Panamanian Scientists Discover New Begonia Species

According to the Catalog of Vascular Plants of Panama, the genus Begonia comprises 36 species in the country. Begonia has a pantropical distribution (distributed in all tropics) and is easily distinguished by the following combination of characters: alternate, stipulate, and asymmetric leaves; unisexual flowers, inferior ovary, usually trilobed. Researchers from the University of Panama (UP) have discovered a new plant species of the Begonia genus, named Begonia chucantiensis. The only species recorded outside the Andes to date is Begonia guaduensis Kunth, which has been found in Brazil, Guyana, Panama, and Costa Rica. Through a study conducted based on literature about herbarium specimens and the fieldwork carried out, it is suggested that the new taxon (group of organisms) is distinguished from other species of the section by various characters. The specimen of the new species was collected in the Private Natural Reserve Cerro Chucantí, recognized as home to endemic species and important scientific discoveries. Guillén explained to the weekly La Universidad that in the Begonia genus, species are grouped into about 70 sections. In the 3 cases, the Section Lepsia was represented only by Begonia guaduensis. Dr. María Sánchez de Stapf, a professor in the Department of Botany and director of the UP Herbarium, Dr. Juan F. Carrión, and Lic. Lucila Guillén, a biologist from this herbarium, published the work in an indexed journal. In this regard, she stated that the species of this section are mainly distributed in the Andes, from Venezuela to central Peru, with the greatest diversity in the northern Andes of Colombia. However, the current database of the UP Herbarium reports 42 species (unpublished data) and the Begonia Resources Center reports 43 species in 11 sections. One of these inhabiting the American tropics is Lepsia. Dr. Peter W. Moonlight from the School of Natural Sciences in Ireland and Dr. Orlando A. Jara Muñoz from the Institute of Natural Sciences of the National University of Colombia also collaborated on the work.