Centaurea akroteriensis Gennaio & Q.G. Manni, 2020

Gennaio, Roberto & Manni, Quintino Giovanni, 2020, Centaurea akroteriensis (Asteraceae), a new species discovered in Salento (Southern Apulia, Italy), Phytotaxa 436 (3), pp. 251-269 : 260

Centaurea akroteriensis Gennaio & Q.G. Manni , sp. nov. ( Figs. 1 a–l , 2 , 3 and 4 )

Type: — ITALY. Gallipoli, Parco Naturale Regionale Isola di Sant’Andrea , litorale di Punta Pizzo, su substrato misto di terra rossa, sabbia e calcarenite affiorante, N 39°59’27.574’’ E 18°0’52.016’’, alt ca. 12 m, 20 May 2019, R. Gennaio & Q. G. Manni s.n. (holotype: LEC 2019052012 !; isotypes: FI 018834 !; FI 018835 !)

Figures

FIGURE 1. a–l: Centaurea akroteriensis. a: flower head and stem; b: neutral flower; c: hermaphroditic flower. d: staminal tube and style. e: internal bract. f: middle bract. g: external bract. h: achene. i–k: juvenile basal leaves. j: mature basal leaf. l: spiny palmate-fasciculated apex of C. akroteriensis. m: apex of the bract of C. seridis. Comparison between achenes of n: C. seridis, o: C. bimorpha and p: C. ferox. (All illustrations made from the holotype, isotypes, herbaria’s specimens and plants observed in vivo. Drawings by Quintino Giovanni Manni).

FIGURE 2. A–E: Centaurea akroteriensis. Morphology. A, B: inflorescences completely developed. C: immature flower head. D: entire plant in natural environment. E: detail of the winged stem. A: photographed by R. Gennaio, 2018; C: 2019; E: 2013.B, D: Q.G. Manni, 2018.

FIGURE 3. A–C: Centaurea akroteriensis. Morphology. A: stem and immature flower head. B: basal rosette. C: caulinar leaf. A, C: photographed by Q.G. Manni, 2018; B: R. Gennaio, 2018.

FIGURE 4. A–D: Comparison of flower heads. A: Centaurea seridis from Capo Peloro—Messina (Sicily); B: Centaurea akroteriensis. C–D: Centaurea akroteriensis. Morphology. C: achenes. D: Spiny apexes of the middle bracts. A: photographed by R. Gennaio, 2017; C:2013; D: 2019. B: photographed by Q.G. Manni, 2018