title: Sirdavidia, an extraordinary new genus of Annonaceae from Gabon.
abstract: A distinctive new monotypic genus from Gabon is described in the tropical plant family Annonaceae: Sirdavidia, in honor to Sir David Attenborough. Molecular phylogenetic analyses confirm that Sirdavidia, which is very distinct from a morphological standpoint, is not nested in any existing genus of Annonaceae and belongs to tribe Piptostigmateae (subfamily Malmeoideae), which now contains a total of six genera. The genus is characterized by long acuminate leaves, fully reflexed red petals, 16-19 bright yellow, loosely arranged stamens forming a cone, and a single carpel topped by a conspicuous stigma. With just three known collections, a preliminary IUCN conservation status assessment is provided as "endangered" as well as a distribution map. The discovery of Sirdavidia is remarkable at several levels. First, it was collected near the road in one of the botanically best-known regions of Gabon: Monts de Cristal National Park. Second, its sister group is the genus Mwasumbia, also monotypic, endemic to a small area in a forest in Tanzania, some 3000 km away. Finally, the floral morphology is highly suggestive of a buzz pollination syndrome. If confirmed, this would be the first documentation of such a pollination syndrome in Magnoliidae and early-diverging angiosperms in general.
authors: Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, UMR-DIADE, BP 64501, F-34394 Montpellier cedex 5, France. ; University of Yaoundé I, Higher Teacher's Training College, Plant Systematic and Ecology Laboratory, P.O. Box 047, Yaoundé, Cameroon ; Naturalis Biodiversity Centre, Botany Section, Darwinweg 2, 2333 CR Leiden, The Netherlands.
authors: Thomas L P
authors: TL
authors: Couvreur
authors: National Herbarium of Gabon, R.D. 1135, Libreville, Gabon.
authors: Raoul
authors: R
authors: Niangadouma
authors: University of Yaoundé I, Higher Teacher's Training College, Plant Systematic and Ecology Laboratory, P.O. Box 047, Yaoundé, Cameroon ; Missouri Botanical Garden, Africa & Madagascar Department, P.O. Box 299, St. Louis, Missouri 63166-0299, USA ; Université Libre de Bruxelles, Herbarium et Bibliothèque de Botanique africaine, CP 169, Av. F. Roosevelt 50, B-1050, Brussels, Belgium.
authors: Bonaventure
authors: B
authors: Sonké
authors: Université Paris-Sud, Laboratoire Écologie, Systématique, Évolution, CNRS UMR 8079, 91405 Orsay, France.
authors: Hervé
authors: H
authors: Sauquet
keywords: Annonaceae; Central Africa; Magnoliidae; Monts de Cristal; Piptostigmateae; buzz pollination; vicariance