A list of land plants of Parque Nacional do Caparaó, Brazil, highlights the presence of sampling gaps within this protected area

Brazilian protected areas are essential for plant conservation in the Atlantic Forest domain, one of the 36 global biodiversity hotspots. A major challenge for improving conservation actions is to know the plant richness, protected by these areas. Online databases offer an accessible way to build plant species lists and to provide relevant information about biodiversity. A list of land plants of “Parque Nacional do Caparaó” (PNC) was previously built using online databases and published on the website "Catálogo de Plantas das Unidades de Conservação do Brasil." Here, we provide and discuss additional information about plant species richness, endemism and conservation in the PNC that could not be included in the List. We documented 1,791 species of land plants as occurring in PNC, of which 63 are cited as threatened (CR, EN or VU) by the Brazilian National Red List, seven as data deficient (DD) and five as priorities for conservation. Fifity-one species were possible new ocurrences for ES and MG states

Systematics of Paepalanthoideae (Eriocaulaceae): Phylogeny, morphology, and taxonomy of Diphyomene (Ruhland) Trovó

Esta tese compreende estudos sobre a filogenia de Paepalanthoideae com ênfase em Paepalanthus, trazendo também estudos morfológicos, nomenclaturais e taxonômicos em Paepalanthus sect. Diphyomene. O capítulo I apresenta a filogenia de Paepalanthoideae com base em dados morfológicos e moleculares (nrITS e trnL-trnF). A monofilia de Rondonanthus, como grupo-irmão das demais Paepalanthoideae é confirmada, assim como a monofilia de Leiothrix e Actinocephalus. Syngonanthus emerge parafilético e Paepalanthus e Blastocaulon, polifiléticos. No entanto, muitas categorias infragenéricas de Paepalanthus emergem monofiléticas. A proposição de alguns novos gêneros, assim como estudos filogenéticos complementares é indispensável para aproximar a classificação de Paepalanthoideae de um sistema natural. O capítulo II descreve as inflorescências e o eixo reprodutivo de Paepalanthus sect. Diphyomene do ponto de vista tipológico e anatômico. Dois padrões são detectados: em P. erectifolius, P. giganteus e P. polycladus a inflorescência é um tribótrio com dibótrio terminal, unidade básica terminal e ferofilos envolvendo os dibótrios; em P. flaccidus a inflorescência é um pleiobótrio com subunidade terminal e ferofilos ausentes. Estes resultados reforçam que o grupo é constituído de duas linhagens independentes, sendo que o padrão referido para as três primeiras espécies é único na família. O capítulo III traz a proposição do status genérico para as espécies de Paepalanthus sect. Diphyomene que emergem monofiléticas no capítulo I e apresentam estrutura da inflorescência única na família no capítulo II. São propostas 10 novas combinações, 18 novos sinônimos, 6 lectotipificações, 2 novos status, 1 neotipificação e 1 epitipificação. No capítulo IV é apresentada a revisão de Diphyomene, gênero que compreende 18 espécies distribuídas na América do Sul, principalmente no bioma Cerrado. A revisão consiste na descrição detalhada da morfologia do gênero e de uma chave de identificação, além de descrição, ilustrações, mapas de distribuição e comentários para cada espécie. Os anexos 1 e 2 trazem a descrição de oito espécies novas de Diphyomene ocorrentes no Brasil.This thesis consists of a phylogenetic study involving Paepalanthoideae, and a morphological, nomenclatural, and taxonomic survey of Paepalanthus sect. Diphyomene. Chapter I is a phylogenetic study of Paepalanthoideae based on morphological and molecular data (nrITS and trnL-trnL). The monophyly of Rondonanthus, as a sister group of the remaining Paepalanthoideae, is confirmed, as is the monophyly of Leiothrix and Actinocephalus. Syngonanthus emerges paraphyletic with the current acceptance of Philodice, whereas Paepalanthus and Blastocaulon emerge polyphyletic. However, many infra-generic categories of Paepalanthus emerge as monophyletic groups. The proposal of new genera, as well as complementary phylogenetic studies, is required to achieve a natural classification of Paepalanthoideae. In chapter II, we describe the inflorescence and reproductive axis of Paepalanthus sect. Diphyomene, when using typology and anatomy. Two patterns were found. In P. erectifolius, P. giganteus and P. polycladus the structure is a tribotryum, with a terminal dibotryum, and pherophylls bearing lateral dibotrya. In P. flaccidus, the inflorescence is a pleiobotryum, with a terminal subunit, and without pherophylls. These results confirm that the group consists of two independent lineages, and that the pattern described for the first three species is unique within the family. Chapter III consists of a proposal of generic status for species of Paepalanthus sect. Diphyomene, which emerge monophyletic in chapter I, and possess a unique inflorescence structure as described in chapter II. We propose 10 new combinations, 18 new synonyms, six lectotypifications, two new stati, one neotypification, and one epitypification. In chapter IV we present the taxonomic revision of Diphyomene, a genus with 18 species distributed throughout South America, mostly in the Brazilian Cerrado. The revision consists of a detailed description and comments on the genus, besides an identification key. Descriptions, illustrations, distribution maps and comments on each species are also given. Eight new Brazilian species of Diphyomene are described in appendix 1 and 2

Taxonomy, palynology, and seed morphology of Paepalanthus decumbens, a new species of Eriocaulaceae from Minas Gerais, Brazil

Background and aims – Paepalanthus is the largest genus of Neotropical Eriocaulaceae and the largest genus of Brazilian monocots. Much of its taxonomic and morphological diversity remains unknown. A new species is described, with details on pollen and seed morphology.Methods – The morphological description of the vegetative and floral characters was made using a stereoscopic microscope with camera. Pollen and seed samples from the new species and from two related taxa were studied under light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy.Key results – Paepalanthus decumbens is described and illustrated, including details of pollen grains and seeds. The species is restricted to a small area in the campos rupestres of Serra de São José (Minas Gerais, Brazil), and therefore should be considered as critically endangered. The decumbent stem, falciform leaves with long trichomes along the margins, the numerous and sericeous scapes of roughly the same size of the leaves, and the dark castaneous involucral bracts are useful features for the recognition of the new species. Paepalanthus decumbens is placed in P. subsect. Polyactis and compared with P. microphyllus and P. stannardii, which have their pollen grains and seeds also herein described for the first time

New records of Passiflora from Itatiaia National Park, Brazil

We present new records of Passifloraceae sensu stricto from Itatiaia National Park, Brazil, contributing new data on the geographic distribution of four Passiflora L. species to the flora of Brazil: P. deidamioides Harms, P. miersii Mast., P. rhamnifolia Mast., and P. setulosa Killip. The last three species are reported from Itatiaia National Park and the last species from the state of Rio de Janeiro for the first time

Using online databases to produce comprehensive accounts of the vascular plants from the Brazilian protected areas: The Parque Nacional do Itatiaia as a case study

Brazil is one of the most biodiverse countries in the world, with about 37,000 species of land plants. Part of this biodiversity is within protected areas. The development of online databases in the last years greatly improved the available biodiversity data. However, the existing databases do not provide information about the protected areas in which individual plant species occur. The lack of such information is a crucial gap for conservation actions. This study aimed to show how the information captured from online databases, cleaned by a protocol and verified by taxonomists allowed us to obtain a comprehensive list of the vascular plant species from the "Parque Nacional do Itatiaia", the first national park founded in Brazil. All existing records in the online database JABOT (15,100 vouchers) were downloaded, resulting in 11,783 vouchers identified at the species level. Overall, we documented 2,316 species belonging to 176 families and 837 genera of vascular plants in the "Parque Nacional do Itatiaia". Considering the whole vascular flora, 2,238 species are native and 78 are non-native.The "Parque Nacional do Itatiaia" houses 13% of the angiosperm and 37% of the fern species known from the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Amongst these species, 82 have been cited as threatened, following IUCN categories (CR, EN or VU), seven are data deficient (DD) and 15 have been classified as a conservation priority, because they are only known from a single specimen collected before 1969

Floristic survey of vascular plants of a poorly known area in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest (Flona do Rio Preto, Espírito Santo)

The Atlantic Forest is one of the most threatened biomes in the world. Despite that, this biome still includes many areas that are poorly known floristically, including several protected areas, such as the "Floresta Nacional do Rio Preto" ("Flona do Rio Preto"), located in the Brazilian State of Espírito Santo. This study used a published vascular plant species list for this protected area from the "Catálogo de Plantas das Unidades de Conservação do Brasil" as the basis to synthesise the species richness, endemism, conservation and new species occurrences found in the "Flona do Rio Preto".The published list of vascular plants was based on field expeditions conducted between 2018 and 2020 and data obtained from herbarium collections available in online databases. Overall, 722 species were documented for the "Flona do Rio Preto", 711 of which are native to Brazil and 349 are endemic to the Atlantic Forest. In addition, 60 species are geographically disjunct between the Atlantic and the Amazon Forests. Most of the documented species are woody and more than 50% of these are trees. Twenty-three species are threatened (CR, EN and VU), while five are Data Deficient (DD). Thirty-two species are new records for the State of Espírito Santo. Our results expand the knowledge of the flora of the Atlantic Forest and provide support for the development of new conservation policies for this protected area

Brazilian Flora 2020: Leveraging the power of a collaborative scientific network

International audienceThe shortage of reliable primary taxonomic data limits the description of biological taxa and the understanding of biodiversity patterns and processes, complicating biogeographical, ecological, and evolutionary studies. This deficit creates a significant taxonomic impediment to biodiversity research and conservation planning. The taxonomic impediment and the biodiversity crisis are widely recognized, highlighting the urgent need for reliable taxonomic data. Over the past decade, numerous countries worldwide have devoted considerable effort to Target 1 of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC), which called for the preparation of a working list of all known plant species by 2010 and an online world Flora by 2020. Brazil is a megadiverse country, home to more of the world's known plant species than any other country. Despite that, Flora Brasiliensis, concluded in 1906, was the last comprehensive treatment of the Brazilian flora. The lack of accurate estimates of the number of species of algae, fungi, and plants occurring in Brazil contributes to the prevailing taxonomic impediment and delays progress towards the GSPC targets. Over the past 12 years, a legion of taxonomists motivated to meet Target 1 of the GSPC, worked together to gather and integrate knowledge on the algal, plant, and fungal diversity of Brazil. Overall, a team of about 980 taxonomists joined efforts in a highly collaborative project that used cybertaxonomy to prepare an updated Flora of Brazil, showing the power of scientific collaboration to reach ambitious goals. This paper presents an overview of the Brazilian Flora 2020 and provides taxonomic and spatial updates on the algae, fungi, and plants found in one of the world's most biodiverse countries. We further identify collection gaps and summarize future goals that extend beyond 2020. Our results show that Brazil is home to 46,975 native species of algae, fungi, and plants, of which 19,669 are endemic to the country. The data compiled to date suggests that the Atlantic Rainforest might be the most diverse Brazilian domain for all plant groups except gymnosperms, which are most diverse in the Amazon. However, scientific knowledge of Brazilian diversity is still unequally distributed, with the Atlantic Rainforest and the Cerrado being the most intensively sampled and studied biomes in the country. In times of “scientific reductionism”, with botanical and mycological sciences suffering pervasive depreciation in recent decades, the first online Flora of Brazil 2020 significantly enhanced the quality and quantity of taxonomic data available for algae, fungi, and plants from Brazil. This project also made all the information freely available online, providing a firm foundation for future research and for the management, conservation, and sustainable use of the Brazilian funga and flora

Growing knowledge: an overview of Seed Plant diversity in Brazil

Abstract An updated inventory of Brazilian seed plants is presented and offers important insights into the country's biodiversity. This work started in 2010, with the publication of the Plants and Fungi Catalogue, and has been updated since by more than 430 specialists working online. Brazil is home to 32,086 native Angiosperms and 23 native Gymnosperms, showing an increase of 3% in its species richness in relation to 2010. The Amazon Rainforest is the richest Brazilian biome for Gymnosperms, while the Atlantic Rainforest is the richest one for Angiosperms. There was a considerable increment in the number of species and endemism rates for biomes, except for the Amazon that showed a decrease of 2.5% of recorded endemics. However, well over half of Brazillian seed plant species (57.4%) is endemic to this territory. The proportion of life-forms varies among different biomes: trees are more expressive in the Amazon and Atlantic Rainforest biomes while herbs predominate in the Pampa, and lianas are more expressive in the Amazon, Atlantic Rainforest, and Pantanal. This compilation serves not only to quantify Brazilian biodiversity, but also to highlight areas where there information is lacking and to provide a framework for the challenge faced in conserving Brazil's unique and diverse flora