Overlooked for almost 200 years: clarification of Vanilla guianensis (Orchidaceae), a prior name for V. hostmannii, and the reinstatement of V. acuta
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15517/xw71n393Keywords:
nomenclature, Orchidaceae, Reichenbach, Splitgerber, Suriname, VanilloideaeAbstract
The binomial Vanilla guianensis, published by Splitgerber in 1841, has long been debated as potentially based on a mixed collection of two taxa belonging to different Vanilla subgenera. Most of the literature has placed the name under Vanilla subg. Membranacea, while it has also been less frequently associated with Vanilla subg. Vanilla. In this study, we reassessed its typification and demonstrate that the original material and protologue are congruent and not based on a mixed collection of different species. We hypothesize Vanilla guianensis is a member of Vanilla subg. Vanilla, and that the name is conspecific with V. hostmannii. We further clarify the nomenclatural and typification status of V. surinamensis, a name published by Reichenbach on the basis of Splitgerber material, and identify Pulle as the first author to have effectively neotypified Splitgerber’s V. guianensis. We reach this conclusion by conducting a comprehensive analysis of Splitgerber’s Vanilla collections, supported by an examination of his herbarium catalogue and fieldbook, together with an extensive historical review of the post-Splitgerber literature. Finally, we discuss the implications of our proposal for the circumscription of these and other implicated taxa, including Vanilla acuta.
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