The genus Hypseocharis (Oxalidaceae) in Argentina

Abstract

A taxonomic revision of the genus Hypseocharis in Argentina is presented. Two species are considered: Hypseocharis tridentata and H. pimpinellifolia. H. corydalifolia is considered a synonym of H. pimpinellifolia. Flowers and fruits of H. tridentata are described for the first time. This species has a whorl of 5 alternate stamens and a schizocarpic fruit breaking away as five dehiscent mericarps with 1-few seeds per locule. These characters differ substantially from the original description of the genus, which indicated 15 stamens in two whorls and a capsule with loculicidal dehiscence containing many seeds. H. pimpinellifolia has a wide distribution in cloud grasslands, high Andean grasslands and Puna environments between 2000 and 4200 m in Jujuy, Salta, Tucumán, Catamarca and La Rioja provinces. H. tridentata is a relatively rare species, restricted to a narrow belt of cloud grasslands above the Andean alder forest between 2500 and 3200 m in Jujuy, Salta and Tucumán provinces.