Columnea flavohirsuta (Gesneriaceae), a New Species from the Chocó Biogeographic Region, and an Update on Some Columnea Circumscriptions

Abstract

Recent field expeditions in the Chocó Biogeographic Region on the western Andean slopes of northwestern South America, as well as ongoing herbarium research, have led to the discovery of a new species of Columnea L. (Gesneriaceae) and prompted circumscriptions to be updated for some Columnea species. A new species, C. flavohirsuta J. L. Clark, is described and differentiated from a complex of morphologically similar species including C. minutiflora L. P. Kvist & L. E. Skog and C. herthae Mansf. The name C. parviflora C. V. Morton is recognized as a heterotypic synonym of C. herthae. The name C. tenensis (Wiehler) B. D. Morley is recognized as a heterotypic synonym of C. illepida H. E. Moore. The name C. reticulata Amaya-Márquez, L. E. Skog & G. E. González is recognized as a heterotypic synonym of C. purpureovittata (Wiehler) B. D. Morley. The taxonomic history of these species is discussed, and field images are provided to serve as aids for identification and a guide for future systematic studies of Columnea.