Tephrosia hookeriana Wight & Arnott (1834: 212)

Krishnaraj, Moothedathu Venugopalan Nair & Mohanan, Narayanan Nair, 2017, Three lectotypifications in Tephrosia Pers. (Fabaceae), Phytotaxa 319 (2), pp. 197-199 : 197

Tephrosia hookeriana Wight & Arnott (1834: 212) .

Lectotype (here designated):— INDIA. Tamil Nadu: Trichnopoly , Wight Cat. No: 884 ( E00174456 [digital photo!], specimen on the upper half; isolectotypes: E00174458 [digital photo!]).

Note:—This South East-Asian endemic species, distributed in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, was named after Joseph Dalton Hooker by Robert Wight and G.A.Walker Arnott in 1834. In the protologue, the authors cite one gathering “ Wight! Cat. n. 884, T. Colutea, Wight ! In Wall.!L.n. 5647 (not DC.)Trichinopoly”.

Noltie (2005) cited the details of three specimens of T. hookeriana Wight &Arnott housed at Edinburgh herbarium (E). The herbarium specimen E00174456 is original material and consists of two pieces, mounted on the upper and lower half. It carries the label Herb. Wight. Propr. n. 884, bearing the names Tephrosiahookeriana, T.colutea Wight in W. L.n.5647, Trichnopoly and is a syntype. The specimen on the upper half is fully reproductive while the lower half has only flower buds present. Another specimen (E00174458) with the label Herb. Wight Propr. n. 884, Tephrosia colutea from Wight, Nagapatam, Trichnopoly, consists of a flowering twig, fruits and leaves (in a separate packet) and is an isosyntype. Noltie also cited another specimen without a Herb.Wight. Propr. label and probably annotated by Robert Graham as Wight Cat. n. 884, Tephrosia hookeriana, Colemala, Wight 1833 . Noltie asserted that the specimen (E00174457) do not belong to the original material because it was not collected from “Trichnopoly”, which is the type locality of T.hookeriana . We agree with Noltie and here select E00174456 as the lectotype, since it agrees with the protologue. The other collection at E with Wight Cat.n.884, collected from Trichnopoly has been designated here as isolectotype.