Chusquea clemirae (Bambusoideae, Poaceae): A New Woody Bamboo from the Montane Atlantic Rainforest of Bahia State, Brazil

Chusquea Kunth is the most diverse genus of bamboos with about 160 species accepted and an estimate of more than 50 to be described. This is an exclusively American genus with about 40 species recognized in Brazil, these occurring in montane grasslands or more commonly in montane forests. In Bahia State six species are known and a new species (Chusquea clemirae) is herein described, illustrated, and compared with sympatric or morphologically similar species. In addition, it is classified as a probable member of C. subg. Chusquea mainly based on internode length, shape and direction of the central bud, type of branching, and length and width of the foliage leaf blades. Its culms are slightly lignified with a spongy medulla and are solid to hollow; a vertically oriented central bud and other vegetative features clearly distinguish it from other Chusquea. This new species was found exclusively in a montane Atlantic Rainforest area in southern Bahia (the Serra Bonita Private Natural Heritage Reserve), and it has a restricted occurrence within the reserve.