Cerastium huadingense Y.F.Lu, W.Y.Xie & X.F.Jin, 2021

Lu, Yi-Fei, Xu, Yue-Liang, Xie, Wen-Yuan, Zhang, Hong-Wei, Zheng, Zi-Hong, Cai, Xin & Jin, Xiao-Feng, 2021, Two new species and a new combination from Zhejiang, East China, PhytoKeys 184, pp. 111-126 : 111

Cerastium huadingense Y.F.Lu, W.Y.Xie & X.F.Jin sp. nov.

Chinese name: 华顶卷耳 Figs 1 , 2

Latin diagnosis.

Species nova haec C. qingliangfengico H.W.Zhang & X.F.Jin affinis est, quae caulibus sterilibus frequent praesentibus, foliis petiolatis, petiolis 5-9 mm longis, petalis sepalis 2-plo ultra longioribus, 10-12 mm longis, staminibus sepalis leviter longioribus differt.

Type.

China. Zhejiang (浙江): Tiantai (天台), Mount Huading (华顶山), near Huading Temple (华顶讲寺), roadside at forest margin, 29°15'06.31"N, 121°05'24.52"E, alt. 1000 m, 25 April 2020, Xiao-Feng Jin & Yi-Fei Lu 4583 (holotype: ZM; isotypes: HTC, PE) .

Description.

Herb perennial, 12-25 cm tall. Roots slender. Stems caespitose, unbranched, erect, green, sparsely to densely white-pubescent. Leaves opposite; basal and lower leaf blades spatulate or narrowly spatulate, 1.2-3.2 cm long, 0.4-0.8 cm wide, entire and sparsely ciliate at margin, apex acute, base attenuate, sparsely pubescent on both surfaces; upper leaf blades ovate, ovate-elliptic or oblong, 1.2-4 cm long, 0.5-1.5 cm wide, entire and sparsely ciliate at margin, apex acute, base slightly cordate, sparsely pubescent on both surfaces, sessile. Cyme terminal or axillary in upper part of stems, 6-15-flowered; bracts leaf-like but smaller, narrowly ovate or lanceolate, herbaceous, sparsely pubescent on both surfaces; pedicels slender, 3-12 mm long, white-pubescent; flowers white, 1.1-1.3 cm in diam. Sepals 5, lanceolate, green, 5-6 mm long, apex acuminate, margin membranous, abaxially pilose and glandular-pubescent. Petals 5, narrowly obovate, white, 6-7 mm long, slightly longer than sepals, 2-lobed for ± 1/4 of length, lobes broadly ovate-oblong, apex acute, base glabrous. Stamens 10, filaments glabrous, slightly shorter than sepals. Styles 5, linear. Capsules cylindric, ± 2 as long as sepals, 10-toothed. Seeds numerous, subtriangular-globose, slightly compressed, brown, ca. 1 mm in diam., tuberculate. Flowering and fruiting April-May.

Distribution and habitat.

This new species is known from Mount Huading of Tiantai County and Mount Siming of Yuyao County, eastern Zhejiang. It grows under forest, in wet places or roadside at forest margin at the elevation of 900-1000 m.

Phenology.

Flowering and fruiting from mid-April to mid-May.

Etymology.

The specific epithet ' Cerastium huadingense ' refers to the type locality of the new species.

Conservation status.

Vulnerable, VU B2ab(iii)C1 ( IUCN 2019). The new species is only known from two localities, Mount Huading in Tiantai and Mount Siming in Yuyao, and occupied less than 400 km2 with about 5000 mature individuals. This species is considered as Vulnerable (VU) according to IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria ( IUCN 2019) based on the current data.

Specimen examined.

Zhejiang (浙江): Tiantai (天台), Mount Huading (华顶山), Mochi (墨池), in wet place, alt. 900 m, 14 April 2018, Wen-Yuan Xie TT18041411 (PE, ZJFC, ZM), the same locality, under forest, 12 May 1978, Chao-Fang Zhang 3881 (ZJFC, ZM), roadside, alt. 1000 m, 25 April. 2020, Xiao-Feng Jin & Yi-Fei Lu 4584 (HTC, PE, ZM), 11 May 2020, Yi-Fei Lu 235 (HTC, PE, ZJFC, ZM); Mount Huading (华顶山), Ximaopeng (西茅蓬), roadside, alt. 900 m, 26 April 1976, Chao-Zong Zheng 8160 (HTC, ZM). Yuyao (余姚), Mount Siming (四明山), 28 April. 2018, Zheng-Hai Chen & Jian-Sheng Wang YY18042801 (HTC, ZJFC, ZM).

Notes.

The genus Cerastium contains ca. 100 species and is almost cosmopolitan, but is mainly distributed in north temperate regions. Twenty-five species were recorded in China ( Lu and Morton 2001; Zhang et al. 2008; Yao et al. 2021). A recent study revealed that the monotypic genus Pseudocerastium was merged in Cerastium ( Yao et al. 2021).

Cerastium huadingense X.F.Jin, W.Y.Xie & Y.F.Lu is most similar to C. qingliangfengicum in pubescent stems, 5 styles and petals longer than sepals, but differs in having sterile stems absent, leaves sessile, petals slightly longer than sepals, and stamens slightly shorter than sepals. With loosely flowered cymes, pubescent pedicels, and petals 2-lobed at the apex, the new species, C. qingliangfengicum , C. jiuhuashanense and C. wilsonii are similar to each another and form a complex. The morphological characters distinguished from these species are shown in Table 1 .

Figures

Figure 1. Cerastium huadingense sp. nov. A habit B indumentum on stem C basal leaf D upper leaf E indumentum on peduncle F vertical section of flower (showing sepals, petals, stamens and pistil) G petal H stamen I capsule with sepals and petals J seed (Illustrated by Hong Wang; based on Xiao-Feng Jin & Yi-Fei Lu 4583, ZM).

Figure 2. Comparison of Cerastium huadingense and C. qingliangfengicum A-E Cerastium huadingense sp. nov. A habitat B habit C indumentum on stem D flower E capsule F-I Cerastium qingliangfengicum F habitat G indumentum on stem H flower I capsule.