The gesneriads of quindío departament, Colombia

Colombia is the most diverse Neotropical country of Gesneriaceae. Nevertheless, there are gaps in knowledge of the distribution patterns and ecology of this family because of their taxonomic complexity. A list of the Gesneriaceae of the Quindío department with data for habitat and altitudinal distribution is presented in this paper. The herbarium collections of the Herbario Nacional Colombiano (COL) and the Herbario de la Universidad del Quindío (HUQ) were reviewed and fieldwork was carried out between 2009 and 2014 in 70 localities of Quindío. Forty three species and 11 genera were found, with a larger representation of Columnea, Besleria and Kohleria genera; nine species were new records for the Quindío; three were endemic and five species are new to science. The greatest richness was found in the montane forest between 1800 and 2400 masl, mainly in forested areas and streams. The results of this work constitute a baseline to conduct research in ecology, conservation and ornamental potential of Gesneriaceae occurring in Quindío.