Solanum crotonoides
Known only from the montane cloud forests of central Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic), from 1000-1800m elevation.
Solanum crotonoides is a member of the large Leptostemonum clade (sensu Weese & Bohs, 2007). In the analysis of Levin et al. (2006) it is sister to the Torva clade, but this relationship is not well supported. Whalen (1984) included it in his Solanum crotonoides species group, along with S. dendroicum, S. pachyneurum and S. woodburyi.
Dunal, M.F. 1814. Morelle, Solanum.
In Encyclopédie Méthodique, Botanique, Suppl. 3., ed. J. L. M. Poiret, 738-780. Paris: Chez H. Agasse.
Whalen, M.D. 1984. Conspectus of species groups in Solanum subgenus Leptostemonum.
Gentes Herbarum 12 (4): 179-282.
Levin, R.A., N.R. Myers, & L. Bohs 2006. Phylogenetic relationships among the "spiny" solanums (Solanum subgenus Leptostemonum).
Amer. J. Bot. 93: 157-169.
Weese, T.L. & L. Bohs 2007. A Three-Gene Phylogeny of the Genus Solanum (Solanaceae)
Syst. Bot. 32(2): 445-463.
Solanum crotonoides is distinctive in its strongly discolorous leaves and almost lepidote pubescence. It is most similar to S. dendroicum, also of the Dominican Republic, but of much wider distribution on Hispaniola than that species. It also occurs at higher elevations in montane rather than sea level forests, and has lepidote-, rather than echinoid-, stellate pubescence.
Solanum crotonoides is one of the several dioecious species of Solanum from the Caribbean, and this has been noted by several authors (Dunal, 1814) and accounts for the relatively large number of synonyms for this species. In describing S. reticulatum, Dunal (1814: 764, transl. SK) stated “This pretty species resembles greatly Solanum crotonoides, of which it has the same aspect. It is to this latter as the hermaphrodite of Solanum polygamum is to the male of the same species. It appears therefore that Solanum reticulatum is the hermaphrodite of the species where Solanum crotonoides is the male. This can be decided by observation of live plants. Even so, Solanum reticulatum differs from Solanum crotonoides in its one-flowered peduncles, larger, hermaphroditic and fertile flowers; the branches are sometimes without spines; the berries globose and mucronate.” The combination of characters found in functionally male plants is similar to that shown in other putatively dioecious species of Solanum, particularly S. dendroicum of the Samaná peninsula of the Dominican Republic.
Although Lamarck’s protologue indicates that the plant collected by Martin came from Martinique, Solanum crotonoides has never again been collected there. A similar situation exists for S. pyrifolium (Dulcamaroid clade), also collected by Martin from “Martinique”. I suspect that Martin did in fact also visit Hispaniola or that Martin used Martinique as a broad locality covering most of the Caribbean region, and that both these plants are true Hispaniolan endemics.
In describing S. formosense, Schulz and Schmidt did not designate which of the two varieties was typical. Since I can only find material of var. parvifolium (S04-2911), the S sheet should be used to lectotypify both the species and the variety.
The type of S. hoplophorum is a very robust, prickly male plant (S04-2916), again showing that combination of characters that Dunal (1814) noted. Both varieties of S. formonense are female plants.