ALBERT

Description: The present paper deals with the wood anatomy of the Blakeeae (Melastomataceae). Generic descriptions of the secondary xylem of Blakea, Topobea, and Huilaea are given and compared with data on 16 genera of the Miconieae. Numerical pattern detection was undertaken. The results confirm our preliminary ideas that Blakea and Topobea do not differ enough to enable the separation of these genera on the basis of their wood anatomy. Within the Miconieae it is not possible to separate the genera. However, some anatomical differences between the two tribes were found. The genus Huilaea seems to belong in the Blakeeae although it also shows similarities with the Miconieae. Wurdack’s suggestion (pers. comm.) that the Blakeeae are closest to the genera Loreya and Bellucia, and perhaps should be merged with the Miconieae, is supported to some degree.

Description: The idea to establish a regional organization in order to improve the quality of education in South East Asia was conceived in a meeting of Ministers of Education and Culture in 1965. This idea took shape and was realized in an organization called the SEAMEO (South East Asian Ministers of Education Organization) which was officially inaugurated on February 7, 1968 by the signing of the SEAMEO Charter by seven Ministers of Education, representing the Governments of Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and South Vietnam. In 1971 the Republic of Khmer followed as the eighth member country, whereas in 1973 France became an associate member, followed by Australia and New Zealand in 1974.

Description: Mostly perennial, paludose, grass-like herbs with fibrous roots; stembase very rarely thickened, often profusely producing shoots. Leaves basal, distichous on each shoot, ensiform, linear or filiform, sometimes twisted; sheaths with a membranous margin (in Mal. spp.) producing mucilage (?always), with or without a short ligule; limb glabrous or with numerous, small hard papillae, sometimes with a stout nerve in either margin. Flowers ♀♂, in terminal, few- to many-flowered heads, 3-merous, yellow to white, ephemeral, each in the axil of a conspicuous bract; bracts conchate, imbricate, spirally arranged, lower ones sterile; one to few flowers simultaneously in anthesis. Peduncles scape-like, terete to compressed, sometimes winged or ribbed, glabrous or with numerous hard papillae, at the base with some sheaths provided with a short limb. Bracts entire, ciliate, fimbriate or lacerate, with one complete main nerve and some complete or incomplete longitudinal secondary (descending) nerves, in the apical part mostly with a small minutely-papillose field. Calyx zygomorphic; lateral sepals navicular, with entire, dentate or ciliate crest, wings membranous, entire, glabrous or ciliate; median sepal membranous, spathelliform or cap-shaped, enveloping the corolla, mostly obovate, 1-3(-5)-nerved, pushed out by the corolla in anthesis(?always). Corolla actinomorphic, ephemeral; petals with an orbicular to obovate limb and a long, narrow claw, free, cohering mutually or by the staminodes. Stamens mostly 3 fertile epipetalous inserted on the petals and 3 alternating staminodes, staminodes rarely absent, or all stamens fertile; filaments short; anthers basifix, dehiscing lengthwise extrorsely. Ovary superior, sessile to stipitate (in Australian spp. sometimes with 3 hard swellings at the top), 1- or 3-celled, or incompletely 3-celled. Placentas parietal, central, or basal, with ~ ovules; styles filiform, apex 3-fid, stigmas mostly capitate. Fruit shape similar to that of the ovary but larger, loculicidally 3-valved. Seeds ellipsoid to obovoid, often ribbed, with a long funicle. Distr. Xyridaceae are confined to the tropics throughout the world including the southern parts of North America; east of Malaysia and Australia hitherto only recorded from the Patau group (Korror) and New Caledonia.

Description: In the course of studying the Asteraceae for a proposed Alpine Flora of New Guinea the first author selected the genus Cotula for this separate paper as it showed some variability that was not easily explained. While working on this, Dr. Lloyd’s paper on the genus in the New Zealand Journal of Botany 10 (1972) 277, came to his notice and on corresponding with him it turned out that he had studied the New Guinea species already to some extent but had nothing ready for publication. At the same time, Dr. J. Koster of Leiden, Netherlands, was known to work on a study of all Asteraceae of New Guinea and it soon transpired that when the manuscript was finished and a copy sent to her that very same day she had put down the first words of her manuscript on this genus. She generously allowed us to go ahead with our publication and after Dr. Lloyd had reviewed the first author’s manuscript the paper developed as presented here. This group of small, mat-forming species has been known in New Guinea to date only by C. leptoloba Mattfeld, described from the Wharton Ra. in Papua. Since then, however, it has been collected in several other regions ranging from the Carstensz Mts. in West New Guinea to Mt. Aniata in the southeastern tip of Papua. At first glance the material looked rather homogenous, but on closer look it turned out that at least one species, the material from Mt. Wilhelmina, had to be taken out as new. At this stage, various papers by Dr. Lloyd from Christchurch, New Zealand, drew attention to the group more forcibly and critically. The material available was studied by Dr. Lloyd and he came to the conclusion that at least 4 species should be distinguished, with which the senior author could concur. The differences between the 4 species recognised here are considerable, but the species limits are not well known and the descriptions may need revising when further material is available. Three new species are described below and C. leptoloba is redescribed to include the variation observed in specimens from new localities.

Description: A list is provided of the species, subspecies and synonyms of the tipulid genus Nephrotoma Meigen, 1803. The distribution of each species is given in subregional quotations.

Description: A survey is given of the assassin bugs (Reduviidae) collected on the six Netherlands Antilles. All together 22 species were sampled: 6 Emesinae, 1 Saicinae, 8 Harpactorinae, 1 Piratinae, 4 Stenopodinae, 1 Triatominae and 1 Phymatinae. Sixteen species were captured on the three islands of the Leeward Group, Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire; seven species were found on the three islands of the Windward Group, St. Eustatius, Saba and St. Martin; both groups of islands have only 1 species in common. The local distribution of the species represented (Table 1) does not fit with their known gross distribution in the neotropics. Curaçao harbours more than 70% of the total number of species; zoogeographical aspects have been discussed. Two species are described as new; Cosmoclopius curacavensis (Harpactorinae), living on Curaçao as a predator exclusively on the weed Cleome viscosa, and Oncerotrachelus sabensis (Saicinae) from Saba. The identity of some Emesinae and the single phimatine specimen captured remain unsettled for the present. Triatoma maculata. vector of a T. cruzi strain with low virulence, occurs in two colour forms; the dark one restricted to Aruba, the light-coloured form to Curaçao and Bonaire. Total drawings of most species are presented in addition to some 120 figures of structural details of eggs, larvae and adults. Features of eggs and genitalia are discussed on pages 17-28. Some points of general interest are: The egg of Sinea coronata appeared to be quite different from what is known from other Sinea spp. Eggs of Piratinae have movable slips with plastron function. The harpactorines Atrachelus fuscus and Sinea coronata lack parameres. Behavioural aspects concerned with utilizing sticky material have been summarized. Evidence is presented that the subrectal gland, occurring in many Harpactorinae, secretes the colleterial liquid for the egg-batch. The asymmetrical genitalia of the Piratinae and the endosomal brush zone and basal differentiation of the ductus ejaculatorius in some Stenopodinae are stressed.