Ficus diamantina A. F. P. Machado & L. P. Queiroz 2017, sp. nov.

Type:— BRAZIL. Bahia: Mucugê, Capão do Correia, estrada vicinal saindo de Caraíba a 7.5 Km da BA –142. Base de campo rupestre com solo pedregoso, antropizado, com Pteridium. Beira de estrada. 13°6’ 36.9”S, 41°22’ 37.9”W, 1218 m, 11 July 2009, M. M. Saavedra et al. 969 (holotype: HUEFS!, isotype: RB!).

Diagnosis:— Ficus diamantina resembles F. bahiensis in the dimension of the leaves and syconia, but differs by the juvenile branches reddish with epidermis flaking off (vs. juvenile branches greyish epidermis not flaking off), the petiole with white elongated trichomes (vs. petiole glabrous), acropetiolar waxy gland not evident in sicco (vs. waxy gland evident in sicco); the basal pair of veins forming an angle 65º–85º and reaching 1/4 of the blade (vs. basal pair of veins forming an angle 95º–120º and reaching 1/8 – 1/10 of the blade); the presence of tector and glandular trichomes at the abaxial side of leaf blade (vs. adaxial surface glabrous) and the elliptic and sessile syconia (vs. rounded and pedicelate syconia).

Trees up to 6 m tall, sympodial; bark fissured, greyish to reddish; branches reddish, slender 5–8 mm diameter, pubescent, juvenile branches with epidermis flaking off. Terminal stipule (1.0–)1.2–1.5(–1.7) cm long, conical, green to red, brown at the maturity, glabrate, deciduous. Internodes (4)12–15(20) mm long. Petiole canaliculate 1.2–2.5 cm long, slender, 3–4 mm diameter, with sparse simple trichomes, epidermis persistent; leaf blade 8–15 × 5–8 cm, usually ovate-deltoid, coriaceous, base cuneate to rounded, margin slightly revolute towards the apex, apex acute, adaxial surface dark green, glabrous, abaxial surface light green, pubescent to glabrous with tector trichomes in the lamina and near the veins and capitate glandular trichomes at the limb; lateral veins 7–9(10) pairs, prominent on abaxial side, the basal pair reaching up to 1/4 the length of the lamina, unbranched, forming a 65°–85° angle, tertiary venation reticulate; acropetiolar waxy gland at the base of the midrib in the abaxial surface, not evident in sicco. Syconia axillary or just below the leaves, solitary or in pairs, green to pale-green, subsessile, 8–13 mm in diameter when dry; peduncle 10 mm long, glabrous or sparsely minutely puberulous; basal bracts 3–5 mm wide, greenish and brownish in herbarium specimens, rounded, persistent, glabrescent to glabrous to pubescent, persistent; receptacle subglobose, 0.6–1(1.2) cm diameter (when dry), smooth or wrinkled (when dry), glabrous or sparsely minutely puberulous, maculate, greenish to yellowish at maturity; ostiole 3–4 mm diameter, slightly prominent, closed by 3 external bracts, puberulous; interfloral bracts 1–2mm long. Staminate flowers: pedicel 0.5–1 mm long; tepals 3, 0.5–1 mm long; stamen 1, anthers ca. 1 mm long, not apiculate. Pistillate flowers: pedicel 1–2 mm long; tepals 2–3; ovary 1–1.5 mm long, asymmetrically reniform, style 1–2 mm long, stigma ca. 0.5 mm long, bifid. Fruit not seen.

Taxonomic notes: Ficus diamantina was assigned to Ficus sect. Americanae which comprises around to 105 species (Berg 2009) occurring in Neotropics and is characterized by the initial hemiepiphytic habit, a single waxy gland in the petiole, the syconia with 2 basal bracts, ostiole enclosed by 2–3 external bracts and staminate flowers with one stamen. Also Ficus diamantina occurs sympatrically with Ficus clusiifolia Schott (1827: 409) and the main differences between the new species, F. bahiensis and F. clusiifolia are listed in Table 1.

Etymology:— The epithet diamantina refers to Chapada Diamantina, a major mountain range in Bahia State, Brazil the locality where the new species was discovered.

Distribution, habitat, and conservation:— Ficus diamantina occurs in Chapada Diamantina, Bahia State, Brazil in fragments of high montane forests and Campos rupestres. These areas are marked by a high rate of endemism (Conceição & Pirani 2005, Nascimento et al. 2010). The montane forests at the south portion of Chapada Diamantina present low floristic similarity with adjacent seasonally dry tropical forests (Nascimento et al. 2010). This fact reinforces the importance of focusing conservation efforts in these forests. The new species is known from two municipalities with an Extent of Occurrence (EOO) of 2.433 Km² (EOO estimated in GeoCat tool; Bachman et al. 2011). That suggests the new species should be included in the Critically Endangered (CR) conservation category (IUCN 2017).

Additional specimen examined (paratypes):— BRAZIL. Bahia: Rio do Pires, Serra Itubira, Mata do Cigano, 13°15’50”S, 41°55’04”W, 1750 m, November 2008, F. H. F. Nascimento 621 (HUEFS!, RB!); BRAZIL. Bahia: Mucugê, Capão do Correia, 13°6’ 41.9”S, 41°22’ 53.1”W, 1225 m, A. F. P.Machado & J. O Cruz. 1431 st. (HVC: Herbário Mongoyós. Brazil, Bahia, Vitória da Conquista. Not indexed); L.c., A. F. P.Machado & J. O.Cruz 1432. st. (HVC: Herbário Mongoyós. Brazil, Bahia, Vitória da Conquista. Not indexed)