Carduus affinis Gussone (1826: 334) subsp. affinis

Peruzzi, Lorenzo, Astuti, Giovanni, Carta, Angelino, Roma-Marzio, Francesco, Dolci, David, Caldararo, Franco, Bartolucci, Fabrizio & Bernardo, Liliana, 2015, Nomenclature, morphometry, karyology and SEM cypselae analysis of Carduus brutius (Asteraceae) and its relatives, Phytotaxa 202 (4), pp. 237-249 : 245

Carduus affinis Gussone (1826: 334) subsp. affinis

Type (lectotype, designated here):— ITALY. Abruzzo. Majella alla Majelletta di Roccamorice, August 1824, G. Gussone s.n. ( NAP!, Herb. Gussone). Note:—Among the collections conserved in Herbarium Gussone at NAP, this is the only one which can be certainly considered as original material, and is here selected as the lectotype. Further original material is the iconography published along with the protologue ( Gussone 1826: t. 57).

= Carduus affinis f. pollinensis Fiori in Fiori & Béguinot (1904: 356). Type (lectotype, designated here):— ITALY. Calabria. In apricis sylvaticis montosis Calabriae, Pollino presso la Mandria Rovitti, July 1880, N. Terracciano s.n. (FI!). Note:—In the protologue, “ C. affinis var. c. N. Terr.” is directly cited as a synonym of C. affinis f. pollinensis . Terracciano (1890: 166), recorded “presso la Mandria Rovitti” as collection locality for his “var. c”. Hence, the herbarium specimen traced in FI can be considered as original material and is here selected as the lectotype. The analysis of type material points towards a taxon completely falling within the variability of C. affinis s.s.

= Carduus affinis var. vulturius Fiori in Fiori & Béguinot (1904: 356). Type (lectotype, designated here):— ITALY. Basilicata. in argillosis calcareis prope Melfi, 8 July 1880, A. Biondi s.n. (FI! sub C. corymbosus Ten., sheet revised as C. affinis var. vulturius manu Fiori; isolectotype in FI!). Note:—In the protologue, a syntype is cited (“Biondi in hb. flor., sub C. corymbosus !”). In FI, actually, two duplicates exist. We select here as the lectotype the one directly annotated by Fiori. The analysis of the type material points towards a less hairy form of C. affinis s.s., with general features somehow intermediate between C. affinis subsp. affinis and C. affinis subsp. brutius . We agree with Kazmi (1964) in considering this name as a heterotypic synonym of C. affinis subsp. affinis , but studies of a topotypic living population will be necesary to definitely establish the taxonomic value of this name.

Distribution:—Endemic to central and southern Apennine, from Marche / Umbria (Appennino Piceno) to Calabria (Pollino Massif) ( Fig. 8 ).

Figures

FIGURE 8. Map of central and southern Italy showing the distribution of C. affinis subsp. affinis (in green squares) and C. affinis subsp. brutius (in red squares), according to the studied herbarium material.