New records of amazonian Myrtaceae in Colombia

Two new records of Myrtaceae ( Myrcia ishoaquinicca and Psidium acidum ) for the Amazonian forests of Caquetá, Cauca, and Putumayo departments, Colombia, are reported. Comments about the habitats in which these species are growing, as well as observations on their expanded distribution ranges, are included.

During recent explorations on selected areas of Caquetá's Amazonian forest, along with the continuous study of herbarium specimens of Colombian Myrtaceae, two species, one of Myrcia and another of Psidium, previously known only in Brazil, Ecuador, and Peru have been found in Colombia. In this short note, we include comments on the expanded distribution ranges of these species, as well as lists of new collections of these taxa made in the field; voucher specimens of the specimens collected, were deposited in COAH, COL, CUVC, and HUA (acronyms of the herbaria follow Thiers c2019).

Comments.
Originally described under Calyptranthes, this species was found on lowland and montane forests of Pastaza and Sucumbíos Provinces, Amazonian Region, in Ecuador; it is easily differentiated from other species of Myrcia sect. Calyptranthes by its 4-angled or 4-winged young stems, its discolorous leaf blades, its leaf apex abruptly acuminate with a long acumen of up to 3.5 cm, and its nodding inflorescences (spikes with 1-4 flowers) (Kawasaki and Holst 2005).
In Colombia, Myrcia ishoaquinicca grows in lowland Amazonian forests of Caquetá and Putumayo between 400-450 m, sometimes in well-preserved forest with trees of 25-30 m high or in the understory of secondary forests associated with rivers or nearby them. In Amazonian forests near the Fragua river of the Caquetá department, this species is conspicuous among the understory's shrubs or small trees due to its nodding inflorescences and its light-yellow fruits (Fig. 1). The studied Colombian specimens of Myrcia ishoaquinicca expand the range of this species ca. 70 km northeast of its previously known distribution, and they have been collected in ecosystems similar to the ones where the species was originally described. This species was previously thought to be endemic to Ecuador (Kawasaki and Holst 2005). A similar situation was found with Eugenia scalariformis McVaugh. Parra-O. (2013) reported that 93 individuals of Eugenia scalariformis were located in a 25 ha permanent plot in Colombian Amazonia; this species was previously reported as endemic from northeastern Amazonian Peru, and it was categorized as 'VU, B1a' (Vulnerable, severely fragmented or known to exist at no more than ten locations) following UICN criteria (Kawasaki and Holst 2006), mostly based in its supposed narrow distribution range. These findings illustrate the importance of more botanical exploration of the Amazonian region.
Cofán people of Ecuador use Myrcia ishoaquinicca in a ceremony as a purgative (Kawasaki and Holst 2005); it would be interesting to know whether Cofán people of Colombia use this species for this kind of ceremony or not. Studies on plants used by Cofán people in Colombia are scarce, and the few that have been published (e.g., Tobar et al. 2004, Valderrama and did not provide detailed lists of the medicinal flora used by such communities in their ceremonies. Comments. One of the specimens examined of this species (Orejuela & Trujillo 3004) was collected in an area used ca. 20 years ago by an Oil Company for growing trees as compensation for its oil extraction activities; it is not clear if all trees that are in the area today were planted by the Company, or if some of them were already in place when the Company began its activities. The area is now an agroforestry demonstrative center where, besides Psidium acidum (four to five trees of ca. 6 m tall), there are trees of Theobroma bicolor Bonpl., Theobroma cacao L., Theobroma grandiflorum (Willd. ex Spreng.) K. Schum., Pourouma cecropiifolia Mart., Inga sp., and Parkia sp. During the collection of this specimen, aboriginal people from nearby areas that were in the center that day infor- med E. Trujillo that they have trees of this species growing on their land, but they do not plant the trees by themselves; they reported that the plants grow spontaneously in their pastures. They also told him that the ripe fruits are consumed mainly by the children and that they taste a bit sour. If plants are not planted, maybe the seeds of this species are also dispersed by birds or people, as it has been seen for Psidium guajava L.
The specimens of Psidium acidum found in Caquetá and Cauca expand the range of this species ca. 150 km north of its previously known distribution. The presence of Psidium acidum in areas that have been used for culti-vation in Colombia agrees with the findings of Landrum Orejuela & E. Trujillo 3004 (COAH, COL, HUA).