Studies in the New World Sapindaceae I. Notes on the genus Talisia Aublet

Since the completion of Radlkofer’s monumental work on the Sapindaceae in Engler’s series “Das Pflanzenreich” 50 years have now elapsed, almost 40 since its publication. It is still the basis of virtually all taxonomic studies in the family. Some of the gerontogean genera have since been the subject of revisional work (Leenhouts 1969, 1971), but for the neogean representatives there are only some regional treatments (e.g. Rambo 1952; Barkley 1957; Reitz 1962; Soukup 1969), apart from descriptions of new taxa scattered through the literature. When studying the taxa native to Suriname in connection with the preparation of a supplement to the family treatment published previously in the “Flora of Suriname” (Uittien 1937) it soon became apparent to me that the genus Talisia was particularly incompletely known when Uittien published his account of the family, actually not much more than an extract from Radlkofer’s work. The number of species known or to be expected from Suriname proved to have doubled; this is not due to inadequateness of Uittien’s work but to much more extensive collecting. Two of the species met with since could not be identified with any species dealt with by Radlkofer or described after his time: these are described as new below. In order to establish that they were truly undescribed the descriptions and, where possible, types and/or other authentic specimens of all species described after Radlkofer were checked. A list of these follows; it may serve as a kind of bibliographic supplement to Radlkofer’s monograph. The two species marked with an asterisk have been posthumously listed in the supplement to his work.