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Issue: Vol. 762 No. 3: 17 Jun. 2026
Type: Article
Published: 2026-06-17
DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.762.3.1
Page range: 201-245
Abstract views: 0
PDF downloaded: 0

Revealing the hidden biodiversity of the Andes: Eleven new species of Axinaea (Melastomataceae, Merianieae)

Programa de Pós-Graduação em Botânica; Universidade Federal do Paraná; Curitiba; Brazil; División de Ecología Vegetal – CORBIDI; Lima; Perú
Grupo de Estudios Botánicos (GEOBOTA) and Herbario Universidad de Antioquia (HUA); Instituto de Biología; Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; Universidad de Antioquia; Medellín; Colombia
Latin America department; Missouri Botanical Garden; St. Louis; USA; present address: Conservation and Ecology Synthesis; Center for Conservation and Sustainable Development; Missouri Botanical Garden; St. Louis; USA; Herbario Nacional de Bolivia; Instituto de Ecología; Universidad Mayor de San Andrés; La Paz; Bolivia
Missouri Botanical Garden; St. Louis; USA
Herbario Nacional del Ecuador QCNE; Unidad de Investigación; Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad; Quito; Ecuador
Universidad de los Andes; Mérida; Venezuela
Herbario Reinaldo Espinosa; Universidad Nacional de Loja; Ciudad Universitaria Guillermo Falconí; Loja; Ecuador
Missouri Botanical Garden; St. Louis; USA
Programa de Pós-Graduação em Botânica; Universidade Federal do Paraná; Curitiba; Brazil; Departamento de Botânica; Universidade Federal do Paraná; Curitiba; Brazil
The New York Botanical Garden; Bronx; USA
Andean forests biodiversity Chastenaea endemic species inflated connectives Myrtales neotropics new species taxonomy Eudicots

Abstract

Eleven new species of Axinaea (Melastomataceae, Merianieae) are described and illustrated from the Andes. The new species are A. auriculata and A. johnjuliusii from Venezuela, A. frustrata, A. paisa and A. titanica from Colombia, A. andina, A. kiru, A. matangae and A. olivacea from Ecuador, A. huancabambae from Ecuador and Peru, and A. yunga from Bolivia. We provide morphological descriptions along with comments on related species and geographic distribution. Also, we discuss the current diversity and taxonomy of Axinaea in the Andes. With these discoveries, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia now have a total of seven, 12, 21, 18, and two species of Axinaea, respectively. Finally, we present a preliminary list of the 50 currently accepted Axinaea species.

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How to Cite

Fernandez-Hilario, R., Murillo-Serna, J.S., Miranda-Montealegre, G., Ocaña, D.M.T., Fernández-Fernández, D., Gámez, L., Jaramillo, N., Ulloa, C.U., Goldenberg, R. & Michelangeli, F.A. (2026) Revealing the hidden biodiversity of the Andes: Eleven new species of Axinaea (Melastomataceae, Merianieae). Phytotaxa 762 (3): 201–245. https://doi.org/10.11646/phytotaxa.762.3.1