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A new Stoloniferous Species of Catopsis (Bromeliaceae)
from Chiapas, Mexico
Article · March 2023
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A new Stoloniferous Species of Catopsis (Bromeliaceae)
from Chiapas, Mexico
Roberto García-Martínez1,2
Carlos R. Beutelspacher1
Unless listed all figures by Roberto García-Martínez
Abstract
A new bromeliad species of the genus Catopsis Mez is described in this work.
This species is recognized as endemic from Cañon del Sumidero National Park,
Chiapas, Mexico. The main character of the new species is its stoloniferous/
rupicolous habit, being similar in size and rosette shape to Catopsis morreniana;
it differs from the latter species by its monoecious plants, with slender, simple
or once-branched inflorescences.
Key Words: Bromeliaceae, Chiapas, endemism, stoloniferous, karstic.
Introduction
The current geography of Cañón del Sumidero National Park is the result of
a complex telluric process originating approximately 15 million years ago, when
the tectonic activity allowed the origin of a continuous fault in the emerging
continental mass (Mullerried, 1957). The heterogeneity of the resulting cliffs,
bluffs and other geographic features, in combination with the moisture currents
of the Gulf of México, provides conditions for the establishment of unique,
endemic flora within a matrix of tropical deciduous and sub-deciduous forests
(Miranda, 2015).
Since before being decreed as a National Park on December 8th, 1980,
studies conducted by national and international researchers resulted in the de-
scription of new species of highly specialized plants that occupy the niches in the
rock shelves, especially of the Bromeliaceae family (Tillandsia juerg-rutschmannii
Rauh, Tillandsia ionantha var. vanhyningii M. B. Foster, Tillandsia beutelspacheri
Matuda, Tillandsia socialis L.B. Sm).
Catopsis Mez (Bromeliaceae: Tillandsioideae) is a genus of rosette herbs,
formerly considered strictly epiphytic (Palací et al, 2004a), but currently consid-
ered to be occasionally rupicolous, such as with the following species: Catopsis
floribunda L.B. Sm., Catopsis morreniana Mez, Catopsis nutans (Sw.) Griseb.
and Catopsis occulta Mart-Correa, Espejo & López-Ferr. (Palací et al, 2004b;
Martínez-Correa et al, 2014).
1. Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad de Ciencias y Artes de Chiapas, Li-
bramiento Norte Poniente 1150, col. Lajas Maciel, Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Chiapas, México.
2. Author for correspondence:
[email protected]J. Bromeliad Soc. 72(3). 2022 119
A new Stoloniferous Species of Catopsis
Within Tillandsioideae, Catopsis is systematically considered unique due
to the combination of the following morphological features: the insertion of a
plumose appendage at the seed apex (vs. insertion at the seed base in the rest of
the allied genera), glaucous green leaves with a hyaline margin (in some species,
e. g. Catopsis morreniana) and the sexual separation of monoecious, dioecious
and hermaphrodite individuals (Smith & Downs, 1977). Based on the apical
insertion of the plumose appendage, some authors have suggested including
Catopsis within its own tribe: Catopsideae (Harms, 1930; Barfuss et al; 2005),
or even within a new subfamily outside of Tillandsioideae (Gross, 1988; Palací
et al, 2004a). The distribution of Catopsis covers much of the continental land-
mass of the Americas, from the southern United States (Florida) to northern
South America (Colombia), including the Antilles (Espejo-Serna et al, 2004;
Martínez-Correa et al, 2014). There are 16 Catopsis species in Mexico (three
of them endemic to the country) and 13 species are recorded in Chiapas (Vil-
laseñor, 2016).
Recent field trips in the Cañón del Sumidero to photograph native bro-
meliads have resulted in the discovery of a small Catopsis species that had not
been previously recognized, despite three previous studies on the flora of this
natural reserve (Miceli-Méndez et al, 2009; Espinosa-Jiménez et al, 2011;
Farrera-Sarmiento & Gallegos-Ramos, 2013). The search in national herbaria
confirms the abscence of collections of a Catopsis species with the characteristics
described here; therefore, the main focus of this paper is to propose, describe,
and illustrate these plants as a new species to science, and finally compare them
with the closest related species.
Materials and methods
From January to December 2021 and with the support of the Comisión
Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas (CONANP), many field trips were
conducted on the banks of the Grijalva River within the Cañón del Sumidero
National Park; 31.43 km were traveled along the river taking as a starting point
the pier "Cahuaré," municipality of Chiapa de Corzo, and ending at the reservoir
of the hydroelectric dam "Manuel Moreno Torres", municipality of Osumacinta.
During the excursions, fertile specimens of different species of the riparian flora
of the national park were collected and deposited in the CHIP herbarium of
the Secretaria de Medio Ambiente e Historia Natural (SEMAHN), and HEM
herbarium of the Universidad de Ciencias y Artes de Chiapas (UNICACH).
In the identification of the collected flora, plants of a rupicolous Catopsis with
evident stolons were examined.
120 J. Bromeliad Soc. 72(3). 2022
A new Stoloniferous Species of Catopsis
At first, these were identified as Catopsis morreniana Mez; however, after
collecting and analyzing living plants of this species, as well as a thorough ex-
amination for collections in national herbaria, it was concluded that these plants
do not correspond to any known species, so they are described in this work as
a new species to science. To describe this new bromeliad, specialized literature
was consulted (Smith & Downs, 1977; Palací et al., 2004a, 2004b; Scharf &
Gouda, 2008).
Figure 1. Catopsis sumiderensis sp. nov. a) plant habit, b) simple inflorescence, c) seed,
d) peduncle bract, e) pistil, f ) petal with stamen, g) sepal, h) flower, i) dehiscent fruit.
J. Bromeliad Soc. 72(3). 2022 121
A new Stoloniferous Species of Catopsis
Figure 2. Cliffs of the Cañón del Sumidero National Park, where Catopsis sumiderensis
grows. Photo by Carlos R. Beutelspacher.
Taxonomic treatment
Catopsis sumiderensis García-Martínez & Beutelspacher, sp. nov. (Figuras
1, 3 & 4).
Diagnose: Perennial herb, lithophytic or ocasionally epiphytic, up to 22.4 cm
long, with distinct stolons. Flowers bisexuals, sessile, with grenish sepals, ovate,
3 x 2 mm; petals white, hyaline, 4-5 x 3 mm, ovate; stamens unequal in length,
2-3 x 1 mm; anthers yellow, 1 mm long; style short, white, 1 mm long, terete;
stigma simple, erect; capsule 7-9 mm long, seeds fusiform, 2-4 mm long. Catopsis
sumiderensis is morphologically close to C. morreniana Mez but mainly differs in
being monoecious, with a simple or once-branched inflorescence, see Table 1.
Perennial herb, stoloniferous, rupicolous or ocasionally epiphytic, 6.5-11.2
cm long (without inflorescence), 4.6-11.3 (-14) cm in diameter, including the
inflorescence 16.4-22.4 cm long. Stolones lignified, with many brown roots.
Leaves arranged in a tubular- rosette, with hyaline margin, pale green, densely
pruinose; sheath ovate, 2.4- 5.8 x 2-4.2 cm, glabrous; blade narrowly triangular,
the apex acuminate, 1.9-8.1 x 1.3-2.3 cm, glabrous.
122 J. Bromeliad Soc. 72(3). 2022
A new Stoloniferous Species of Catopsis
Inflorescence terminal, erect, simple or once-branched, monoecious ho-
moclinus (sensu Martínez-Correa el tal, 2014); peduncle pale green, terete,
slender, glabrous, 6.5-8.7 cm long, 0.2-0.3 cm in diameter; peduncle bracts
amplexicaules, lanceolate, apiculate, exceeding the internodes, pale green; the
lower ones 1.9-4.2 x 0.4-0.7 cm; the upper ones 0.9-2.3 x 0.1-0.2 cm, with
divergent apex; spikes 1-5 in number, spirally arranged, 3.2-8.6 cm long, 1-2 cm
in diameter, floral bracts lanceolate; the lower ones apiculate, green, 3-8 mm
x 2-3 mm; the upper ones triangular-ovate, pale green, 3 x 2 mm; Flowers bi-
sexual, actinomorphic, sessile; sepals greenish, with white margin, ornamented
with green dots near the apex, 3 x 2 mm, ovate, asymmetrical, carinate, the
apex rounded or shortly acuminate; petals white, hyaline, with transversal lines,
4-5 x 3 mm, ovate, with rounded or truncated apex. Stamens white, unequal
in length, 2-3 x 1 mm; anthers yellow, basifixed, 1 mm long. Pistil exceeding
the stamens; style terete, short, white, 1 mm long ovary 2 mm long, ellipsoid,,
yellowish; stigma simple-erect (sensu Brown & Gilmartin, 1989). Capsule
ovoid, 7-8 mm long, 3-4 mm in diameter, with acute apex. Seeds fusiform,
2-4 mm long, with an apical plumose appendage, 0.5-2 cm long.
Type: MÉXICO. CHIAPAS: Municipio de Osumacinta, en los acantilados
del Parque Nacional Cañón del Sumidero, bosque tropical caducifolio, 29 June
2021, 93° 06’ 34.7 O, 16° 50’ 47.2” N, 952 m snm. C. R. Beutelspacher y R.
García-Martínez 5158 (fl) (Holotype: CHIP!) (Isotype: HEM!).
Paratypes: MÉXICO. CHIAPAS: Municipio de Osumacinta, en los acantila-
dos cerca del “árbol de navidad”, parque nacional Cañón del Sumidero, bosque
tropical caducifolio, 30 July 2021, 93° 06’ 37.6” O, 16° 51’14.9’’ N, 977 m
snm. R. García-Martínez 154 (fl); 24 September de 2021, R. García-Martínez
156 (fr) (CHIP!); paredes del Cañon del Sumidero, 15 de Noviembre de 2021,
R. García-Martínez 166 (HEM!).
Etymology: The specific epithet sumiderensis refers to the place where this species
was discovered, the Cañón del Sumidero national park, Chiapas, México.
Phenology: According to in situ observations and cultivated plants, Catopsis
sumiderensis blooms from in mid-May to late September, with some plants
still blooming in October, when the rainy season ends. It is possible to find
specimens with capsules in November.
J. Bromeliad Soc. 72(3). 2022 123
A new Stoloniferous Species of Catopsis.
Figure 3. Catopsis sumiderensis habit a) rupicolous, growing with another bromeliad
species: Tillandsia ionantha var. vanhyningii, b) both species also growing epiphytical.
Discussion
Catopsis is a genus with mainly epiphytic species, but they can occasionally be
rupicolous, the presence of stolons is rare and reported in some cases of C. flori-
bunda, C. morreniana and C. nutans (Espejo-Serna, personal communication).
Most of the species reported to México have unisexual flowers in the inflores-
cences, branched 1or 2 times, with clearly sexually dimorphic in the flowers,
with the female inflorescence often markedly more colorful and having a more
robust peduncle (e.g. Catopsis occulta Mart.-Correa, Espejo & López-Ferr.).
Ecology and distribution
The geographic distribution of Catopsis sumiderensis is known only from the
type locality, on cliffs with great exposure to the moisture of the Gulf currents,
northeast of the Sumidero Canyon, municipality of Osumacinta (figure 2); how-
124 J. Bromeliad Soc. 72(3). 2022
A new Stoloniferous Species of Catopsis
Table 1. Differences between Catopsis sumiderensis García-Martínez & Beutelspacher
and C. morreniana Mez.
Catopsis sumiderensis Catopsis morreniana
Plant 16.4-22.4 cm long 30 (-40) cm tall incl. Inflores-
incl. inflorescence, stol- cence, rarely stoloniferous
onniferous.
Inflorescence Lax, simple or once- Dense, always once-branched
branche
Flowers Bisexual Unisexual
Sepals Greenish, with white Yellowish in male flowers, 3-3.5
margin, 3 x 2 mm, x 3 mm, ovate; greenish in
ovate, asymmetrical. female flowers, x 4 mm, [sym-
metrical???]
Petals with transversal lines, not with transversal lines, orbicu-
4-5 x 3 mm, ovate lar in male flowers, 3-3.5 mm
long; ovate-elliptic in female
flowers, exceeding the sepals.
Habitat Deciduous forest (900- Evergreen forest (0-1300 m asl)
1000 m asl)
Geographic Endemic to México Southern México to South
Distribuion (Chiapas) America
ever, probably can exist populations in other regions on Grijalva River northern
mountains. On the vertical rocky walls where this species occurs, the following
species of deciduous or perennial rupicolous herbs are also found: Achimenes cet-
toana H.E. Moore, Agave garciamartinezii Beutelspacher & Hernández-Najarro,
Agave hiemiflora Gentry, Agave kewensis Jacobi, Alsobia magnifica García-Martínez
& Beutelspacher, Begonia fusca Liebm., Bletia purpurea (Lam.) A. DC., Bouteloua
elata Reeder & C. Reeder, Brassavola cucullata (L.) R. Br., Epidendrum diffusum
Sw., Hechtia glomerata Zucc., Laelia rubescens Lindl, Lopezia sp., Peperomia
asarifolia Schltdl. & Cham, Peperomia heterodoxa Standl. & Steyerm., Peperomia
lanceolatopeltata C. DC., Pinguicula sp., Pitcairnia breedlovei L.B. Sm., Pitcairnia
chiapensis Miranda, Pitcairnia recurvata (Scheidw.) K. Koch, Pterocereus gaumeri
(Britton & Rose) T. MacDoug. & Miranda, Tillandsia ionantha var. vanhyningii
M. B. Foster, Tillandsia juerg-rutschmannii Rauh, and Tillandsia socialis L.B. Sm.
The tree layer is represented by the following deciduous tree species: Bursera
schlechtendalii Engl., Bursera simaruba (L.) Sarg., Cochlospermum vitifolium
(Willd.) Spreng, Gliricidia sepium (Jacq.) Kunth, Handroanthus chrysanthus
(Jacq.) S.O. Grose, Pseudobombax ellipticum (Kunth) Dugand, Pterocarpus rohrii
J. Bromeliad Soc. 72(3). 2022 125
A new Stoloniferous Species of Catopsis
Figure 4. Comparison between Catopsis morreniana Mez (a) female plant, (b) male plant,
and Catopsis sumiderensis (c).
Vahl, Tecoma stans (L.) Juss. ex Kunt; and tree species with persistent foliage:
Beaucarnea goldmanii Rose, Brahea dulcis (Kunth) Mart, Euphorbia pulcherrima
Willd. ex Klotzsch., Ficus maxima Mill., Lonchocarpus martinezii M. Souza,
Morisonia mollicella (Standl.) Christenh & Byng., Mosannona depressa (Baill.)
Chatrou, and Poeppigia procera (Poepp. ex Spreng.) C. Presl.
Acknowledgments
We thank the staff of CONANP for making possible the trips along the
Grijalva River, especially the director Roberto Escalante, as well as Irma Serrano
and Marco Antonio Hernández; to Eugenia Gutiérrez and Óscar Alfaro for their
help during the excursions, and Francisco Najarro-Hernández, for the facilities
to access the CHIP herbarium collections. A special acknowledgment to Victor
Steinmann (INECOL Centro Regional-Bajío) and to the reviewers of the BSI
journal for their comments and suggestions. Finally, thanks to Gerardo Carbot
(SEMAHN) for his comments about the geology of Cañón del Sumidero.
.
126 J. Bromeliad Soc. 72(3). 2022
A new Stoloniferous Species of Catopsis.
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