthalsiana Miq.,Fl. Ind. Bat.2(1857)429.—Parsonsiakorthalsiana (Miq.)Boerl.,Handl.
Fl.Ned. Ind. 2,2(1899)397.—Type:Korthals s.n. (Llecto,sh. 898.111-175,designatedhere;
A iso,fragment).
D.J.Middleton: Revision of Parsonsia 197
Mabb.
(Dennst.)
alboflavescens
Parsonsia
1.
Map
198 BLUMEA —Vol. 42, No. 1, 1997
Heligme minahassae Teijsm.& Binn.,Nat. Tijds. Ned.-Ind. 25(1863)404. —Parsonsia minahas-
sae(Teijsm. & Binn.)Koord., Meded. 'sLands Plantent. 19 (1898)531. —Type: Binnendijk
s.n. (BOlecto,designatedhere;K iso).
Heligmerheedei Wightvar.macrocarpa Teijsm.& Binn., Cat. Hort. Bot.Bog.(1866) 127,nom.
nud.
Lyonsia viridifloraF.M.Bailey, Queensland Agric. J. 3 (1898) 156.— Type: F.M. Bailey s.n.
(BRI holo;K iso).
Parsonsia kunstleri King& Gamble,J,As.Soc.Beng.74 (1907)457;Ridl.,Fl.MalayPenins. 2
(1923)350.—Type:King'sColl. 1824(Klecto,designatedhere).
Parsonsia oblancifolia Merr.,Philipp. J.Sci., Bot.7(1912) 335. —Type: Ramos 4723 (Klecto,
designatedhere).
Parsonsia magnifoliaElmer,Leafl. Philipp.Bot. 8(1919)3071. —Type:Elmer 17867 (NY lecto,
designatedhere).
Lyonsia sumatrana Ridl.,Kew Bull. 1925 (1925)84.—Type:Brooks 7100 (Klecto,designated
here).
Parsonsia oblongifolia Merr.,Philipp. J.Sci. 27 (1925)50.—Type:Loher 13477(PNH holo, de-
stroyed; UC lecto,designatedhere;M,UC iso).
Parsonsia longipedunculataMerr.,PI.Elmer. Born. (1929)255. —Type:Elmer 20552 (PNHholo,
destroyed;K lecto,designatedhere;L,M,SINGiso).
Parsonsia aterinervia [ElmerexMerr.,Enum.Philipp. Flow. PI.3 (1923)338, in obs.] Elmerex
Merr.,Leafl. Philipp. Bot. 10(1939) 3695. —Type:Elmer 15707(untraced). This species is
synonymisedbasedonElmer'sdescription.
Parsonsia panniculataPichon, Not. Syst., ed.Humbert 14(1950) 16.—Type:Zollinger537 (P
holo).
Brancheslenticellateor not;branchletsglabrous or sparsely to densely minutely pu-
berulent.Leaves opposite; petioles 0.7-4.7cm long;bladepapery tothickly coriace-
ous whendried, elliptic, ovate or,rarely, obovateor oblong, apexacuminate, rarely
to obtuse, basecuneate to cordate, 3.5-23x0.8-21 cm, 1.2-4.4x as longas wide;
5-10pairsoflateralnerves, ascending; tertiaryvenationlaxly reticulatetoscalariform,
rarely obscure; glabrous, sparsely puberulent onpetiole or sparsely to extensively
puberulent abaxially. Inflorescenceofaxillary and,more rarely, terminalcymes,
3-21 cm long; sparsely to densely shortly pale puberulent; peduncles 1.2-13.5cm
long; pedicels 2.2-8.5mm long. Sepalsovate,sometimessomewhatsaccateatbase
ofeach lobe, apex acute to obtuse, 1.2-2.8x0.9-2.1 mm, 1-2.2x as long as wide,
glabrous topuberulent outside.Corollayellowish to greenish, occasionally withsome
red inside; bud cylindrical or wideraroundthemiddlewitharoundedto acute head,
lobes slightly overlapping; open corolla witherecttoonly slightly spreading lobes;
tube 1.6-4.5mmlong, 1.1-2.7x aslong as sepals; lobes oblong to narrowly trian-
gular, apex rounded to acute, 2.1-5.8 mmlong, 0.7-1.5 mm wide, 0.7-2.2 x as
long as tube; glabrous to shortly puberulentoutside and glabrous, puberulent in
throator sparsely puberulent down tube inside.Stamens inserted at 0.9-2.5 mm
from corolla base, which is0.2-0.7of tubelength; filamentsmost commonly
strongly twisted aroundthestyle, morerarely less strongly twistedto straight, 1.1-
4.3 mm long; anthers 2.6-4.2x0.5-0.8 mm, 4.3-8x as long as wide. Disc of5
separatelobes,ovate totriangular,apex roundedtoacute orirregularly toothed,0.5-
1.2 mmlong. Ovary 0.7-1.5 mm long; style 1.5-4.6mm long; pistilhead0.7-1.3
mmlong. Fruitlinearto fusiform, apextapered, thin walled, smooth, glabrous to
sparsely puberulent; 5.2-21 cm long, 0.7-1.4cm wide. Seedgrain 9.5-24x 1.2-3
mm;coma 1.8-4.6cm long.
D.J.Middleton: Revision of Parsonsia 199
Distribution—FromsouthernChinaandTaiwantoIndiaandSriLankaand east-
wardsto Indochinaandsouthwardsthrough IndonesiatoPapua NewGuinea,north-
ern AustraliaandtheSolomonIslands.
Habitat—Thisspecies growsinawidevarietyofhabitatsfrombeachestoswampy
ground ordriedupmangrovesto secondary orprimary forest. Itoccurs upto 1500m
buthas mostfrequently beencollectedincoastalvegetation.
Notes— Thisis amostperplexing species withthewidestvariationofany species
in thegenus. On theface ofit theglabrous formswith filaments wrapped strongly
aroundthe style seemtobe very distinctfromthepubescent formswithstraight fila-
ments.Thereis, however,no point atwhicha satisfactory divisionbetweenrecog-
nisabletaxacouldbedrawnatthisstage.Thereare indistinctgroupssuch asthe "P.
longipedunculata" groupwith straight filaments andpubescent stems and flowers.
Thisgroupis mostcommoninBorneobutplantswith thesecharacteristicsarealso
known fromNewGuinea. The"P. korthalsiana"grouphasmore scalariform vena-
tion ontheleavesbutotherwiseresemblescontinentalAsianformswithlaxly reticu-
latevenationoftheleaves.Thefilamentscanbestrongly wrapped aroundthestyle to
straight but intermediatesdo occur withlong twisted filamentsnot woundround the
style found particularly in JavaandNew Guinea. There are very fewspecimens of
the"P. minahassae"group,foundmainly in Sulawesibut alsoinSumatra, whichare
characterisedsolely by thethicknessoftheleaves andtheindistinctnessofany terti-
ary venation.Whilstallthesevariationsarerecognisable they mergeintoeachother
andhavelittlegeographical distinction.
Apocynum vincifolium Burm.f. is theoldestnameforthisspecies butanapplica-
tion forconservationofthenameParsonsia alboflavescens has been madeforthe
sakeofnomenclaturalstability.
Hooker& Arnott(Bot. Beechey Voy. 1837, 197) suggested thatApocynum retic-
ulatumLour.(Fl. Cochinch. 1, 1790,208) mightalsobe asynonymofthis species,
anothername whichwould displace Parsonsia alboflavescens. Loureiro's name,
however,is amerere-use ofApocynum reticulatumL.(Sp. PI. 1753,214).Follow-
ing this, Woodson(Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 17, 1930, 147) madethecombination
P. reticulata(L.) Woodson which, irrespective of its(doubtful) identity, is alaterho-
monymofParsonsiareticulata(F.Muell.)F. Muell.andhenceillegitimate.
Almeida& Almeida(1993) suggested thatthecorrectnameofthisspecies should
be Parsonsia inodora(Lour.) Almeida& Almeida.Thisseems to havebeen based
ona greatconfusioncausedbyDecaisne's citationofCynanchum inodoraLour, and
GanosmainodoraLour,(a name notactually usedby Loureiro) underBidariaino-
dora(Lour.) Decne. (in A.DC., Prodr. 8, 1844,624). It is true thatthe description
ofBidaria inodoragiven couldbeofParsonsiaalboflavescens asAlmeida& Almeida
suggested butin thedescription ofCynanchum inodorumLour.,thebasionym ofthis
species, the fruitis clearly describedas being of2follicleswhichrules out P. albo-
flavescens withits syncarpous fruit.
Selection ofthe 370collectionsstudied. — INDONESIA.Sumatera Utara: Asahan,nearLumban
Ria,Rahmat Si Boeea 7899 (A). - Sumatera Lampung:TarabangieAgong,Teijsmann HB 4512
(BO).- SumateraRiau: Kep. Riau,PulauToedjoeh,Sg. Oeloe,Bunnemeijer6040 (BO).- Suma-
tera Aceh: Trumon,Asdat 131 (A, BO, K,L, NY).- Sumatera Barat: Lembah Anai,Rahayu &
Maskuri483 (BO,L).- Sumatera Bengkulu:LubokTandai,Brooks 7100 (K).- Kalimantan Barat:
200 BLUMEA Vol. 42, No. 1, 1997
BukitRaya,Nooteboom4677 (A, BO, BRI, L).- Kalimantan Tengah:Kab. KotawaringinTimur,
km 92 fromSangai,Djuda94233(E). - Kalimantan Timur:Berow,footofMtHasBungan,Koster-
mans13748 (K).- AnambasIslands:Pulau Jemaja,Henderson 20479(BO,K, SING). - JavaBarat:
PeutjangIsland,UjungKulon Reserve, Wirawan 358(A, BISH,BO,K,L,P,SING).- JavaTimur:
Kediri,Prigi,Backer 11778 (BO);KangeanIslands: Pulau Sepanjang,Backer 28935 (BO).- Bali:
Jembrana,vanSteenis 1938(L).- NusaTengarraBarat:Lombok: SepiBerg,Elbert2462 (BO, L,
SING).- Nusa TengarraTimur: Suraba: Labundungforest,Waidingir,Maumaru,Darnaedi D 719
(BO,K). - Flores: Mbengan,Kostermans 21133(BO, K,L). - Maluku: Sula Islands: Pulao Man-
gole,Lampaoe,Bloembergen4710 (BO). Kai Islands: Pulau Kai,BandaElat,Jensen 149 (BO, C,
L). Seram: Hatiling,Wahai,Kornassi 439 (BO,K,L,U). Ambon: Kotta,Kornassi 1136 (BO, U).
Aru Islands:Pulau Trangan,Meme, vanBalgooy& Mamesah 6289(L). Buru:Leksoela,Toxopeus
42 (BO,L,U). Halmahera: Galela,Beguin1771 (BO).- IrianJaya: Mamberamo,Janowsky 446(A,
BO, L). — MALAYSIA. Johor: TanjongPenawa, Kota Tinggi Dist., Maxwell 78-345 (AAU, L,
SINU).- Kedah: Pulau Langkawi,Curtis2107(SING). - Kelantan: Gua Panjong atGua Nimik,
Henderson 19551 (SING).- Malacca: Between Rellau & Chaban,Ridley s.n. (SING). - Pahang:
RompinRiver mouth, Evans s.n. (K);Pulau Tioman,Air Surin,Henderson 21723 (SING). - Pe-
nang: Panaru Bukit,Curtis s.n.(SING). - Perak: Larut,King's Coll. 5650 (K, SING).- Sabah:
MtKinabalu,BembanganCamp,Chew &Corner 4572 (K);Sandakan District, KampongWonod,
Telupid, Aban & Saikeh SAN 79308 (K); Beluran District, Sungei Sasau,Labuk Sugut, Amin &
Martin SAN67090 (K); Ranau District, Mesilau Trail, Meijer 42843 (K). - Sarawak: Kuching,
Haviland 1666 (K);7th Division,SungeiSepaku,Belaga,Othman etal. S43837 (K,L); 1stDivi-
sion, Kuching, Bako National Park,Telok Kruim, Yii Puan Ching S 42294 (K, L). —PHILIP-
PINES. Babuyanes:DalupiriIsland,Bartlett15073(A).- BatanIsland: Mahataw,Ramos 80398(A).
- DinagatIsland: Ramos &Pascasio 35236(BM,BO,L).-Luzon: Albay:Matnog,Vidal3310(K);
Apayao: MtDuraragan,Edaho 19858(K, L); Bataan: Lamao River,MtMariveles, Williams 243
(A, K, US); Batangas:Sulit 29040(A, US);Cagayan: BagioCove,Allen 34-81 (BISH); Illocos
Norte: Bangui,McGregor 43601 (A);Laguna:MtMakiling, Sulit8446 (A,BRI);NuevaEcije:Mt
Umingan,Ramos & Edaho 26358(K,NY);Quezon:Baler,Quisumbing2462 (A);Rizal: MtLumu-
tan, Ramos & Edaho 29673 (A,K, US);Sorsogon: Ramos23517 (A);Tayabas: MtTulaog,Ramos
& Edaho29135 (BO); Zambales: Candelaria,Ramos 4723 (K).- Mindanao: Davao: Mati,Ramos
<6 Edaho 49603(BM,BO, NY,SING, W); Lanao: PatpangkatMt,Ebalo1157(A).- Mindoro Oc-
cidental: Abrade Ilog,Sulit 13790(A,BO,L,US); Mindoro Oriental: PuertoGalera,Alegaenetal.
220 (L).- Palawan: Talimbobog,Edaho 77866 (A).- Panay: Capiz,Ramos & Edaho31482 (BRI,
NY, SING).- SuluArchipelago: Sibutu Islands,Sitankai-Tumindao,Herre 1225(NY). —PAPUA
NEWGUINEA. Admiralty Islands: Moseleys.n. (K).-East New Britain: Pomio,Schirlitz Peninsu-
la, Fulleborn Harbour,Croft& Katik NGF 15535 (A, BRI,CANB, E, K,L).- EastSepik: near
Wewak,Gilli610 (W).- Eastern:WaikaiunaBay, NormanbyIsland,WomersleyNGF8620 (A,BRI,
K,L).- Madang:Hansa Bay,nearBogia,LaingIsland,Goetghebeur3280 (L).- Milne Bay:Menapi,
Cape Vogel Peninsula,Brass 21759 (A); NormanbyIsland, Miadeka, Streimann & Lelean LAE
52600 (A,BRI, CANB, K,L); Kiriwina Island, Kaibola,Frodin UPNG 2031 (K, L); Woodlark
Island,Kairo 165(L).- Morobe: Lae,LasangaIsland,Streimann NGF 44268 (A,BRI,CANB, K,
L);Finschhafen, NW ofSialum,Paijmans 1627(CANB). - New Ireland: Namirna, Coode NGF
40498 (L). - WestNew Britain: between Wogonokai village & Mt Wangore,Barker & Vinas
LAE 66753 (A, BRI,E,K,L,M).- Western: Tarara,WassiKussa River,Brass8723 (A,BM,BO,
BRI,L).
2. Parsonsia apiculata (Bakh. f.)D.J. Middleton, comb. nov. — Map2
GrisseeaapiculataBakh. f.,[inBacker,BeknopteFl. Java,Afl.7,Fam.172(1948)49,nom. inval.
(noLatin description)] Blumea6 (1950)392. —Type: Dorgelo2022 (BO holo,notfound;L
lecto,designatedhere;L iso). Bakhuizen van den Brinkdesignatedthe Bogorspecimen asthe
holotype.However,I did notfind thisspecimenin Herbarium Bogorienseand,therefore,desig-
nateoneofthe two isotypes inLeiden asalectotype.
