''Eugenia petrikensis'' is a species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

s belonging to the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

Eugenia ''Eugenia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the myrtle family Myrtaceae. It has a worldwide, although highly uneven, distribution in tropical and subtropical regions. The bulk of the approximately 1,100 species occur in the New World tropics, ...

'' and was described in 2012 by Neil Snow and coauthors. It is a large

shrub A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...

with

magenta Magenta () is a color that is variously defined as pinkish- purplish-red, reddish-purplish-pink or mauvish-crimson. On color wheels of the RGB (additive) and CMY (subtractive) color models, it is located exactly midway between red and blue. I ...

-coloured flowers and was discovered from

Toliara Province The Toliara Province (formerly Toliary or Tuléar) is a former provinces of Madagascar, province of Madagascar with an area of . It had a population of 2,229,550 (July, 2001). Its capital was Toliara. Near Toliara was the "Madagascar spiny thickets ...

at the eastern shoreline of

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

. It is one of the seven novel species of ''Eugenia'' described from the region, in addition to ''E. guajavoides'', ''E. manonae'', ''E. stictophylla'', ''E. roseopetiolata'' and ''E. stibephylla''. It is an

endangered species An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inv ...

according to the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...

. The

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

is derived from the name of the area, Petriky, from where it was discovered. The plant was among the ''Top 10 New Species'' discovered in 2012 selected by the

International Institute for Species Exploration The International Institute for Species Exploration (IISE) is a research institute located in Syracuse, New York. Its mission is to improve taxonomical exploration and the cataloging of new species of flora and fauna. Since 2008, IISE has publ ...

Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

out of more than 140 nominated species among more than 18,000 new species. The uniqueness is its rare occurrence, a large shrub with its beautiful bunch of flowers hanging on its branchlets. The selection was publicised on 22 May 2013.

Nomenclature

''Eugenia petrikensis'' is so named as it was found in the Petriky Forest (and also in the adjacent Ambinanibe Forest). The Malagasy name is ''ropasy lahiny''. ''Ropasy'' is a contraction of ''rotra'' (a vernacular name for ''Eugenia'') and ''fasika'', which refers to sand; thus ''ropasy'' means "''Eugenia'' that grows on sand". When more than one species of a genus is found in the region a second name is often added for distinction, such as ''lahiny'' for male or ''vaviny'' for female.

Description

''Eugenia petrikensis'' is a shrub growing up to 3 m with characteristic emerald green, slightly glossy

foliage A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, ste ...

and dense clusters of small magenta flowers. The green leaves are

coriaceous This glossary of botanical terms is a list of definitions of terms and concepts relevant to botany and plants in general. Terms of plant morphology are included here as well as at the more specific Glossary of plant morphology and Glossary o ...

and evenly distributed along branchlets. The

leaf venation A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, ste ...

is brochidodromous. The branchlets are moderately to densely sericeous on emergence but becoming sparsely so to nearly

glabrous Glabrousness (from the Latin ''glaber'' meaning "bald", "hairless", "shaved", "smooth") is the technical term for a lack of hair, down, setae, trichomes or other such covering. A glabrous surface may be a natural characteristic of all or part of ...

Stipule In botany, a stipule is an outgrowth typically borne on both sides (sometimes on just one side) of the base of a leafstalk (the petiole). Stipules are considered part of the anatomy of the leaf of a typical flowering plant, although in many speci ...

s are absent. Petioles are 3.0–4.5 mm, wrinkled, glabrous and yellowish-green. Leaf blades are

elliptical Elliptical may mean: * having the shape of an ellipse, or more broadly, any oval shape ** in botany, having an elliptic leaf shape ** of aircraft wings, having an elliptical planform * characterised by ellipsis (the omission of words), or by conc ...

with the base cuneate to rounded.

Inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed o ...

is axillary or ramiflorous, consisting of monads or 3–flowered cymes, solitary, paired or generally in fascicles. Peduncles are 2–5 mm long, medium green, and glabrous or with a few scattered hairs. Calyx is 4-lobed, rounded to oblong, the apex broadly rounded and glabrous.

Petals Petals are modified leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corolla''. Petals are usually ...

are 4 in number, ovate, magenta but

hyaline A hyaline substance is one with a glassy appearance. The word is derived from el, ὑάλινος, translit=hyálinos, lit=transparent, and el, ὕαλος, translit=hýalos, lit=crystal, glass, label=none. Histopathology Hyaline cartilage is ...

on margins.

Stamens The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

are 20–30 in number arranged in 1 or 2 series. Fruits are

globose A sphere () is a geometrical object that is a three-dimensional analogue to a two-dimensional circle. A sphere is the set of points that are all at the same distance from a given point in three-dimensional space.. That given point is the ce ...

, glabrous, and yellow in colour when ripe.

Flowering A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism ...

time is from late October to February, and

fruiting In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particula ...

from December to March.

Significance

''Eugenia petrikensis'' is an unusual shrub found in the humid forest on sandy substrate of Madagascar. It occurs only in the littoral forest on the shoreline of the eastern region, which has had its span reduced from about to isolated portions due to human development. This big shrub with its colourful flowers, a cluster of magenta, is already quite notable. In addition it is a rare endangered species found nowhere else on earth.

References

External links

Profile at TropicosClassification at Encyclopedia of LifeNational Geographic: Pictures: Top 10 Newly Discovered Species of 2012
{{Taxonbar, from=Q16752828 petrikensis Flora of Madagascar Plants described in 2012