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| Didymocarpus lobulatus F. Wen, Xin Hong & W.Y. Xie in Xie, ... et Wen, 2020. |
Abstract
Didymocarpus lobulatus, a new species endemic to Zhejiang province, eastern China, is described and illustrated with photographs. The new species is morphologically similar to D. heucherifolius, D. cortusifolius and D. salviiflorus in leaf morphology, but can be easily distinguished by a combination of characters, including the shape of bracts, calyx and calyx lobes.
Keywords: Flora of Zhejiang, new taxon, taxonomy, Didymocarpus sect. Heteroboea
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| Figure 1. Didymocarpus lobulatus A Habit B Flower in top view C Opened corolla, showing stamens and staminodes D Fertile stamens and anthers E Pistil, disc and stigma. |
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| Figure 2. Didymocarpus lobulatus F. Wen, Xin Hong & W.Y. Xie. A Habitat B Vegetative part of plants C Habitat in flowering D Frontal view of corolla E Top view of cyme, showing actinomorphic calyx F Opened corolla for showing stamens, pistil and calyx lobes G Adaxial surface view of leaf blade H Abaxial surface view of leaf blade. |
Didymocarpus lobulatus F. Wen, Xin Hong & W.Y. Xie, sp. nov.
Diagnosis: Didymocarpus lobulatus is similar to D. heucherifolius Handel-Mazzetti and D. salviiflorus W.Y. Chun in having a similar zygomorphic corolla and pink to pinkish-purple funnel-shaped to tubular corolla tube, but can be distinguished from the former by its densely eglandular and glandular pubescent peduncle (vs. villous in D. heucherifolius), bracts subulate to subulate-triangular (vs. elliptic) and margin sparsely crenate from the middle (vs. entire), calyx shallowly 5-lobed to or lobed about two-thirds of the calyx length from the base (vs. 5-lobed to the base). From D. salviiflorus, it differs by having subulate to subulate-triangular bracts (vs. semi-orbicular in D. salviiflorus), calyx lobes triangular but non-overlapping (vs. depressed oblong, overlapping at margin) and in size in ca. 5 × 2.5 mm (vs. 2–2.2 × 4–4.5 mm). It is also similar to D. cortusifolius in the shape and size of the leaves, but can be easily distinguished by having bracts subulate to subulate-triangular (vs. ovate to elliptic in D. cortusifolius), bract margin sparsely crenate from the middle (vs. entire), larger calyx lobes ca. 5 × 2.5 mm (vs. 1–3 × ca. 2 mm) and lobes’ margin nearly entire to entire (vs. denticulate), corolla white (vs. corolla pink to dark pink), fertile stamens adnate to corolla ca. 5 mm from base (vs. adnate to corolla 10–14 mm from base), filaments sparsely brownish glandular-puberulous (vs. glabrous).
Etymology: The specific epithet is derived from the shallowly 5-lobed calyx.
Distribution and habitat: Didymocarpus lobulatus is locally abundant and endemic to a narrow area in eastern China, surrounding the type locality. This species grows on moist shady cliffs of sandy shale hills, at an elevation of 223 m a.s.l. in type locality. The average temperature is 16.4 °C, the average annual precipitation has been calculated as ca. 1,446.8 mm. The forest is a subtropical monsoon climate evergreen broad-leaved forest. Flowering in May. Another population growing in the Danxia landscape of Chuanyanshijiufeng, Xinchang County, Shaoxing city, not far away from the type locality, was discovered by the first author in 2016. The two places are about 40 kilometres apart.
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| Figure 3. A Didymocarpus lobulatus B D. heucherifolius C D. cortusifolius D D. salviiflorus 1 Habitats 2 The frontal view of corolla and cyme 3 Cyme and bracts 4 calyx lobes. |
Wen-Yuan Xie, Jia-Jun Zhou, Xin Hong and Fang Wen. 2020. Didymocarpus lobulatus (Gesneriaceae), A New Species from Zhejiang Province, East China. In: Shui Y-M, Chen W-H, Ren M-X, Wen F, Hong X, Qiu Z-J, Wei Y-G, Kang M (Eds) Taxonomy of Gesneriaceae in China and Vietnam. PhytoKeys. 157: 199-206. DOI: 10.3897/phytokeys.157.30349
