Vellozo’s Florae Fluminensis: A new assessment of the São Paulo part of his collecting itinerary, its vegetation, and species list

Our analysis of Vellozo’s itineraries and his manuscript annotations show that ca. 1/4 of the names described in his Florae Fluminensis were based on plants collected in the municipality of Cunha, state of São Paulo. This region, within the Atlantic Forest domain, encompasses various vegetation formations, such as montane ombrophilous forests, mixed ombrophilous forests, and high-altitude open savanna enclaves. Using Vellozo’s manuscripts, we traced his collecting itinerary, correlating his descriptive terms for the vegetation types to the toponyms and dates. In contrast to the term“maritimus”, associated in Florae Fluminensis with the Atlantic Forest vegetation in the state of Rio de Janeiro, the term “mediterraneus” is associated with the vegetation along the Royal Road (Estrada Real) in the region of Cunha, state of São Paulo and is usually related to the term “transalpinus” of the region of mountaintops delimiting the border between the states of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Maps of Vellozo’s itinerary, as well as a discussion of species names most likely described from the state of São Paulo are provided.