Acta Botanica Mexicana 81: 71-147 (2007) BROMELIAD FLORA OF OAXACA, MEXICO: RICHNESS AND DISTRIBUTION ADOLFO ESPEJO-SERNA1, ANA ROSA LÓPEZ-FERRARI1,NANCY MARTÍNEZ-CORRea1 AND VALERIA ANGÉLICA PULIDO-ESPARZA2 1Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Iztapalapa, División de Ciencias Biológicas y de la Salud, Departamento de Biología, Herbario Metropolitano, Apdo. postal 55-535, 09340 México, D.F., México.
[email protected] 2El Colegio de la Frontera Sur - San Cristóbal de las Casas, Laboratorio de Análisis de Información Geográfica y Estadística, Chiapas, México.
[email protected] ABSTRACT The current knowledge of the bromeliad flora of the state of Oaxaca, Mexico is presented. Oaxaca is the Mexican state with the largest number of bromeliad species. Based on the study of 2,624 herbarium specimens corresponding to 1,643 collections, and a detailed bibliographic revision, we conclude that the currently known bromeliad flora for Oaxaca comprises 172 species and 15 genera. All Mexican species of the genera Bromelia, Fosterella, Greigia, Hohenbergiopsis, Racinaea, and Vriesea are represented in the state. Aechmea nudicaulis, Bromelia hemisphaerica, Catopsis nitida, C. oerstediana, C. wawranea, Pitcairnia schiedeana, P. tuerckheimii, Racinaea adscendens, Tillandsia balbisiana, T. belloensis, T. brachycaulos, T. compressa, T. dugesii, T. foliosa, T. flavobracteata, T. limbata, T. maritima, T. ortgiesiana, T. paucifolia, T. pseudobaileyi, T. rettigiana, T. utriculata, T. x marceloi, Werauhia pycnantha, and W. nutans are recorded for the first time from Oaxaca. Collections from 226 (of 570) municipalities and all 30 districts of the state were studied. Among the vegetation types occurring in Oaxaca, oak forest is the richest with 83 taxa, followed by tropical deciduous forest with 74, and cloud forest with 73 species.