Loranthaceae, Loranthus formicarium is now Decaisnina sumbawensis?

[Derrick]

Loranthaceae.

Decaisnina Tiegh. (Philippe Édouard Léon van Tieghem) in Bulletin de la Société botanique de France. P435 (1895) (Bull. Soc. Bot. France).

 

Decaisnina sumbawensis (Tiegh.) Barlow, (Bryan Alwyn Barlow) published in Blumea 38(1), p95, (1993) (Blumea). Basionym Amylotheca sumbawensis Tiegh.

http://www.ipni.org/ipni/idPlantNameSearch.do?id=974204-1

The topical synonym is Loranthus formicarium Elmer (A. D. E. Elmer) in Loranthus from Mt Urdaneta (1913). Elmer reports that its swollen, nodose base was honeycombed after the manner of hydnophytes, yet not as elaborate, but occupied by ants. Philippines, Mindanao Island, Davao District, Todaya, (Mt. Apo).

http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/777803#page/41/mode/1up.

Type description for L. formicarium in English in Leaflets of Philippine Botany, "Loranthus in the vicinity of Mt Apo," Vol 3, p1069, (1911) where Elmer notes bases to 20 cm (8") thick, and that it is not the only species with honeycombed ant inhabited tubers. Habitat on limbs of large forest trees at 914 m. (3,000 ft.) near Mt Apo (Mt Urdaneta?).

http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/6762#page/307/mode/1up.

Type specimen http://www.herbarien.uzh.ch/static/database/details_en.php?&spTypFlg=&spBarCod=Z-000027645&spHer=Z

Here an Isotype of L. formicarum (sic) is now referred to Decaisnina sumbawensis,

http://collections.si.edu/search/record/nmnhbotany_2077271.

Other Synonyms http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl1.1/record/kew-2758594.

And here http://www.philippineplants.org/Families/Loranthaceae.html.

Tropicos lists as L. formicarum, http://www.tropicos.org/Image/39307.

As Amylotheca formicaria with more collection records at altitudes of 12- 1000 m.

http://www.parasiticplants.siu.edu/Loranthaceae/Danser1935PhilLorOCR.pdf

 

 

[Derrick]

http://www.parasiticplants.siu.edu/

http://www.parasiticplants.siu.edu/Loranthaceae/index.html

[Aurélien]

This plant is certainly Decaisnina sumbawensis. Before Derrick's post, I suspect it to be Amyema beccarii.

 

 

 

I've seen it at Sulawesi last autumn, as a parasitic plant just near Hydnophytum, Lecanopteris and Dischidia. Many birds visit their flowers.

[Derrick]

Philpatrick recently provided me with an interesting link to myrmecophytic fig species, one of which is hypothesized to have evolved a way to provide arboreal ants with domatia building materials. A Facebook botanist/explorer friend has been providing photos of Philippine mistletoes with apparent ant relationships. His most recent photos suggest that material for domatias under construction on a Scurrula mistletoe are perhaps purposely provided by the mistletoe.  Which of course suggests co-evolution.  It surely suggests more study is required and one hopes my comments will encourage this. https://www.facebook.com/groups/philippineplants/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/498723016920977/

Leads recently provided by Jay have also provided much new information that will be covered in a 2020 edition of my e/book-database, especially in the "Other Plant Families" section.