INTRODUCTION
Cryptotaenia DC. (Apiaceae) is a polyphyletic genus with four species in tribe Oenantheae and three in tribe Pimpinelleae (Spalik & Downie, 2007). The species in Oenantheae form a clade that has been denominated “Cryptotaenia s. str.” (Spalik & Downie 2007). This group exhibits a Holarctic distribution pattern, with its members present in regions that were important glacial refuges: Cryptotaenia canadensis (L.) DC. is endemic to North America, Cryptotaenia flahaultii Koso-Pol. to the Caucasus Mountains (Georgia); Cryptotaenia japonica Hassk. to East Asia (China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan), and Cryptotaenia thomasii D.C. to Italy (Spalik & Downie 2007).
Two species of Cryptotaenia have been used for their culinary or medicinal properties. In Canada, C. canadensis is known as “honewort” and it is used in salads, soups or as a condiment (CBA, 2001). In Japan, China, Indonesia and Taiwan, C. japonica is known as “mitsuba” and is cultivated as a condiment (CBA, 2001), in China, it is used as tonic to strengthen the body (Wu et al., 2014), and in Japan it is used as a garnish in soups, main course, or as an ingredient of sushi (Sanderson & Renfrew, 2005). Recently, Lu et al. (2018) reported that C. japonica is a good source of antioxidant, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory compounds for applications in the food and pharmaceutical industries.
In Colombia, Apiaceae are represented by 28 genera and 64 species (Bernal, 2016), grouped in subfamilies Azorelloideae, Apioideae, Mackinlayoideae, and Saniculoideae. Subfamily Apiodeae is the richest with 46 species. Tribe Oenantheae, in subfamily Apioideae, is represented in the country only by the genus Lilaeopsis Greene with two species, Lilaeopsis macloviana (Gand.) A.W. Hill and Lilaeopsis schaffneriana (Schltdl.) J.M. Coult. & Rose (Bernal, 2016). Eleven species of Apiaceae reported in Colombia are exotic, and three have been reported as invasive in other countries, Conium maculatum L. (CABI, 2020a), Daucus carota L. (CABI, 2020b) and Foeniculum vulgare Mill. (CABI, 2020c).
Herein, Cryptotaenia japonica is reported for the first time for Colombia. With this new record we contribute to the knowledge of the Colombian flora and, in particular, to the knowledge of exotic species, which can become invasive and often cause major phytosanitary, ecosystem, and socioeconomic problems.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
To determine the generic identity of the species, we consulted the pertinent literature on the taxonomy of Apiaceae (Posadas & Martín, 1990; Zehui & Watson, 2005; Plunkett et al., 2018) and the species of this family reported for Colombia (Bernal, 2016). For the circumscription of Cryptotaenia, we followed Spalik & Downie (2007). For the elaboration of the description, we measured the organs with a digital caliper with an accuracy of 0.01 mm. The herbarium vouchers were deposited in COL and UDBC (herbarium acronyms follow Thiers, 2021) and the floral visitors in the Entomological Collection of the Instituto de Ciencias Naturales (ICN-MHN-En) of the Universidad Nacional de Colombia. For the elaboration of the keys, we saw the protologues and the types deposited in JSTOR PLANTS website (http://plants.jstor.org) of the Colombian species of Lilaeopsis and of the species of Cryptotaenia s. str. Additionally, we saw the virtual collections from COL, L, MW, NS, P, US and VO.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Cryptotaenia japonica Hassk., Retzia, 1: 113. 1856.
Cryptotaenia canadensis var. japonica (Hassk.) Makino, Botanical Magazine, Tokyo 22(263): 175. 1908. Cryptotaenia canadensis subsp. japonica (Hassk.) Hand.-Mazz., Symbolae Sinicae 7(3): 713. 1933. Neotype (designated here): Japan, Ooizumi-machi, Nerima-ku, Tokyo Pref., 1926, T. Makino 72334 (L-200586). Figs. 1, 2 and 3.
Myrrhis canadensis R.S. in sched. (L. 0327079)
Sanicula japonica Tib in sched. (L. 0327081) Herbs, glabrous, poorly branched, 20-40 cm tall. Roots tuberculate at the base, up to 40 cm long. Stems terete striated, fistulous. Petioles 5-15 cm long, sheaths 3-4 × 0.1-0.5 cm, oblong with 8-9 parallel veins. Leaves ternate, with reduced rachises, pinnate venation, with 4-6 secondary veins dichotomously branched at the apices; cuneate bases; tips acuminate; rhombic leaflets with irregularly serrated margins, lateral leaflets with asymmetric bases; terminal and lateral leaflets 4.8-5.2 × 4-4.5 cm. Inflorescence 12-16 cm long, terminal, cymose, peduncle 1-5 cm long; bract 0.4-0.5 cm long, subulate; rays 0.4-1 cm long, two or three; bracteoles 0.1-0.3 cm long, four, whorled, subulate. Flowers 0.2-0.3 mm long, 3-11 per ray, pedicels up to 1 mm long; sepals 5, up to 1 mm long, triangular; petals 5, up to 1.5 mm long, elliptical, white, cucullated before anthesis, fully unfolded after anthesis; stamens 5, up to 1.2 mm long, inserted, ovary 2-carpellar, cylindrical; stylopodium up to 0.05 mm long, cylindrical; styles up to 0.05 mm long, erect; stigma inconspicuous. Capsules oblong, with five longitudinal ribs. Seeds 4-5 × 1-1.2 mm two, oblong, 120-180 seeds per plant.
Etymology. Cryptotaenia comes from the Greek words κρυπτός ‘occult’ and ταινία ‘band’ and probably refers to the oil tubes hidden in the fruits. The specific epithet ‘japonica’ refers to the place where the author saw this species for the first time.
Distribution and habitat. In Colombia, this species is only known from one locality in the municipality of Tena, Cundinamarca (Fig. 4). It is found in shady and humid areas, with slopes of 30-45°, on stony and clay-loam soils. The forests of these areas present a fragmentation due to the establishment of pastures for cattle and agricultural production systems of coffee and banana.
The forest patches where C. japonica is found are dominated by trees of Heliocarpus americanus L., Ficus tonduzii Standl., and Cinchona pubescens Vahl, shrubs of Palicourea demissa Standl., Miconia theizans (Bonpl.) Cogn., and Urera baccifera (L.) Gaudich. ex Wedd. and herbs of Hydrocotyle humboldtii A. Rich., Sanicula liberta Cham. & Schltdl, and Spigelia hamelioides Kunth.
Examined material
COLOMBIA. Cundinamarca. Puerto Araújo, sendero de Mutis de Puerto Araújo a Tena. 4°40’6.87’’ N 74°22’15.58’’ W. 1500-1700 m a.s.l., 5-XII-2020, A. Fonseca-Cortés et al. 1253 (COL, UDBC).
COMMENTS
Hasskarl (1855) described C. japonica and cited “habit. japoniam”. However, he did not mention any type, collector or collection number. According to Tropicos (2021), the type of Cryptotaenia japonica is cited as “China, Guizhou, Guiding, damp places in forests, Handel-Mazzetti 10619 (PT?)”. PT is not recorded in Index Herbariorum (Thiers, 2021). We saw Handel-Mazzetti 10619 at C and GZU, this specimen was collected in 1917, 62 years after the original description of this species. Additionally, this specimen has no annotation about a posterior neotypification. “Handel- Mazzetti 10619” was cited in the floristic work of the plants of the southwest China (Handel- Mazzetti, 1933), where the author also cited another collection Handel-Mazzetti 10575, both of which in the context of the floristic work, should not be interpreted as the types. In other works, C. japonica is cited (Maximowicz, 1886; Ito & Matsumura, 1899; Yabe, 1902; Makino, 1908; Makino, 1926, Yamazaki, 2001; Zehui & Watson, 2005), but the authors did not make any attempt, purposely or not, to typify the species. After a search in L, where Hasskarl deposited his types, we could not find original material of C. japonica. Therefore, we designate a neotype to serve as a nomenclatural type as long as the original material is missing, following Article 9.8 (Turland et al., 2018). This specimen (L-200586) was collected is in the same country of the original material locality.
Cryptotaenia canadensis has been reported in Loreto, Peru, at 1600 meters above sea level, in humid and shady conditions (Brako & Zarucchi, 1993). This species is very similar to C. japonica, to the point of being treated as synonym of C. canadensis by Forbes & Hemsley (1888), Makino (1908), Handel-Mazzetti, (1933) and Brako & Zarucchi, (1993). Zehui & Watson (2005) cite “It is here treated as a species… closely resembling, but distinct from, the North American Cryptotaenia canadensis (Linnaeus) de Candolle”. Spalik & Downie (2007) comment “These species of Cryptotaenia differ only slightly in leaf shape and size and inflorescence structure”. However, none of them comment any character that allows to distinguish C. japonica from C. canadensis. After the analysis of the types and the collections deposited in the herbaria studied, we only could saw the differences cited in the table 1 and illustrated in the Fig. 5. We strongly recommend carrying out morphometrical and palynological studies for finding out more characters that allow better distinguishing these two species.
We recorded two combinations in the exsiccata of C. japonica deposited at L, Myrrhis canadensis R.S. (L-0327079) and Sanicula japonica Tib (L-0327081). After a search in IPNI and Tropicos, we could not find publications that cites these two names. Therefore, these are unpublished combinations not cited in previous works.
The origin of C. japonica in Colombia is probably related to the soil contamination with diaspores of this species. It is common to see cultivated ornamental plants thriving along the study route, such as Hedychium coronarium J. Koenig, Monstera deliciosa Liebm. and Tradescantia zebrina Bosse, among others, it is possible that the original soil with which these species were planted carried seeds of C. japonica, which germinated and established when they found suitable conditions of light, humidity, and temperature. It is unlikely that this species was dispersed by birds, due to the seeds has no hooks or structures that allow it to stick to the feathers of the birds and there are no reports of bird consumption of the seeds.
Cryptotaenia japonica is a perennial herb, with strong and long roots that allow it to grow between rocks; we observed no trace of herbivory, as no organ damage was visible in any of the plants. Each individual can produce between 120 and 180 flowers which more of the 80% become in fruits, the seeds seem to have high viability, because we saw patches dominated only by this species and we counted more than 130 individuals of different ages in a 50 m2 sampling area. Given the mentioned life history traits, C. japonica can become a common or even an invasive species at the edges of secondary forests.
It is not known if the secondary metabolites produced by this species have any negative effect on the germination of native species, these aspects should be studied to evaluate in detail the invasiveness of this species in Colombia and in other countries in South America.
Kato et al. (1990) report two Syrphidae (Diptera) visiting flowers of C. japonica in the primary forest of Hayas de Ashu, Kyoto. We recorded one floral visitor (Fig. 6), a Empididae (Diptera), which consumes the nectar of the flowers, this is the first record of this family on C. japonica.
Key to the genera of tribe Oenantheae in Colombia
1. Aquatic plants, rhizomatous stems, simple, linear, hollow, transversely septate leaves, simple umbels ..... Lilaeopsis
1. Terrestrial plants, erect stems, ternate, rhombic leaves, compound umbels and cymes ........................ Cryptotaenia
Key to the species of Cryptotaenia s. str.
1. Leaflets with cuneate bases, inflorescences with opposite rays, globose ovary, reflexed styles ............................... 2
1. Leaflets with attenuated bases, inflorescences with alternate rays, cylindrical ovary, erect styles ........................... 3
2(1). Vigorous herbs, terminal leaflets with three cuspids of similar length, apex of the terminal leaflets with many slightly pronounced teeth .............................................................................................................................. C. flahaultii
2. Weak herbs, terminal leaflets with the terminal cuspid longer than the other two, apex of the terminal leaflets with few teeth .......................................................................................................................................................... C. thomasii
3(1). Inflorescences umbellate, congested, rays of the same length, petals cucullated in anthesis, exerted stamens ......
..................................................................................................................................................................... C. canadensis
3. Inflorescences cymose, pauciflorus, rays of different lengths, petals fully extended in anthesis, inserted stamens ....
........................................................................................................................................................................ C. japonica