Agarista nummularia
Agarista nummularia is a shrub or subshrub native to southeastern and southern Brazil, in the heath family, Ericaceae. It has small, rounded leaves and cream to white flowers. Its name refers to the leaves' coin-like shape.[1]
Appearance
Judd's account describes upright plants up to two metres tall. The leathery leaves are broadly oval or almost circular, on very short stalks. Hairiness varies, and some plants have gland-tipped hairs. The flower clusters arise beside the leaves. Each flower has petals joined into a tube, followed by a small dry capsule.[2]
Dalastra's Rio Grande do Sul study describes crescent-shaped seeds. Seed shape helps distinguish the species from the similar Agarista chlorantha, whose seeds are more sausage-shaped.[1]
Distribution and habitat
The 2020 dissertation reports the species from Minas Gerais, São Paulo, Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul. Within Rio Grande do Sul, it occurs in both upland and lowland grasslands, including rocky ground and peat bogs.[1] Judd also records wet forest and moist thickets, across elevations from about ten to 1,650 metres.[2]
The Rio Grande do Sul study reports flowering throughout the year, most frequently from September to January, and fruiting from September to February. Dry capsules can remain on the plant from the preceding season. These are regional observations, rather than a fixed calendar for every population.[1]
Botanical name
The species was first named Andromeda nummularia in 1826 and placed in Agarista in 1834. It has also been called Leucothoe nummularia.[2]
In 2020, Dalastra and Heiden selected a surviving specimen in Geneva to anchor the name after the original Berlin specimen had been destroyed. Because the surviving material lacked flowers and fruit, they also selected a fertile specimen at the US National Herbarium to clarify how the name should be applied. A. nummularia is the type species of the genus Agarista.[3]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Dalastra, C. H. (2020). Ericaceae: taxonomia e distribuição geográfica no Rio Grande do Sul. MSc dissertation, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, pp.52–56. Accessed 9 October 2026.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Judd, W. S. Agarista nummularia. New York Botanical Garden, electronic treatment based on Flora Neotropica Monograph 66 (1995). Accessed 9 October 2026.
- ↑ Dalastra, C. H. and Heiden, G. (2020). Typifications of five names in Agarista (Ericaceae, Vaccinioideae, Lyonieae). Phytotaxa 474(2), 179–184; p.182; doi:10.11646/phytotaxa.474.2.8. Accessed 9 October 2026.