Background and Aims:

Peru houses 24 species of Stevia (Eupatorieae, Asteraceae) distributed from the coastal loma (hill) to mountainous regions at 3800 m a.s.l. It is considered a complex genus due to the variability of its morphological characters, which complicates species delimitation. The objective of this study was to conduct a taxonomic and morphological analysis of the Stevia species present in Arequipa, Peru.

Methods:

Botanical collections were conducted in Arequipa from 2020 to 2022. For species identification and occurrence records, taxonomic studies of the genus in Peru were consulted, along with herbarium specimens and online resources such as JSTOR Global Plants. A presence map was generated using QGIS.

Key results:

In Arequipa five species of Stevia are reported: S. cuzcoensis, S. hoppii, S. melissifolia, S. herrerae and S. weberbaueri, with the latter two being new records for the region. A lectotype and isolectotypes were designated for S. melissifolia; additionally, an identification key and descriptions for each species were prepared.

Conclusions:

The most important taxonomic characters for the morphological delimitation of Stevia species in Arequipa include the type and distribution of trichomes, leaf dimensions, and peduncle length of the capitula. This analysis not only contributes to the knowledge of the region´s biodiversity, but also provides a foundation for future molecular and phylogenetic studies.

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