Three new species of Swartzia (Leguminosae-Papilionoideae) from northern South America

Descriptions of three recently discovered species of the prominent Neotropical tree genus Swartzia are presented, together with revised identification keys and a discussion of the morphological characters that distinguish the new species from close relatives. The three new species are each known from several localities. S. canescens has a relatively broad distribution in lowland areas in French Guiana, eastern Suriname, and in the Brazilian states of Amapa and Para, north of the Amazon River. It belongs to series Racemosae and is a close relative of S. discocarpa. S. manausensis is known from central Amazonas, Brazil. It is a member of series Tounateae and occurs sympatrically with the closely related species S. tessmannii. Another new species, S. ramiflora, is endemic to northern portions of Amazonas state in Venezuela and is part of a taxonomically difficult species complex centred around S. panacoco. Unlike most of the other entities in the complex, S. ramiflora is quite distinct morphologically. (c) 2007 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 2007.