Table 1.
Morphological differences between C.corallocarpus and other species of Castanopsis of the Peninsular region.
| Characters | C.corallocarpus W.H.Tan & Strijk | C.inermis (Lindl.) Benth. & Hook.f. | C.purpurea Barnett | C.pierrei Hance | C.rhamnifolia Miq. A.DC. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Cupule surface | Cupule with basally reinforced, blunt coral-like spines arranged in continuous ridges. Ridges in young fruits often terminate only a few mm apart, resulting in hollow enclosures protecting the exterior inner cupule. | Cupule sparsely covered with simple, short, curled thorns set in 3–5 lines. | Cupule sparsely covered with woody, branched, curved spines. | Cupule sparsely covered with woody, branched, curved spines. | Cupule covered with tufted, erect, simple thorn-like structures. |
| 2. Number of cupule valves | 3(–4) | 2(–4) | “dehiscent”, #valves unreported | “dehiscent”, #valves unreported | 3– (4?), or indehiscent |
| 3. Number, size of acorns (l × w) | 1, 3.3–3.8 cm × 2.7–3.3 cm. | (1)2–3, 1.5–2.5 cm × 1.5–3.5 cm. | 1–3 (4), 4.5–6 cm in diam. | 1–3 (4), 4–6 cm in diam. | 1, 1–1.5 cm × 1–1.5 cm. |
| 4. Acorn shape (ripe), position | Acorn globose, sessile and solitary. | Irregularly globose, sessile and clustered (sometimes fused). | Globose, stalked and solitary. | Irregularly globose or bilobed, semi-stalked to sessile and solitary. | Asymmetrically depressed subglobose, sessile solitary or in pairs. |
| 5. Acorn surface | Pustulated | Pustulated | Unreported | Pustulated | Unreported |
| 6. Nut wall | Free | Fused | Free | Free | Fused |
| 7. Nut indumentum | Finely adpressed silver hairs on the umbo. | Finely adpressed silver hairs on the umbo. | Sparsely covered with adpressed white hairs. | Dense white hairs, only around umbo. | Unreported. |
| 8. Nut shape, size and scar (l × w) | Rectangular and flattened at the base, 2.5–2.9 cm × 2.3–2.4 cm, scar 2.3–2.5 × 2.3–2.4 cm. | Ovoid, emarginate, concave at the bottom, 1 cm × 1 cm, scar 0.2–0.3 × 1 cm. | Ovoid and asymmetrically compressed, 2–3 cm × 1 cm, scar unreported. | Ovoid, asymmetric and slightly curved, 3 × 1.5 cm, scar unreported. | Asymmetrically depressed subglobose, 3.5–4 cm × 2–3 cm, scar basal 1 cm diam. |
| 9. Leaf shape, size (l × w) | Elliptic, with cuneate base and acute apex, (11)13–17(19) × (2)3.5–5(6) cm. | Obovate, obovate-oblong, oblong or lanceolate, 7–17 × 5–7 cm. | Elliptic, oblong or obovate, 10–25 × 3.2–6.3 cm. | Lanceolate or oblong, 10–20 × 3–6 cm. | Oblong, elliptic or obovate, 10–20 × 3.5–8 cm. |