Gomphostemma nutans Hook. f.

28. Gomphostemma nutans Hook.f.

(Hooker 1883: 695); Prain (1891: 228); Mukercee (1920: 206). Type: India, Khasia, Oct. 1829, Simons s.n. (K [Herb. Hookerianum, K000826323], lectotype selected here).

Climbing herb. Stems slender, scrambling, obtusely quadrangular with longitudinal grooves, with stellate hairs and sometimes dendroid hairs. Leaoes petiolate or subsessile, chartaceous; blades ovate or elliptic-ovate, 2 – 12 × 2 – 6 cm, apex acute, margin serrate or obtusely serrate, base attenuate, cuneate or obtuse, upper side with stellate hairs and sometimes simple hairs, lower side with dense stellate hairs; petiole 3 – 20 mm long. Inflorescence terminal or terminal and axillary, 20 – 110 mm long, congested; verticils few-flowered; subtending bracts present, spathulate, obovate, lanceolate or ellipticlanceolate, 10 – 20 × 2 – 10 mm, apex acute, margin entire or serrate, base attenuate, with dense stellate hairs on both sides; bracteoles linear, 3 – 10 mm long. Flowering calyx infundibular, 10 – 13 mm long, 10-ridged, outside with dense stellate hairs, inside glabrous below and densely tomentose above; tube 3 – 5 mm long; lobes spreading, lanceolate-ovate, 5 – 8 mm long, apex acute or slightly acuminate. Fruiting calyx infundibular, 11 – 13 mm long; tube 2 – 5 mm long; lobes lanceolate-ovate, 5 – 8 mm long, apex acute, margin sometimes slightly revolute. Corolla yellow, 20 – 33 mm long, throat inflated, abruptly dilated near the throat; tube slender, incurved, 13 – 30 mm long, outside tomentose, inside with an annulus of simple hairs; posterior lip ovate, 3 – 6 mm long; anterior lip 3-lobed, spreading, 8 – 10 mm long, margin undulate. Staminal filaments fleshy, tomentose. Style slightly fleshy, glabrous, shorter than corolla with apex subequally lobed. Nutlets 1 – 2, obovate or ovate, 3 – 2 mm long, wrinkled.

DISTRIBUTION. India (Assam, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Manipur), Burma. Map 5.

SPECIMENS EXAMINED. INDIA. Assam. Bamanigaon [Bamungaon, 26.9165°, 92.1665°], Sal Forest, near sea level, 3?ec. 1929, Koelz 22266 (E); Nagaland. Naga Hills, Narum, 1300 m [3000 ft],?ec. 1905, Meebold 5203 (K); Meghalaya. Khasia, Oct. 1829, Simons s.n. (lectotype K [Herb. Hookerianum)]; ibid., Lobb s.n. (K [Herb. Hookerianum]); Khasia, Nunklow, 1030 m [3300 ft], 2 Nov. 1851, Clarke 16302 (lectoparatype K [Herb. Hookerianum]); Khasia, Nya Bungalhi, 530 m [2300 ft], 3 Oct. 1883, Clarke 20623A (K); Manipur. Mairing [22.53°, 92.3665°], Naga Hills, 1300 m [3000 ft],?ec. 1905, Meebold 5185 (E); Kanglatongbi [Kanglatongi, 22.9833°, 93.9°], 900 m [3000 ft], 3 Oct. 1923, 3ullock 633 (K); On the way to Nungba [22.53°, 93.2333°], 900 m [3000 ft], 2 Jan. 1882, Watt 6662 (K). MYANMAR. Sagaing. Tamu, Upper Chindwin [22.6°, 93.1°],?ec. 1905, Meebold 5398 (E, K); near Kendat [23.5333°, 92.2333°], Sept. 1890, Prazer 352 (K); Suigon, Katha [22.1833°, 96.33°], 20 Nov. 1908, Lace 2211 (E 2 sheets, K).

HABITAT. In hill evergreen forest, 530 – 1300 m.

CONSERVATION STATUS. Gomphostemma nutans has AOO of 20 km 2. Google Earth imagery shows the evidence of habitat loss due to agricultural activity but the habitats in India remains intact. Hence, the Least Concern (LC) category is applied.

PHENOLOGY. Flowering and fruiting September – January.

NOTES. Gomphostemma nutans is easy to recognise by its climbing habit with slender stem. The specific epithet ‘ nutans ’ which means nodding may derive from the specimen mounted in an artificial position, rendering the inflorescence in a nodding state. It is a similar case for the species name of Clinacanthus nutans (Burm.f.) Lindau (Bongcheewin et al. 2019). The inflorescence may be upright in nature.