Taraxacum pseudolilacinum Kirschner & Štěpánek, 2017

Kirschner, Jan & Štěpánek, Jan, 2017, A revision of Taraxacum sect. Atrata, a dandelion group centred in the Middle Asia, and the problem of Taraxacum brevirostre, Phytotaxa 305 (4), pp. 225-261 : 234-237

3. Taraxacum pseudolilacinum Kirschner & Štěpánek , sp. nova.

Type: — KAZAKHSTAN. The Zailiyskiy Alatau Range (Khrebet Ileyskiy Alatau), Almaty: catchment area of Malaya Almatinka ( Kishi Almaty): in the vicinity of the Institute of Geography (and “CSKA”) field station (“ Stantsia Tuyuksu ”), north of the Glacier Lednik Molodyozhnyj , a part of the Tuyuksu Glacier complex, loc. 32. Geogr. coord.: 43° 04’ 00.5” N, 77° 04’ 27.9” E, ca. 3450 m s. m., 6 Aug 2009, L. Kirschnerová & J. Kirschner ( PRA, no. det. 28224, holotype; isotypes: PRA, no. det. 28225 and dupl.) .

Diagnosis: — Plantae glabrae, petiolis et nervis medianis purpureis vel roseis, foliis saepissime pinnatilobatis vel pinnatisectis, lobis lateralibus patentibus usque subrecurvis, lineari-triangularibus, phyllariis involucralibus exterioribus numerosis (10–15), laxe adpressis, anguste albomarginatis, ligulis intus pallide lilacinis usque pallide luteo-roseolis, raro pallide luteis, extus stria pallide purpurea vel rosea, interdum pallide griseo-roseola notatis, acheniis griseis vel griseo-stramineis, laevibus vel superne sparssissime minute spinulosis, epyramidatis, rostro ± incrassato 4–5.5 mm longo.

Description: —Plants ± slender, usually 7–14 cm tall. Petiole vivid purple to deep purple, sometimes pale pink, narrow, unwinged, glabrous, plant base without remnants of old petioles. Leaves deep green to mid-green, usually with purplish mid-vein, linear-oblanceolate in outline, usually 6–12 × 0.7–1.2 (–1.8) cm, glabrous, some, usually the outer leaves, not divided and almost entire, most leaves dentate, pinnatilobed or most often pinnatisect, with 2–4 (5) pairs of triangular to linear-triangular, ± patent to recurved lateral segments to 4–8 mm long, terminal segment subobtuse, usually lingulate-triangular, with ± patent basal lobules. Scapes purple to pink-brown, glabrous, ± overtopping leaves. Capitulum 2.5–3.5 cm wide. Involucre dark grey, slightly pruinose, (8–) 9–10 mm wide, ± rounded at base. Outer phyllaries (10) 11–13 (15), ± not imbricate or subimbricate, lanceolate to ovate, usually 4–6.5 (–8.5) × 1.6–2.6 (–3.2) mm, loosely appressed to ± appressed, with a whitish border of variable width, evenly broad, usually (0.1–) 0.2–0.3 (–0.5) mm wide, rarely border ± absent from some phyllaries, sometimes suffused pink distally, transition into the dark, grey-pruinose middle part sharp, margins glabrous, apex ± flat to callose, sometimes minutely corniculate; inner phyllaries usually 12–14 mm, blackish green, ± flat. Flower colour peculiar and variable; outer ligules ± flat; outer rows of ligules inside usually pale lilac to whitish-pinkish distally and pale yellowish at base, sometimes wholly ± light yellow with pink hue, rarely ± light yellow, ligules outside striped deep pink or pale purplish, sometimes with some grey, rarely faintly grey-pink; inner ligule teeth short, pink to purplish. Stigmas greenish yellow, outside greyish green with grey pubescence. Anthers polliniferous; pollen grains irregular in size. Achenes light grey-stramineous-brown to light grey, unripe light stramineous-brown, 4.9–5.2 (–5.6) × 1.0– 1.2 mm, body generally smooth, usually with a few, or sparsely scattered minute spinules and/or squamules above, sometimes wholly smooth, cone not developed, body part above spinules thick, to 0.5 mm long, body with ± gradual transition into beak; beak easily breaking off, thickened (0.2–0.25 mm in the middle, thicker toward the ends), usually 4.0–4.5 (–5.5) mm. Pappus yellowish white, 5.5–6 mm long.—Agamospermous.—Chromosome number: 2n=32 ( Doll 1978, under T. lilacinum , voucher specimens determined).— Fig. 6, 8A , 11K .

Ecology and distribution: — Taraxacum pseudolilacinum grows almost exclusively on open fine gravel and medium old moraines, often on wet fine scree. It is a relatively widely distributed species known from a number of sites in the Zailiyskiy Alatau Range, Kazakhstan, and in several mountain ranges in Kyrgyzstan, mainly in the Kungei Alatau and the Kyrgyz Range ( Fig. 7 ).

Specimens examined: — KAZAKHSTAN. the Zailiyskiy Alatau Range (Khrebet Ileyskiy Alatau), Almaty: valley of Malaya Almatinka ( Kishi Almaty), Chimbulak ( Shymbulak ), about 2.2 km SW of Talgar Saddle (3154 m), fine wet scree with sparse vegetation, loc. no. 13. Geogr. coord.: 43° 06‘ 06.1“ N, 77° 06‘ 27.7“ E, 3363 m, 25 Jul 2009, L. Kirschnerová & J. Kirschner 18 ( PRA, no. det. 28219) ; L. Kirschnerová & J. Kirschner 16 ( PRA, no. det. 28221) ; L. Kirschnerová & J. Kirschner 17 ( PRA, no. det. 28220).—the Zailiyskiy Alatau Range (Khrebet Ileyskiy Alatau), Almaty: catchment area of Malaya Almatinka ( Kishi Almaty): in the vicinity of the Institute of Geography (and „CSKA“) field station („ Stantsia Tuyuksu “), north of the Glacier Lednik Molodyozhnyj , a part of the Tuyuksu Glacier complex, loc. 32. Geogr. coord.: 43° 04‘ 00.5“ N, 77° 04‘ 27.9“ E, ca. 3450 m s. m., 6 Aug 2009, L. Kirschnerová & J. Kirschner ( PRA, no. det. 28216 and dupl.; PRA, no. det. 28217 and dupl.).— Ibidem, loc. 30, 5 Aug 2009, L. Kirschnerová & J. Kirschner ( PRA, no. det. 28218 and dupl.).—the Zailiyskiy Alatau Range, district of Karasaiskiy Rayon, Almaty, region above the lake of Uľken Almaty (Bolshoe Almatinskoe Ozero), vicinity of the Dzhusaly-Kezen Pass between Pik Almaty (3681 m) and the main summit of Almatynyn-Alatary Mtns. (3954 m), steep wet gravelly slopes with sparse vegetation SE of the pass, loc. 38, Geogr. coord.: 43° 02‘ 21.2“ N, 76° 56‘ 48.1“ E, 3360 m, 8 Aug 2009, J. Kirschner 3172 ( PRA, no. det. 28222).— Ibidem, geogr. coord.: 43° 02‘ 17.1“ N, 76° 56‘ 39.5“ E, 3450 m, 8 Aug 2009, J. Kirschner 3137 ( PRA, no. det. 28223).—Zailiyskiy Alatau, ushchelye B. Almatinki [B. Almatinka ravine], ... vblizi perevala v r. Kebin [in the vicinity of the pass to Kebin River], 30 Jul 1943, V. Goloskokov ( AA, no. det. 19191).—Zailiyskiy Alatau, levyy bereg r. Sredniy Talgar [left bank of Sredniy Talgar River], morena lednika “Ularov“ [Ularov Glacier moraine], 21 Aug 1935, Mironova ( AA, no. det. 20070).—Kungei Alatau, Tau-Chilik, vodorazdel [divide of] Dum-bulak—Kugantyr, 3450 m, 12 Aug 1944, V. Goloskokov ( AA, no. det. 19193).—Alma-Ata, N Medeo, ca. 3500–4000 m, 27 Jul 1976, R. Doll ( JE, no. det. 30175) .

KYRGYZSTAN. [Kungei Alatau] Aleksandr. Khrebet, pereval Aksu [Aksu Pass], 10 Jul 1916, Yu. Tsinzerling & E. Zvyashitsev 1435 ( TASH, no. det. 15823).—[Kyrgyz Range] Pishpekskiy u. [Bishkek District], severnyy sklon Aleksandrovskogo khrebta [northern slope of Alexander Range], bassein r. Alamedin [Alamedin River basin], ... po pravuyu storonu konechnoy moreny led. r. Ali ... [illegible; to the right hand side of terminal moraine of the glacier of the river Ali...], 2 Aug 1919, M. Sovetkina 258 ( TASH, no. det. 15821).—[Central Kyrgyzstan] Central’nyy Tian-Shan , Ketmen-tyubinskyy rayon, pereval Kara-Gyz [Central Tian-Shan, Ketmen-Tyubin District, Kara-Gyz Pass], 23 Jul 1927, E. P. Korovin 786 ( TASH, no. det. 15822).— Tian-Šan, montes Kirgizskij chrebet, in pascuis in valle fl. Ala-Arča ( Issik-Ata ), ca. 30 km situ merid. ab urbe Frunze, ca. 3000 m, Jul-Aug 1988, M. Holub ( PRA, no. det. 28137) .

Figures

FIGURE 7. The distribution range of T. pseudolilacinum.

FIGURE 8. A, T. pseudolilacinum (PRA, no. det. 28224). B, T. orientali-atratum (PRA, no. det. 28210). Scale bar equals 3 cm.

FIGURE 11.Achenes of the members of T. sect. Atrata: G, T. sublilacinum (PRA, #111/2); H, T. orientali-atratum (PRA, no. det. 28210); I, T. pamiricum (PRA, no. det. 28213); J, T. pseudoatratum (LE, no.det. 7973); K, T. pseudolilacinum (PRA, #17); L, T. subglaciale (LE, no. det. 7955). Scale bar = 1 mm.