(Vol. 03, 2000-12) Passiflora Microstipula, a New Species of Passifloraceae from Southeast Mexico

Passiflora microstipula was originally collected as seed in 1978 at the Los Tuxtlas biological station, Veracruz, Mexico. When plants grown from these seeds flowered in cultivation the next year, it was immediately clear that this species represented a completely new group within Passifiora. P. microstipula exhibits unusual characteristics such as tendril-borne flowers and conspicuously winged seeds. Observations of this species in cultivation revealed that significant morphological changes occur as development proceeds from a seedling to reproductively mature lianas. Morphology and ecology are discussed with regard to the species' likely taxonomic placement within the genus.