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| Valeriana praecipitis A.E. Villarroel & Menegoz, in Villarroel, Menegoz, Le Quesne & Moreno-Gonzalez, 2022. |
Abstract
The species Valeriana praecipitis (Caprifoliaceae), new to science and endemic to the Ñuble Region, Central Chile, is formally described. Morphological data support its placement in a new species, clearly different from V. philippiana. A detailed description, insights about its habitat and ecology, distribution map and illustration are provided. A table of comparison is also given with the morphological characters discriminating V. praecipitis from V. philippiana. The species is assessed as Endangered (EN) under the IUCN categories.
Keywords: Andes, biodiversity, cliffs flora, Ñuble Region, taxonomy
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| Valeriana praecipitis A.E. Villarroel & Menegoz A habit B, C fruit D detail of flower E stigma F bracteole G bract H upper leave. Drawn by Arón Cádiz-Véliz. |
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| Valeriana praecipitis A.E. Villarroel & Menegoz A, B plants growing in natural habitat C rhizome, secondary-tertiary roots D basal leaves with lobes detail E petioles F floral stem, corymboid inflorescence G floral stem, thyrse inflorescence H upper leaves I, J detail of flowers (stamens, style) K bracteoles, ovary, calyx L dry inflorescence, bracts, bracteoles M fruit, pappus. Photographed by Alejandro E. Villarroel and Kora Menegoz. |
Valeriana praecipitis A.E. Villarroel & Menegoz, sp. nov.
Diagnosis: The habit and macro-morphology of Valeriana praecipitis is similar to Valeriana philippiana, but differs by its height (including flower stem) that can reach 65.5 cm (vs. 20 cm), rhizome woody, reaching more than 30 cm long and up to 20 mm diameter (vs. semi-woody, to 14 cm long, to 8 mm diam.), basal leaves pinnatisect to pinnatipartite, up to 26 cm long (vs. pinnatilobed to pinnatisect, to 8 cm long), petiole glabrous (vs. pubescent), lobes 1–35 mm long, 1–24 mm wide (vs. 4–8 × 3–7 mm), upper leaves oblanceolate, 14–40 mm long, 5–19 mm wide, margin entire to irregularly undulate or sinuate, (vs. oblong, 6–10 × 3–5 mm, entire), bracts oblanceolate to oblong, up to 20 mm long (vs. oblong, to 7 mm long), bracteoles spathulate to oblong, 3–7 mm long, entire (vs. oblong, 2.5–4.5 mm, erose), inflorescence a relatively diffuse thyrse or compound dichasial cyme (vs. dense compound dichasial cyme, contracted), corolla up to 4.5 mm long (vs. up to 4 mm), stamens 3 mm long (vs. 2 mm), stigma 0.2 mm long (vs. 0.5 mm), growing on cliffs that remain humid all-year (vs. well-drained rocky soils), and endemic to the Ñuble Region (vs. in Chile, V. philippiana can be found in Los Lagos, Aysén and Magallanes Regions) (Table 1).
Etymology: The specific epithet refers to cliff faces inhabited by these plants. The name means “Valeriana of cliffs” (latin praeceps = steep place, precipice, dangerous; genitive praecipitis).
Alejandro E. Villarroel, Kora Menegoz, Carlos Le Quesne and Ricardo Moreno-Gonzalez. 2022. Valeriana praecipitis (Caprifoliaceae), A Species New to Science and Endemic to Central Chile. PhytoKeys. 189: 81-98. DOI: 10.3897/phytokeys.189.73959
