Bot. Bull. Acad. Sin. (1996) 37: 159-163

Wang and Yang — Typhonium (Araceae) in Taiwan

The genus Typhonium (Araceae) in Taiwan

Jenn-Che Wang1,3 and Kuoh-Cheng Yang2

1Department of Biology, National Taiwan Normal University, Wenshan, Taipei, Taiwan 117, Republic of China

2Department of Biology, Taiwan Forestry Research Institute, Chungcheng, Taipei, Taiwan 106, Republic of China

(Received January 6, 1996; Accepted March 12, 1996)

Abstract. A taxonomic revision of the genus Typhonium (Araceae) in Taiwan is provided in this paper. In addition to Typhonium blumei Nicolson & Sivadasan (as T. divaricatum), the only species previously reported from Taiwan, we report our discovery of a second species, T. roxburghii Schott, from southern Taiwan. The latter is easily distinguished from the former in having broader leaves and slightly decurved sterile flowers. It was possibly unintentionally introduced and naturalized recently. A key to the species along with a description, taxonomic notes, a line drawing, and a photograph is provided.

Keywords: Araceae; Taxonomy; Typhonium; Typhonium blumei; Typhonium divaricatum; Typhonium roxburghii; Taiwan.

Introduction

In recent years members of Taiwanese Araceae have been studied by Wang (1992; Arisaema), Hetterscheid and Peng (1995; Amorphophallus), and Wang (1996; Arisaema). In this study, a taxonomic account of the genus Typhonium of Taiwan in given.

Typhonium comprises about 40 species distributed widely in tropical and subtropical Asia and extends southward to Australia. An early monograph was presented by Engler (1920) who recognized 23 species. However, many species were added by later authors. Four common but confused species, namely T. blumei, T. flagelliforme, T. roxburghii, and T. trilobatum, were critically revised by Nicolson and Sivadasan (1981). Hay (1993) revised the Australasian species and added six new species. Sriboonma et al. (1994) revised the genus and proposed a new infrageneric classification based on a phylogenetic analysis of morphological and palynological data, together with data from restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLP) of chloroplast DNA from their previous study (Sriboonma et al., 1993).

Hitherto, only one species, T. blumei Nicolson & Sivadasan (as "T. divaricatum"), a weedy species widely distributed in the lowlands throughout the island, was reported from Taiwan (Matsumura and Hayata, 1906; Huang, 1960; Liu and Huang, 1963, 1978; Hotta, 1970). Recently, a second species, T. roxburghii Schott, was collected from Hengchun, southern Taiwan by the second author. A taxonomic treatment of the genus Typhonium in Taiwan follows.

Materials and Methods

Materials used in the present studies were collected from the field, pressed and dried for voucher specimens, and deposited in the Herbarium of the Department of Biology, National Taiwan Normal University (TNU) and the Herbarium of the Taiwan Forestry Research Institute (TAIF). Living material for the study was cultivated in the shade house of the Department of Biology, National Taiwan Normal University. In addition, specimens preserved in HAST, HCT, TAI, TAIF, TNU were examined.

Taxonomic Treatment

Typhonium Schott

Small perennial herb, often with thickened rhizomatous or tuberous subterranean stems. Leaves few to several, long petiolate; petiole with vaginate sheath at base; blade mostly simple and sagittate, hastate or trilobed. Inflorescence monoecious, solitary; peduncle shorter than petiole, base subtended by leaf sheath; spathe base globose to ovoid, convolute, margins overlap, constricted at apex, mostly greenish on outer surface, accrescent; spathe blade flag-like, widely ovate to lanceolate, often reddish adaxially, deciduous. Spadix sequencing from base with pistillate zone, a sterile flower zone, usually a naked zone, staminate zone, and a terminal appendix; lower spadix (pistillate and sterile flower zones) enclosed by accrescent spathe base; appendix usually elongate, stipitate. Flowers unisexual, without perianth. Male flowers sessile, with 1_3 stamens; anther dehiscent by lateral slits or apical short slits to pores. Female flowers sessile; ovary unilocular, with 1 to few orthotropous ovules at base. Sterile flowers capitate, clavate, subulate, or filiform. Infructescence

3Corresponding author. Fax: (02) 931-2904.


Botanical Bulletin of Academia Sinica, Vol. 37, 1996

housed within accrescent spathe base; fruit a berry, green to whitish. Seeds one or two.

Key to Species of Typhonium of Taiwan

1. Sterile flowers upcurved; leaf blades usually longer than broad 1. T. blumei

1. Sterile flowers spreading and slightly decurved; leaf blades mostly as broad as long 2. T. roxburghii

1. Typhonium blumei Nicolson & Sivadasan, Blumea 27: 494, fig. 4, 1981; A. Hay, Blumea 37: 373, fig. 17, 1993; Sriboonma, Murata & Iwatsuki, J. Fac. Sci. Univ. Tokyo III 15: 305, 1994. Figure 1

Typhonium divaricatum auct. non. Bl., nom. illegit.: Matsumura & Hayata, J. Coll. Sci. Imp. Univ. Tokyo (Enumeratio Plantarum Formosanarum) 22: 461. 1906; Huang, J. Forest. Natl. Taiwan Univ. 27: 12, fig. 19. 1960; Liu & Huang, Quart. J. Taiwan Mus. 16: 141. 1963; Liu & Huang in H. L. Li et al., Fl. Taiwan 5: 815, pl. 1530. 1978; Hotta, Mem. Fac. Sci. Kyoto Univ. B. 4: 95. 1970; Li in Wu & Li, Fl. Reip. Pop. Sin. 13(2): 111. 1979.

Rhizome tuberous, creeping to erect. Leaves long-petiolate, deep green, shining, often lighter along veins in colors; petiole up to 20 cm long, slender; blade

cordate-hastate, ovate in outline, herbaceous, 5_12 cm long, usually longer than broad, apiculate-acuminate at apex. Inflorescence on a short peduncle, solitary or sometimes double or triple. Accrescent spathe base ellipsoid to ovoid; spathe blade spreading, ovate, long-cuspidate at apex. Lower spadix enclosed by accrescent spathe base; appendix slender, as long as spathe blade. Staminate flower zone about 0.7 cm long; anthers dehiscent by slit. Pistillate flower zone 0.2_0.3 cm long, shorter than sterile flower zone. Sterile flowers filiform, upcurved, yellow to orange, finely papillose. Fruits not seen. Chromosome number 2n=52.

Specimens examined. TAIPEI CITY: Campus of National Taiwan Normal Univ., Science College, J .C. Wang 9526 (HAST, TNU); Campus of National Taiwan Univ., C. C. Hsu, 3070 (TAI), 3116 (TAI), C. H. Fan 8 (TAI); Taipei, 30 May 1909, Kawakami & Shimada s. n. TAIPEI HSIEN: Hsichih, Hsiuluanshan, 27 May 1972, H. Y. Yu s. n. (TNU); Neihu, May 1967, Y. T. Lee s. n. (TNU); Tomita-cho, 2 Jul 1934, Odashima s. n. (TAI); Hsintien, 19 May 1940, Ohta s. n. (TAI); Wulai, J. C. Wang 9599 (TNU). MIAOLI HSIEN: Shihtan, C. I Peng 15061 (HAST); Hsienshan to Nanchuang, C.H. Lin 533 (HAST). TAICHUNG HSIEN: Taichung, M. T. Kao 9696 (TAI). NANTOU HSIEN: Shuili, Tai Power Company, C. I Peng 11393 (HAST). PINGTUNG HSIEN: Hengchun Tropical Arboretum (Kenting Park), 17 Jun 1995, K. C. Yang s. n. (HCT, TAIF, TNU).

Distribution. East and southeast Asia. Introduced into Luzon, Guam, Carolines (Karor), Africa (Comero, Madagascar, Mauritius, south Africa, Ghana), Australia (Hay, 1993), and Neotropics (Cuba, Martinique, Surinam) (Nicolson and Sivadasan, 1981). Taiwan, at low altitude throughout the island.

Notes. The species was erroneously called T. divaricatum before, and was critically revised and nomenclaturally changed by Nicolson and Sivadasan (1981). In Taiwan, the species is abundant and widely distributed in the lowlands throughout the island. However, they are often overlooked by collectors and, consequently, few specimens are preserved in the herbaria of Taiwan.

2. Typhonium roxburghii Schott, Aroideae: 2, t. 17. 1855; Nicolson & Sivadasan, Blumea 27: 492, fig. 3. 1981; A. Hay, Blumea 37: 373. 1993; Sriboonma, Murata & Iwatsuki, J. Fac. Sci. Univ. Tokyo III 15: 305. 1994. Figures 1, 2

Subterranean stem subglobose to globose. Leaves long-petiolate, light green, not shining; petioles up to 25 cm long, slender, with basal sheath; blade reniform-hastate, triangular in outline, chartaceous, 7_11 cm long, usually as long as broad, cuspidate-acuminate at apex. Inflorescence on a short peduncle, usually solitary. Accrescent spathe base ellipsoid to ovoid; spathe blade spreading, ovate, long-cuspidate at apex. Lower spadix enclosed by accrescent spathe base; appendix slender, as long as spathe. Staminate flower zone 0.7_0.9 cm long; anthers dehiscent

Figure 1. Inflorescences of Typhonium blumei (right) and T. roxburghii (left).


Wang and Yang — Typhonium (Araceae) in Taiwan

Figure 2. Typhonium roxburghii Schott. 1, Habit; 2, Spadix; 3, Male flowers; 4, Sterile flowers. (Aug. 5, 1994, K. C. Yang s. n.)


Botanical Bulletin of Academia Sinica, Vol. 37, 1996

by slit. Pistillate flower zone ca. 0.4 cm long, as long as sterile flower zone. Sterile flowers filiform, spreading and slightly decurved, yellow, weakly papillose. Fruit not seen.

Specimens examined. TAIPEI CITY: nursery, Taipei Botanical Garden, 2 Jul 1995, K. C. Yang s. n. (TAIF). PINGTUNG HSIEN: Hengchun Town: Kanko Work Post, 15 Jun 1995, K. C. Yang s. n. (HAST, HCT, TAIF, TNU); Hengchun Tropical Arboretum (Kenting Park), 16 Jun 1995, K. C. Yang s. n. (HAST, HCT, TAIF, TNU), 17 Jun 1995, K. C. Yang s. n. (HAST, HCT, TAIF, TNU), 5 Aug 1994, K. C. Yang s. n. (TNU).

Distribution. South and central Malesia but reaching south India and Sri Lanka. Introduced into northeast India, Luzon, east Africa, east Malesia (Hay, 1993), and Neotropics (Brazil) (Nicolson and Sivadasan, 1981). Taiwan, at low altitude of southern part.

Notes. After comparing with descriptions of Nicolson and Sivadasan (1981) and Sriboonma et al. (1994) in detail, the authors find that our specimens collected from the southern tip of Taiwan closely resemble T. roxburghii Schott of southern India and Malay Archipelago, which is previously unrecorded from Taiwan. The sterile flowers of the Taiwanese plants however, are slightly more slender than those of Nicolson & Sivadasan (1981: fig. 3) and Sriboonma et al. (1994: fig. 14A).

The species was recently found to be abundant in the Hengchun Tropical Arboretum and elsewhere in southern Taiwan. Probably, it was incidentally introduced and naturalized in Taiwan. The authors have never seen this species in fruit, although Nicolson & Sivadasan (1981) and Sriboonma et al. (1994) reported that the berry contains one or two seeds. It is possible that the species quickly spreads by its abundant production of cormlets which could be transported by nursery soil.

The species is easily distinguished from T. blumei Nicolson & Sivadasan in having subglobose subterranean stem, broader leaves, and decurved sterile flowers.

Acknowledgments. We wish to express our gratitude to Dr. J. Murata, Tokyo Metropolitan University, for confirming T. roxburghii, sending us useful literature, and for his critical read

ing of the manuscript. We would also like to thank Drs. D. H. Nicolson, Smithsonian Institution, A. Hay, Royal Botanic Gardens, Australia, and Ching-I Peng, Academia Sinica/National Museum of Natural. Science, Taiwan for critical reviews of the manuscript and helpful suggestions for improvement. We are also grateful to Dr. T. C. Huang, Professor of the Department of Botany, National Taiwan University, for his encouragement. Thanks are also due to the directors and curators of the herbaria cited, for allowing us to examine the specimens. This work was supported in part by National Science Council grants NSC79-0211-B003-02 and NSC83-0211-B003-007 to JCW.

Literature Cited

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Hetterscheid, W.L.A. and C.-I Peng. 1995. Notes on the genus Amorphophallus (Araceae) IV. Revision of the species of Taiwan. Bot. Bull. Acad. Sin. 36: 101_112.

Hotta, M. 1971. Study of the family Araceae: general remarks. Jap. J. Bot. 20: 269_310.

Huang, T. C. 1960. The Araceae of Taiwan. J. Forest. Natl. Taiwan Univ. 27: 1_15. (in Chinese)

Liu, T. S. and T. C. Huang. 1963. The Araceae of Taiwan. Quart. J. Taiwan Mus. 16: 125_142.

Liu, T. S. and T. C. Huang. 1978. Typhonium. In H. L. Li, T. S. Liu, T. C. Huang, T. Koyama and C. E. DeVol (eds.), Flora of Taiwan vol. 5, Epoch Pub. Co., Taipei, pp. 814_815.

Matsumura, J. and B. Hayata. 1906. Enumeratio Plantarum in Insula Formosa sponte crescentium hucusque rite cognitarum adjectis descriptionibus et figuris specierum pro regione novarum. J. Coll. Sci. Imp. Univ. Tokyo 22: 461.

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Sriboonma, D., J. Murata, and K. Iwatsuki. 1994. A rivision of Typhonium (Araceae). J. Fac. Sci. Univ. Tokyo III 15: 255_313.

Wang, J.C. 1992. A new record of Arisaema (Araceae) in Taiwan. Taiwania 37: 54_57.

Wang, J.C. 1996. The systematic study of Taiwanese Arisaema (Araceae). Bot. Bull. Acad. Sin. 37: 61_87.


Wang and Yang — Typhonium (Araceae) in Taiwan