Australian Spermacoce (Rubiaceae: Spermacoceae). I. Northern Territory
R. Harwood A C and S. Dessein BA Northern Territory Herbarium, PO Box 496, Palmerston, NT 0831, Australia.
B Laboratory of Plant Systematics, Institute of Botany and Microbiology, K.U.Leuven, Kasteelpark Arenberg 31, B-3001 Leuven, Belgium.
C Corresponding author. Email: bob.harwood@nt.gov.au
Australian Systematic Botany 18(4) 297-365 https://doi.org/10.1071/SB03024
Submitted: 10 September 2003 Accepted: 6 April 2005 Published: 31 August 2005
Abstract
Northern Territory Spermacoce are revised, with 53 native species recognised, as well as four introduced species. Thirty-nine new species are described, and S. laevigata var. hispida Benth. is raised to species level. Lectotypes are chosen for all Australian Spermacoce names that had any ambiguity regarding types. Key features used to distinguish species, such as the appendages that occur on the inside of the corolla lobes and various seed characteristics, are illustrated and discussed. A key to all the Spermacoce species occurring in the Northern Territory is provided, along with distribution maps.
Acknowledgments
Clyde Dunlop, then curator at DNA, encouraged RH to revise Spermacoce, and then continued to encourage, as well as advise on and correct various manuscripts from his new home in Queensland. Andrea Hope and Margaret Brandrick did the illustrations exactly as required, and were a pleasure to work with. Emma Short did most of the Latin diagnoses; the less elegant ones were adapted by RH from other papers and corrected by Emma. Phil Short and Dale Dixon were continuously pestered by RH but never appeared to tire of explaining how a scientific paper should be written. Craig Hempel produced the distribution maps. Rafael Govaerts and Dick Brummitt at K provided a lot of answers on nomenclature and lectotypification queries. Marcel Verhaegen from the National Botanic Garden of Belgium kindly assisted taking SEMs of the seeds. Alex Vrijdaghs provided the photographs of Fig. 7. Steven Dessein is a postdoctoral fellow of the Fund for Scientific Research-Flanders (FWO-Vlaanderen). Financial support for this study was provided by project OT/01/25 from the Research Fund of the K.U.Leuven.
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