A TAXONOMIC REVISION OF PROTIUM (BURSERACEAE) IN EASTERN AMAZONIA AND THE GUIANAS. (VOLUMES I AND II).
Item
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Title
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A TAXONOMIC REVISION OF PROTIUM (BURSERACEAE) IN EASTERN AMAZONIA AND THE GUIANAS. (VOLUMES I AND II).
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Identifier
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AAI8713753
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identifier
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8713753
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Creator
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DALY, DOUGLAS CHARLES DE BURGH.
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Contributor
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Ghillean T. Prance
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Date
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1987
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Biology, Botany
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Abstract
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Protium is a genus of over 100 species, all but eight of them Neotropical, and most occur in Amazonia and the Guianas. Because the subgeneric classification of Protium is still unsatisfactory, the present work is a revision of the genus in a discrete geographic region.;The tribe to which Protium belongs needed to be re-circumscribed and that generic limits in the tribe had to be re-defined. Characters which had been used to separate it from other genera were found to occur with some frequency in Protium, therefore the limits of the genus had to be defined by other characters.;Protium is almost exclusively dioecious, and sexual dimorphism in the genus was examined in some detail. There is a three-stage morphological series in the reduction of the non-functional pistil in staminate flowers; related species within Protium always show the same stage in that series.;A number of hitherto unexploited taxonomically useful characters were identified in the fruit of Protium, involving variation in color, texture, mesocarp thickness, distribution of the arillate structure on the pyrene, and shape and folding of the cotyledons. Many of these characters can be studied in the herbarium, but further field observations are needed.;Protium is rather homogeneous ecologically. The great majority of the species are small to medium-sized trees of primary lowland moist forest on terra firme. There are almost no edaphic specialists, and very few species occur in secondary forest. Nonetheless, the Burseraceae (most of them Protium) comprise one of the ecologically most important families in Amazonia. This is primarily due to their high relative density.;Despite this ecological homogeneity, up to 13 species of Protium can occur sympatrically on two hectares of Amazonian forest. Ecological displacement by these taxa can be explained only partially by phenology, strata, and inflorescence types (used as an indication of pollinators). More field work is needed to investigate this phenomenon.;Most species of Protium are widespread in Amazonia, but the patterns of distribution shown by some taxa support the existence of discrete centers of endemism (or Pleistocene refuges) in northern South America.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
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Program
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Biology
