Revisional study of neotropical Beilschmiedia species (Lauraceae ...

flower pedicels of the lateral divisions ca. 1 tnm long, pedicels of the central flowers up to 3
mm long. Flowers ca. 2.5 mn1long, ca. 2.7 mm in diam.; tepals 6, equal, ovate, 1.3-1.7
mm long, ca. 1.3 mm wide, pubescent with appressed to erect hairs outside, sparsely
pubescent with appressed hairs inside; stamens 9, outer six filaments ca. 0.2 mm long,
innermost three filatnents ca. 0.4 lTiln long, filan1ents pubescent, anthers 0.6-0.8 mm long,
all the anthers 2-celled, apex of the anthers roundish to truncate, apex of the anthers
pubescent, glands on the innermost three stamens globose, ca. 0.4 mm long; staminodia 3,
cordate in outline, ca. 0.5 nm1long; pistil ca. 1.8 mm long, pubescent, ovary as long as the
style, the border between ovary and style more or less clear; receptacle pubescent with
appressed hairs, less densely toward the botton1. Fruits roundish-ellipsoid, ca. 3 x ca. 2. 7
em, the surface sn1ooth; infructescence axis ca. 3 mm in diam., fruit pedicels slightly
thickened to 4-7 mm in diam. below the fruit, fruit pedicels not constricted, concolorous
with the infructescence axis.
Phenology: collected in flower in October and November, in mature fn1it in February.
Distribution: Rio de Janeiro and Guanabara, Brazil (Fig. 7).
Habitat: unknown.
Common name: unknown.
Economic use: unknown.
Additional specimens exan1ined: Brazil. Rio de Janeiro: Vista Chinesa, Oct. 13, 1925 (fl.), Constantino
19914 (RB); Guanabara, forest of Teixeira Borges, Hill Borges, TOTS 36.35 'W, Nov. 29, 1928 (fl.), Pessoal
doH Florestal 87 (F, NY); Municipio Mage, Paraiso, Area of Centro dePrimatologia de Rio de Janeiro, 190m
alt., Oct. 14, 1984 (fr.), deLima 2177 (K, NY, RB (fr. missing)). Locality unkonwn, 1880 (immature fr.), Binot
81 (NY, P).
Beilsch1niedia angustifolia has opposite leaves and coarse ramification, as all the
Brazilian species do. Atnong the Brazilian species, this species is distinguished by its
narrow elliptic leaves. Width of the leaves in B. angustifolia is usually 1/4, at most 1/3 of the
length, while width of the leaves in n1ost of the other species is usually about a half of the
length or more (B. taubertiana also tends to have narrow leaves, but not narrower than 1/3 of
the leaf length, and erect pubescence of the tenninal buds, twigs and the lower leaf surface
distinguish this species from B. angustifolia) . However, leaf shape cannot be the best
character to define species because it is sometimes variable. In addition to this character, B.
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