Pereskia stenantha

Distribution and name

POWO accepts Pereskia stenantha and gives seasonally dry habitats in Bahia and Minas Gerais. The combination Rhodocactus stenanthus also occurs in the literature following Asai and Miyata's division. The change in epithet ending follows the form of the genus name, and both names concern the same species. [2-WWW] [Asai and Miyata 2016]

Flower dimensions, fruits and seeds

The leafy plant closely resembles Pereskia bahiensis, making identification from twigs alone difficult. Flowers, however, are distinctly narrower, about 20–35 mm long and 10–20 mm wide. Their thick, upright tepals are orange outside and pinkish inside. They are gathered in clusters of up to a dozen or more flowers. [Leuenberger 1986, Pereskia stenantha description]

A distinct nectary zone lies in the upper part of the cup-shaped floral axis. The elongated appearance arises mainly from the arrangement of tepals, which spread only slightly at their tips. Ripe fruits are greenish to yellowish, 3–7 cm long and 2–6 cm wide. Black seeds are about 4.5–5.5 mm long. Fruit structure retains similarity to Pereskia bahiensis despite the strongly different pattern of flower opening. [Leuenberger 1986, Pereskia stenantha description]

Kwiat o wzniesionych listkach okwiatu

Tepals remain raised and close together, and a distinct nectar chamber lies inside the flower. The impression of a tube comes from tepal arrangement. Leuenberger distinguished this structure from development of the long floral tube characteristic of many other cacti. The difference concerns the organ producing flower shape, rather than only its external appearance. [Leuenberger 2008]

Interpretacja sposobu zapylania

Flower structure was interpreted as an adaptation to hummingbird pollination. The cited account primarily describes morphological traits and the nectar-bearing flower part. It does not present a controlled comparison of the effectiveness of different pollinators, so the interpretation is retained at this level. Comparison with the close Pereskia bahiensis shows how different flowers of related species can be. [Leuenberger 2008]