Published In:
Kew Bulletin 68(4): 566–569, fig. 2A–E. 2013. ( Kew Bull.) 
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(Last Modified On 5/27/2022)
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Acceptance
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Accepted
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(Last Modified On 5/27/2022)
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Description:
Shrub 0.5 – 1.5 m tall at maturity. Flowering branchlets 1.5 – 15 cm long, often with 1 – 2 pairs of leaves clustered in the upper half: primary inflorescence node often joined by a short (5 – 8 mm) internode to a more proximal, leafless or leaf-bearing node (with its sheathing bract or stipule) and that in turn preceded by one or two other, more proximal leaf-bearing nodes all in the upper half of the flowering branchlet. Successive branchlets often branching from terminal vegetative nodes, Terminalia-style (Petit or Fagerlind’s architectural models of Hallé et al. 1978). Branchlet glabrous. Stipule 2 – 6 mm long, including a long acuminate or awned section in the apical bud, awn 2.5 – 3 mm long, but soon becoming encrusted with cork and reduced to a shorter corky collar; margin often corkier than main body of stipule. Leaves elliptic to oblanceolate or obovate, acuminate, base decurrent onto finely winged petiole, 6.5 – 16.5 × 2.5 – 6 cm (including petiole); petiole 4 – 25 mm long, from node to a point where it is 2 mm wide including petiole wing/decurrent leaf base; acuminate section with acute to rounded and minutely mucronate or thickened apex; lamina subglabrous, coriaceous when fresh, shiny on both surfaces and rather thin, papery and olive or grey green to pale brown when dried, with lower surface much paler than the upper, margin slightly thickened or with a fine marginal vein, slightly recurved when dry; midrib prominent on both surfaces, with few minute, very inconspicuous hairs below, sometimes pustulate with dots or very short hairs above; lateral nerves 6 – 9 pairs; tertiary venation ± obscure on both surfaces, viewed at arm’s length, or a few veins conspicuous; but with × 10 lens, tertiary to fourth order venation visible at least on dried specimens, reticulate, slightly prominent below, more or less isotropic (VDA <1.5), 12 – 26 veins/cm; crypt domatia well-defined in axils between the lateral nerves and midrib and elsewhere alongside the midrib, with a ciliate rim; bacterial nodules dispersed across the lamina, black, mostly elliptical, c. 0.3 mm long, associated with knots of tertiary veins on upper surface. Inflorescence flattopped to hemispherical, 1.5 – 2.5 cm radius; internodes minutely puberulous; sheathing bracts glabrous on both surfaces at the primary and a few lesser inflorescence nodes like c. 3 mm long stipules, rather loose, the 1.5 mm long rounded collars usually with a paler corky margin and an acute, prominent 1.5 mm long awn; sometimes with linear c. 1 cm foliar appendages. Other bracts at higher inflorescence nodes are up to 1 mm long or absent. Flower pedicel 0 – 4 mm long. Calyx tube c. 2 mm wide, about twice the width of the base of the corolla tube hence appearing loose-fitting, glabrous inside and out; lobes triangular, c. 0.2 – 0.3 mm long × 1 mm wide, ciliate with longer hairs on margin than elsewhere. Corolla tube of fully open flowers 3 – 3.5 mm long, throat 3 – 4 mm wide; lobes oblong to obovate with rounded apex, 2.5 – 4 mm long × 1 – 2 mm wide; white inside, white or greenish outside. Style and pollen-presenter pubescent, 8 – 10 mm long, exserted by 2 – 3 mm in open flowers. Anthers c. 3 mm long. Fruit 1 cm diam. with pedicels 3 – 4 mm long, in some cases; spherical, drying black and glossy, 2-seeded (see notes). Seed ellipsoid to subhemispherical, deeply grooved on inner face, 5 – 6×4 – 5 × 4 mm.
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Phenology:
Flowers have been observed in March, May, July, and August; Fruits in February, November, and December.
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Habitat:
Terra firme, riverine, and swamp forests, mature or degraded, between 80 and 516.
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Distribution:
Liberia, Côte d'Ivoire
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Distribution Note:
The species is endemic to the western part of Upper Guinea occurring in Liberia and Côte d'Ivoire.
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More literature:
Hawthorne, W.D. 2013. Six new Pavetta (Rubiaceae), including three ‘litter-bin’ species from the evergreen forests of Western Africa. Kew Bulletin 68: 559-577.
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Zones Clés de Biodiversité:
Kpelle Forest (LBR8)
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(Last Modified On 5/27/2022)
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Red List Category:
Near Threatened
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Status of Conservation Assessment:
Preliminary
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Date of assessment:
27 May 2022
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Assessment rationale:
Based on a 2 × 2 km grid cell size, the AOO is estimated at 68 km2, below the upper threshold for the “Endangered” category under subcriterion B2, and its extent of occurrence (EOO) has been calculated as 29,060 km2, exceeding the upper threshold for the “Vulnerable” category under subcriterion B1. Throughout its range, Pavetta bomiensis is threatened primarily from habitat loss through clearance for small-scale agriculture and industrial agriculture (namely oil palm and rubber plantations). According to the FAO State of the World's Forests report (2016), Liberia and Côte d'Ivoire both experienced a net loss in forest area while also seeing net growth in agricultural area. In Liberia, approximately 70% of the population living in rural areas depend on agriculture, forestry, and other extractive industries for their livelihood (Nketia et al. 2016). Clearing land for these concessions has a major impact on forests could lead, in the future, to the loss of other occurrences in Côte d'Ivoire and Liberia. As a consequence, the species is preliminarily assessed as Near Threatened under criterion B since it is probably known from 11-12 locations.
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Disclaimer:
This preliminary assessment was prepared on 27 May 2022. The map proposed below is only based on the specimens available on Tropicos, therefore, may not correspond to the information provided in the assessment rationale.
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