The group Vriesea platynema Gaudich. (Bromeliaceae: Tillandsioideae) in Paraná State, Brazil

Abstract

Vriesea is the second largest genus in Tillandsioideae with 281 species, distributed mainly in South America. In Brazil, occur at Cerrado, Amazon, Caatinga, Pampa and mainly in the Atlantic Rain Forest biome with the highest species richness of the genus. In the current systematic, Vriesea is divided into two sections, Vriesea and Xiphion. The section Xiphion is the largest of the group V. platynema with 41 species, occurring from Central America to Argentina. It has a high polymorphism, leading to misidentification of taxa. In this study, three taxa are recognized to Paraná State: V. platynema var. platynema, V. platynema var. variegata and V. tijucana. Descriptions, comments, key identification, geographical distribution, conservation status and illustrations are presented.