Gnidia sisparensis Gardner (1847: 457)

Prabhukumar, Konickal Mambetta, Rogers, Zachary S., Hareesh, Vadakkoot Sankaran & Balachandran, Indira, 2018, Reinstatement and lectotypification of Gnidia sisparensis (Thymelaeaceae), a species endemic to India, Phytotaxa 372 (2), pp. 179-182 : 180-181

Gnidia sisparensis Gardner (1847: 457)

≡ Gnidia glauca ( Fresenius 1838: 603) Gilg (1894: 227) var. sisparensis (Gardner) Kumari (1987: 214) ≡ Lasiosiphon eriocephalus (Wall. ex J. Graham 1839: 176) Decaisne (1844: 148) var. sisparensis (Gardner) Gamble (1925: 1244) ≡ Lasiosiphon sisparensis (Gardner) Meisner (1857: 598)

Type (lectotype, designated here):— INDIA. [Tamil Nadu: Neilgherry (Nilgiri) mountains, Sispara] “Neilgh.”, s.d., G. Gardner s.n. ( K barcode K 000357981 [digital image!], isolectotype K barcode K 000357982 [digital image!]. Fig. 1, image of the lectotype is available from http://apps.kew.org/herbcat/getImage.do?imageBarcode= K 000357981).

Nomenclatural notes:—In the protologue of Gnidia sisparensis , the provenance was quoted as: “Margins of woods near the top of the Sispara pass, Neilgherry mountains: Wight and Gardner. Flowers in February”. Two corresponding sheets have been found in the Kew herbarium, both ascribed by Gardner and bearing barcode numbers K 000357981 (stamped “Herbarium Benthamianum 1854”) and K 000357982 (stamped “Herbarium Hookerianum 1867”). The sheet K 000357981 includes one large branch with four attached well-developed inflorescences composed of many open flowers, where as sheet K 000357982 includes three affixed branches each bearing flowering inflorescences with numerous open flowers. Each K sheet bears a single label of comparable size and style handwritten by Gardner with the original identification “ Gnidia sp. ” and “Neilgh.” (for Neilgherry, a general locality mentioned in the protologue). The label of K 000357981 has an additional identification not written by Gardner (note the capitalized ‘G’s in Gardner’s “ Gnidia ” and the anonymously written “Gardner …”). The part of the inscription appearing after “Gardner” has become illegible because it was written on top of a torn and heavily damaged part of the label glued over the proximal end of the branch, but it could be a reference to a collection number (perhaps “ 6047 ” or “ 6057 ”). Aside from the original identification of the genus on the labels of the two K sheets, both were subsequently annotated as “var. sisparensis ” and stamped as determined by J. S. Gamble in 1924 for his Flora of Madras ( Gamble 1925).

In addition, two possible isosyntypes attributed to the herbarium of Robert Wight have been examined ( GH 00443744 and NY 01288014). Both sheets have different label formats but were likewise annotated as “ Herb. Wight 2492 ”. The second author of the present contribution ( ZSR) annotated the two sheets as possible isosyntypes of G. sisparensis in 2013 and 2011, respectively. Inexplicably, no duplicate material of this collection has been found at K, Wight’s home herbarium, despite careful searches by ZSR during visits in 2006 and 2008. All four of the flowering specimens on the NY sheet have a morphology very closely matching those of the two Gardner sheets at K. In the dry state, the specimens affixed to the GH sheet are darker compared to the NY specimens, so it is possible that at least two different collections have been labeled with the same provenance and number, i.e. “ Herb. Wight 2492 ”. Neither sheet by Wight was annotated by Gardner.

In conclusion, all of the aforementioned specimens belonging to Gardner and Wight closely match the protologue description and follow current taxonomic application of the name. Following Art. 9.3 and the recommendations of Art. 9 of the Shenzhen Code ( Turland et al. 2018), we consider K 000357981, with its large, good quality flowering branch, to be the best choice to designate here as the lectotype of Gnidia sisparensis . Any duplicates of either syntype (e.g. the GH and NY sheets) should be regarded as isosyntypes following the footnote of Art. 9.4.

Taxonomic notes:—Despite all of the nomenclatural changes, since themid-1860s no new vouchers of the taxon had been reported until three small flowering trees were observed in the Palakkad District in 2013 by Prabhukumar et al. (2014), growing within the characteristic shola forests of Southern India (ca. 1900–2100 m elevations). Between 2014–2016, two more exploration surveys were made in the same area (Elivalmala region) by the present authors, resulting in the location of 45 additional mature individuals, plus another 27 seedlings, up from those first three individuals discovered in 2013 (see also color photos in Prabhukumar et al. 2014). Examining variation in this larger sample size revealed that the populations of G. glauca var. sisparensis constantly differ in several characters from living plants of var. glauca growing in the Indian states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Maharashtra and Odisha [Orissa] (see Table 1). These observations were also confirmed by the examination of herbaria specimens of var. sisparensis , which also differ obviously from the many observed samples of var. glauca gathered throughout the African part of its range, particularly with respect to leaf shape (pers. obs., Rogers). Given the consistent notable differences, the taxon is restored to the rank of species, as Gnidia sisparensis .

Additional specimens examined:— INDIA. Karnataka: Mysore [Mysuru], without date, T. Lobb s.n. ( K barcode K000357984 [digital image]!) ; Kerala: Palakkad, Palghat Hill, 1865, R. H. Beddome s.n. ( K barcode K000357983 [digital image]!) ; Palakkad district, Muthikulam forest, Elivalmala , 22 November 2013, K. M. Prabhukumar 7728 ( CMPR, MH) ; Palakkad district, Muthikulam forest, Elivalmala , 12 November 2016, K. M. Prabhukumar & P. M. Binu Prakash 9888 ( CMPR) ; Palakkad district, Muthikulam forest, Elivalmala , 22 November 2013, V. S. Hareesh, T. K. Nirmesh & V. B. Sreekumar 28859 ( KFRI) ; Tamil Nadu: Nilgherries [Nilgiri mountains], s.d., Herb. R. Wight 2492 ( GH barcode GH00443744 , NY barcode NY01288014 ) .