Key to the species of Eriocaulaceae from the Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park 1. Flowers diplostemonous; petals with glands ................................... Eriocaulon L. (not treated here) – Flowers isostemonous; petals without glands ..................................... 2 (Paepalanthoideae Ruhland) 2. Lateral branches subtending the scapes (paraclades) entirely covered by bracts ............................... ......................................................................................................... 3 (Actinocephalus (Körn.) Sano) – Lateral branches subtending the scapes usually absent, when present, not covered by bracts ......... 4 3. Rhizome present; leaves linear, 0.5−2.0 × 0.05−0.1 cm.; paraclades ca 8−35 per rosette, covered by linear bracts, 0.5−1.5 × 0.05−0.1 cm ............ Actinocephalus brevifolius Trovó & Echtern. sp. nov. – Rhizome absent; leaves lanceolate, 4.0−8.5 × 0.5−0.9 cm.; paraclades ca 4−8 per rosette, covered by lanceolate bracts, 2.0−5.5 × 0.3−0.5 cm ........ Actinocephalus phaeocephalus (Ruhland) F.N.Costa 4. Petals of the pistillate flower completely free ................................................ 5 (Paepalanthus Mart.) – Petals of the pistillate flowers fused at the middle ......................................................................... 28 5. Flowers trimerous ............................................................................................................................. 6 – Flowers dimerous ............................................................................................................................ 10 6. Stem conspicuously elongated,> 15 cm long, ramified ................ Paepalanthus scandens Ruhland – Stem shortly elongated, 10 cm long ................................................................................ 18 11. Capitula spherical, rarely hemispherical; receptacle hemispherical ............................................... 12 – Capitula discoid, rarely hemispherical; receptacle flat ................................................................... 14 12. Amphibious; leaves patent; scapes with long, loose trichomes ....... Paepalanthus amphibius Trovó – Terrestrial; leaves recurved; scapes glabrous or with hirsute or adpressed trichomes ................... 13 13. Spathes 1.2 cm long, green; scapes 1–5,> 10 cm long, with hirsute trichomes; capitula ca 0.5 mm diam. ................................................................................. Paepalanthus sphaerocephalus Ruhland 14. Leaf sheath castaneous; involucral bracts of the external series golden to pale straw-colored, twice the length of the floral disc ................................................................... Paepalanthus cassiae Trovó – Leaf sheath pale straw-colored or yellowish to golden; involucral bracts of the external series golden, varying from grayish to blackish, slightly or 1× surpassing the floral disc .................................... 15 15. Leaf sheath yellowish to golden; involucral bracts of the external series linear, greyish to dark castaneous with a central whitish stripe, 1× surpassing the floral disc ............................................... .............................................................................. Paepalanthus longibracteatus (Moldenke) Trovó – Leaf sheath pale straw-colored; involucral bracts of the external series lanceolate to oblong, light castaneous to blackish without a central whitish stripe, slightly surpassing the floral disc ........... 16 16. Gracile herbs; leaves 1.5 cm wide; capitula> 1.5 cm diam., discoid .......................................... 17 17. Spathes and scapes densely pilose, sericeous, involucral bracts dark castaneous to blackish, capitula> 2.5 cm wide ....................................................................... Paepalanthus niger (Moldenke) Trovó – Spathes and scapes usually glabrous to sparsely pilose, involucral bracts light castaneous, capitula 3.5 cm long, mostly glabrous; scapes glabrous; capitula ca 3 mm wide; floral bracts linear ......................................................................................... ..................................................................... Paepalanthus atratus (Moldenke) L.E.F.Silva & Trovó – Leaves densely pilose and ciliate, apex mucronate to acuminate; spathes 130 cm tall; leaves persistent,> 9.0 cm long; reproductive axis> 100.0 cm long; scapes> 100 ............................................................................................................................................... 27 26. Plant up to 60 cm tall; leaves linear, 1.0−3.0 × 0.1−0.2 cm.; reproductive axis ca 45.0 cm tall and 0.3 cm diam.; axis bracts linear to narrowly lanceolate, 0.5−1.5 × 0.1−0.3 cm.; up to 25 scapes per plant; capitula ca 0.9 cm diam. .............................. Paepalanthus irwinii Trovó & Echtern. sp. nov. – Plant up to 120 cm tall; leaves lanceolate, 3.5−8.0 × 0.3−0.7 cm.; reproductive axis ca 100.0 cm tall and 0.6 cm diam.; axis bracts lanceolate, 1.0−5.5 × 0.8−1.2 cm.; up to 80 scapes per plant; capitula ca 1.5 cm diam. .................................................................... Paepalanthus acanthophyllus Ruhland 27. Bracts of the inflorescence axis varying in shape along the axis, becoming smaller from the base to the apex ....................................................................................... Paepalanthus chiquitensis Herzog – Bracts of the inflorescence axis with similar shape along the axis, with the same size from the base to the apex ....................................................................... Paepalanthus koernickei (Ruhland) Trovó 28. Flowers dimerous; sepals of the pistillate flowers shorter than petals, petals with erect, spatulate lobes. .................................................................................................... Comanthera dimera Echtern. – Flower trimerous; sepals of the pistillate flowers longer than petals, petals with often involute, triangular lobes .......................................................................................29 (Syngonanthus Ruhland) 29. Simple inflorescences, scapes arising from the stem, axillary to the leaves ................................... 30 – Compound inflorescences (synflorescences), scapes arising from the synflorescence axis, axillary to the axis bracts ................................................................................................................................. 37 30. Stem subterranean or restricted to the basal rosette of leaves ........................................................ 31 – Stem aerial, basal rosette absent, leaves spirulate along the stem .................................................. 35 31. Involucral bracts brown .................................................................................................................. 32 – Involucral bracts cream-colored to golden ..................................................................................... 33 32. Roots orangish, leaves semi-terete ............................................. Syngonanthus cabralensis Silveira – Roots cream-colored, leaves flat to canaliculate.................................................................................. ........................................................................ Syngonanthus hensoldiae M.T.C.Watanabe & Sano 33. Pistillate flowers twice the length of staminate flowers; petals of pistillate flower hairy ................... .................................................................................... Syngonanthus heteropeplus (Körn.) Ruhland – Pistillate flowers similar in length to the staminate flowers; petals of pistillate flower glabrous ....... 34 34. Roots spongy, orangish; gynoecium with nectariferous appendices; involucral bracts appressed, progressively longer toward the internal series; scape golden ........................................................... ............................................................................................... Syngonanthus nitens (Bong.) Ruhland – Roots fibrous, cream-colored; gynoecium without nectariferous appendices; involucral bracts lax, medium and internal series similar in height; scape stramineous ......... Syngonanthus davidsei Huft 35. Flowers bisexual; spathes and scapes with capitate hairs; petals membranaceous ............................ ........................................................................................ Syngonanthus androgynous M.T.C.Watan. – Flowers unisexual; spathes and scapes without capitate hairs; petals spongy ................................ 36 36. Scapes shorter than or equal to the leaf length; involucral bracts cream-colored, with stramineous to greenish longitudinal band; floral bracts present; petals of pistillate flowers glabrous ...................... ........................................................ Syngonanthus cuyabensis (Bong.) Giul., Hensold & L.R.Parra – Scapes longer than the leaf length; involucral bracts completely cream-colored; floral bracts absent; petals of pistillate flowers hairy ...................................... Syngonanthus caulescens (Poir.) Ruhland 37. Stem aerial or aquatic; synflorescence axis shorter than leaves, hidden ............................................ ................................................................................... Syngonanthus widgrenianus (Körn.) Ruhland – Stem subterranean; synflorescence axis longer than leaves, conspicuous ...................................... 38 38. Synflorescence with whorls of bracts along the axis and at the apex; involucral bracts cream-colored, stramineous to golden; leaves with capitate hairs ....... Syngonanthus humboldtii (Kunth) Ruhland – Synflorescence with one whorl of bracts at apex; involucral bracts brown; leaves without capitate hairs ................................................................................................................................................. 39 39. Involucral bracts abaxially glabrous, discolorous, the external brown, the internal cream-colored; floral bracts present ....................................................................... Syngonanthus decorus Moldenke – Involucral bracts abaxially hairy, similar or gradual in color, all series brown; floral bracts absent .... 40 40. Pistillate flowers glabrous; involucral bracts narrow-lanceolate ........................................................ ............................................................................... Syngonanthus vittatus M.T.C.Watan. & Echtern. – Pistillate flowers hairy; involucral bracts triangular, ovate, oblanceolate to obovate .................... 41 41. Leaves cespitose, erect to flexuous; involucral bracts with a lighter central band ............................. ................................................................................ Syngonanthus densifolius var. majus Moldenke – Leaves in distinct basal rosettes, ascending, recurved or incurved; involucral bracts mostly homogeneously brown or margins lighter than the center .............................................................. 42 42. Leaves distally incurved, 0.7−1.2 mm wide ....................................................................................... ...................................................................... Syngonanthus incurvifolius M.T.C.Watan. & Echtern. – Leaves ascending to recurved, 2−5 mm wide ..................................................................................... .................................................................. Syngonanthus densifolius var. brachyphyllus Moldenke

Published as part of Trovó, Marcelo & Echternacht, Lívia, 2022, The Paepalanthoideae (Eriocaulaceae) of the Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park, Brazil: taxonomic novelties, identification key, and illustrated list of species, pp. 58-93 in European Journal of Taxonomy 834 on pages 69-73, DOI: 10.5852/ejt.2022.834.1899, http://zenodo.org/record/6981051