Abies hidalgensis

Debreczy, Racz et Guizar 1995

Common names

None. "Hidalgo fir" or "Abete de Hidalgo" [Spanish] is a transliteration of the scientific name.

Taxonomic notes

Type: Mexico: Hidalgo, Metepec, 4-5 km N of the village, 2300 m elevation, on 1994.06.12. Farjon (2010) regards this taxon as possibly a variety of A. hickelii, since these are the only two Mexican firs to have more than 2 resin canals (4-7 in A. hidalgensis and 8-12 in A. hickelii); but that taxon has never been described from Hidalgo and there are a number of differences between the two taxa.

Description

Trees (height and diameter undescribed), typically with a single straight trunk and conical to columnar crown. Branches spreading and ascending, higher orders descending in lower part of the tree. Bark smooth, light gray, with age becoming thick, fissured into irregular large plates, with a scarlet inner bark. Twigs robust, smooth with a dense yellowish-brown pubescence. Foliar buds small, partly hidden by short, incurving leaves, slightly resinous, with up to 15 triangular bud scales. Leaves shiny dark- or dull gray-green, soft flexible (shade foliage) or thick, succulent (sun foliage), pectinately arranged, abruptly shortened (to 1 cm) on the upper sides of twigs, linear, curved slightly downward or forward, (1-)3-5(-6) cm × 1.5 mm, apex emarginate, stomata sparse, mostly toward apex on upper side, in two broad white bands separated by a green midrib on lower side; resin canals 2-5 (-7), medial. Pollen cones lateral, 10-12 mm long on a 3 mm peduncle, consisting of about 100 1.8 mm wide, puberulent microsporophylls. Seed cones lateral, erect, on 4-10 mm peduncles, cylindrical, 6.5-8 cm long, 3.5-4 cm wide, green at maturity, with obtusely rounded or slightly impressed apex; cone rachis narrowly conical. Cones scales about 130-170, fan-shaped, grayish green, densely velutinous with short (0.2 mm), white, appressed hairs; bracts included, 5-8 mm long, slightly spathulate with serrate, rounded wings. Seeds narrowly triangular (size not given) with resin blisters and narrow, light yellowish gray wings (not fully developed at the time of the description) (Debreczy and Racz 1995, Farjon 2010).

Distribution and Ecology

Mexico: Hidalgo (at type locality, as noted above) (Debreczy and Racz 1995). The type locality is in a steep canyon in the Sierra Madre Oriental at an altitude of ca. 2000-2300 m in cloud forest. Associated trees include Hesperocyparis lusitanica, Pinus patula, P. pseudostrobus, P. teocote, Quercus laurina, Ternstroemia pringlei and Cestrum sp., with understory trees and shrubs that include Alnus firmifolia, Buddleia cordata, Ptelea trifoliata and Sambucus mexicanum (Farjon 2010).

Remarkable Specimens

No data as of 2023.02.22.

Ethnobotany

No data as of 2023.02.22.

Observations

Has only been recorded from the type locality.

Remarks

The epithet refers to the Mexican state of Hidalgo, where the species was first collected.

Citations

Debreczy, Z., and I. Rácz. 1995. New species and varieties of conifers from Mexico. Phytologia 78(4):217-243. Available at biodiversitylibrary.org, accessed 2013.12.23.

See also

The species account at Threatened Conifers of the World.