Comparative morphoanatomy of Piper arboreum Aubl. var. arboreum and Piper tuberculatum Jacq. var. tuberculatum leaves

Anatomical descriptions of Piper arboreum Aubl. var. arboreum and P. tuberculatum Jacq. var. tuberculatum that are found in Dense Rainforest in Tijuca are presented in this study. The material was examined according with the usual anatomical techniques. Important differences between the taxa were observed. In P. arboreum the sheath is furrowed and contained conspicuous intercellular spaces, the leaf blade contains biestratified hypodermis, unistratified palisade parenchyma, and a concave-convex midrib. P. tuberculatum presents circinate sheath with small intercellular spaces, the leaf blade has unistratified hypodermis, biestratified palisade parenchyma and a convex midrib. The anatomical analysis corroborate the delimitation of the two taxa as distinct.