Viola dasyphylla W. Becker (1928: 135)

Nicola, Marcela Viviana, Salomón, Luciana & Zuloaga, Fernando Omar, 2018, Nomenclatural and taxonomic study in species of Viola (Violaceae) from Argentina, Phytotaxa 338 (2), pp. 151-176 : 159

Viola dasyphylla W. Becker (1928: 135)

Type:— ARGENTINA. [Neuquén:] Cerro Colohuincul , 7000 ft, 17 December 1926, H.F. Comber 884 (holotype, K 000535087 [digital image!]; isotype, E 00322383 [digital image!]) .

Protologue citation:— “ Argentina , 40º S:Cerro Colohuincul,between San Martin de losAndes and Lago Huechulafquen, 2100 m., Dec. 1926, H. F. Comber 884 (type in Herb. Kew.); […] Ibid., H. F. Comber 883 […]”

Distribution:—Endemic of Neuquén province, Argentina.

= Viola lologensis (W. Becker 1928: 135) J.M. Watson (2011: 302) , syn. nov.

Basionym: Viola cotyledon Gingins (1824: 300) subsp. lologensis W. Becker (1928: 135) .

Type:— ARGENTINA. Neuquén: Vega Lolog , 810 m, 5 December 1926, H.F. Comber 816 (holotype, K 000535079 [digital image!]; isotype, E 00322370 [digital image!]) .

Protologue citation:— “ARGENTINA , 40° S: Vega Lolog, 810 m., Dec. 1926, H. F. Comber 816 (type in Herb. Kew.) [...] Hill near Vega Lolog, 1380 m., Dec. 1926, H. F. Comber 853 [...]”

Notes:—After studying the material, including types, of Viola dasyphylla and V. cotyledon subsp. lologensis¸ we concluded that there are no critical diagnostic characters to support either V. cotyledon subsp. lologensis or V. lologensis as valid taxa. Consequently, V. lologensis is reduced here to the synonymy of V. dasyphylla . Wilhelm Becker (1928) judged the specimens of Harold F. Comber from Lago Lolog to be a subspecies ( subsp. lologensis ) of V. cotyledon . Nevertheless, V. cotyledon has large, long-spurred flowers (over 1.5 cm wide), violet petals (sometimes white, sometimes with relatively inconspicuous dark lines), the lowermost and lateral petals always with claviform hairs, while V. lologensis and V. dasyphylla have medium size, short-spurred flowers (under 1.5 cm wide), white, completely glabrous petals with violet or blue guide lines. In addition V. lologensis was only gathered at its type locality. Characters used to distinguish V. lologensis from V. dasyphylla , such as imbrication of leaves and color of leaves and calyx, do not possess sufficient diagnostic value to enable V. lologensis to be recognized as a distinct species.