Mitrephora williamsii explained

Mitrephora williamsii is a species of plant in the family Annonaceae. It is native to The Philippines.[1] Charles Budd Robinson, the Canadian botanist who first formally described the species, named it after Robert Statham Williams who collected the specimen that Robinson examined.[2]

Description

It is a tree reaching 12 meters in height. Its oval leaves are 20-32 by 7–11.5 centimeters and come to a point at their tips. The leaves are smooth and shiny green on their upper surfaces while their undersides are brown-green and slightly hairy. The leaves have 20-25 pairs of secondary veins emanating from their midribs. Its petioles are 12-18 by 2.5-4 millimeters. Its fragrant flowers are red and yellow and are arranged in cymes opposite the leaves. Each flower is on a hairy pedicel 5-8 millimeters long. Its flowers have 3, oval-shaped sepals, 5-6 millimeters long, that come to a point at their tip. Its 6 petals are arranged in two rows of 3. The outer petals are 13-15 by 9-10 millimeters, hairy on their outer surface and smooth inside. The inner petals have a 10 by 2 millimeter claw below a 6-7 by 7.5 millimeter hood-shaped blade which is hairy on its inner surface. It has approximately 200-250 stamens that are 0.8-1 millimeter long.[3]

Reproductive biology

The pollen of M. williamsii is shed as permanent tetrads.[4]

Habitat and distribution

It has been observed growing in low elevation forests.[5]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Mitrephora williamsii C.B.Rob.. . n.d. . Plants of the World Online . The Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . April 3, 2019.
  2. Williams, Robert Statham (1859-1945) . . n.d. . Global Plants . ITHAKA . April 3, 2019.
  3. Robinson . Charles Budd . 1908 . Alabastra Philippinensia - I . Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club . 35 . 2 . 63–75. 10.2307/2479141 . 2479141 .
  4. Walker . James W. . 1971 . Pollen Morphology, Phytogeography, and Phylogeny of the Annonaceae . Contributions from the Gray Herbarium of Harvard University . 202 . 202 . 1–130. 41764703 .
  5. Book: Merrill, Elmer D . 1923 . An Enumeration of Philippine Flowering Plants . Manila . Bureau of Printing . 169.