Akhania Sukhor., gen. nov. (Caroxyleae, Salsoloideae).

Type species.

Akhania daghestanica (Bunge) Sukhor. (Fig. 2).

Description.

Subshrubs or small shrubs 20-100 cm tall, with several or numerous stems forming ± bushy habit, glabrous or covered with papillae and tiny caducous simple and smooth (not denticulate) hairs; leaves linear to broadly lanceolate, 5-35 × 1.0-3.0 mm, bright green, glaucous or greyish, covered with appressed simple (partially caducous) hairs, basally not gibbous and not broadened; bracts leaf-like, usually exceeding flowers or equaling, basally orbicular, abruptly ( C. daghestanica) or continuously ( C. canescens, C. carpatha) diminishing above the base; flowers with two bracteoles smaller than bract; perianth segments 5, glabrous or pubescent, apically obtuse, at fruiting each segment bears wings originated below the middle of each segment; anthers 5, 1.3-3.0 mm long, thecae divided almost to the top, apically with a large (0.8-2.0 mm long) vesicle that is not clearly separated from the thecae; styles shorter than the stigma; seeds with horizontal or vertical embryo position.

Etymology.

The new genus is named after Iranian botanist Hossein Akhani.

The genus consists of three species. The distribution areas of A. daghestanica (Dagestan) (Fig. 3), A. canescens (Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Afghanistan) and A. carpatha (Aegean Islands) are remarkably disjunctive.

Akhania differs from the related Caroxylon by several remarkable characters or their combinations (Table 2, Fig. 4).