Muscari erdalii N.Özhatay & S.Demirci, 2013

Demirci, Serpil, Özhatay, Neriman & Koçyiğit, Mine, 2013, Muscari erdalii (Asparagaceae, Scilloideae), a new species from Southern Turkey, Phytotaxa 154 (1), pp. 38-46 : 40-42

Muscari erdalii N.Özhatay & S.Demirci sp. nov. ( Fig. 1 ).

Bulb globose, 20–30 mm in diameter. Outer tunics papery, ivory-brown; middle tunics membranous, creamy; inner tunics transparent, membranous. Leaves 4–6, subpatent, falcate in appearence, linear–lanceolate, 15–20 cm × 5– 10(–15) mm, longer than scape, canaliculate, glaucous, margin distinctly scabrid, apex acute-obtuse. Scape stout, glaucous, (13–) 15–20(–27) cm, shorter than leaves or rarely equalling them. Raceme lax, cylindrical, 8–12 × 3–5 cm, 40–60 flowered. Pedicels of fertile flowers stout, horizontally-subpatent, 12–15 mm, longer 1.5–2 × than perigone, not obviously elongated in fruit (to 16 mm). Fertile flowers in bud greenish, at anthesis narrowly oblongobconical, 9–11 × 3–4 mm, glaucous greenish ivory, shoulders sharply angled; lobes blackish, recurved, 0.5 mm. Outer filaments 1 mm; inner filaments 1 mm; anther blackish, 1–1.5 mm. Pollen yellow. Ovary ovate, 2.5 mm, style 1 mm, stigma punctate. Pedicels of sterile flowers pale violaceous, horizontal to ascending, 10–20 mm, longer at least × 1.5–2 than sterile flowers. Sterile flowers narrowly tubular, 3–9 mm, whitish-pale violaceous with brownishblack apical lobes, deflexed. Capsule ovate to orbicular, trilobed, acute-obtuse, 12–18 × 10–15 mm, glaucous, valves strongly compressed. Seeds 2 per capsule, 2.5 mm wide, ovoid, rugose, black.

Type: ― TURKEY. C4 Mersin: Mut-Kırobası, 18 km of Mut , open lime soil, 1280 m, 15 June 1990, N. & E.Özhatay, Iter Anatolicum 61829 (holotype ISTE!) .

Other examined specimens (paratypes): ― C4 Içel: 19 km E. from Mut on road & Kırobasi, open lime stone rocky place, white friable soil, 1350 m, 15 June 1990, Cowley, Doherty et al. 72/90-334 ( K!, as Muscarimia massayanum ); Between Mut and Kırobası, around Kıca village , 1189 m, 12 March 2011, cult. fl. 12 May 2012, E. Kaya 1640 ( ISTE! n. 96672); Between Mut and Kırobası, around Kıca village, 1189 m, 12 March 2011, cult. fl. 19 May 2013, E. Kaya 1640 ( ISTE! n. 96673) .

Distribution:— M. erdalii is endemic to Turkey and distributed in the Mediterranean phytogeographical region. It grows on rocky slopes between at the elevation of 1189 – 1640 m a.s.l. and it is known only from the type locality ( Fig. 5 ).

Etymology:—Named after Erdal Kaya, who is coordinator of Geophyte project and collector of the specimens.

Karyology:—Subgen. Leopoldia has two pairs of long, strongly heterobrachial chromosomes, clearly differentiated from three pairs of medium-sized chromosomes which may show slightly differences. There remain four pairs of small chromosomes. Some globose satellites may be found on either the short or the long arm. All Turkish species belonging to subgen. Leopoldia are diploid with 2n = 18 chromosomes ( Stuart 1970, Dalgıç 1990, Özhatay & Johnson 1996, Johnson & Brandham 1997, Özhatay 2000). Also M. erdalii resulted diploid with 2n = 18 chromosomes, showing a karyotype closely related to those of M. tenuiflorum and M. babachii , as follows:

M. erdalii: The karyotype formula is 2n = 2x = 18 = 8m + 4sm + 2st + 2st sat + 2t. Metaphase chromosome length ranges from 1.8 to 6.6 µm; total haploid chromosome length is 17.3 µm ±0.94 ( Fig. 3A ). Intrachromosomal asymmetry (M CA) is 36.79 and interchromosomal asymmetry index (CV CL) is 46.14.

M. tenuiflorum: The karyotype formula is 2n = 2x = 18 = 8m + 6sm sat + 2st + 2t. Metaphase chromosome length ranges from 3.3 to 8.3 µm; total haploid chromosome length is 21.8 µm ±0.61 ( Fig. 3B ). Intrachromosomal asymmetry (M CA) is 23.53 and interchromosomal asymmetry index (CV CL) is 36.60.

M. babachii: The karyotype formula is 2n = 2x = 18 = 8m + 6sm + 2st sat + 2t sat. Metaphase chromosome length ranges from 3.6 to 9.7 µm; total haploid chromosome length is 27.3 µm ±0.43. Intrachromosomal asymmetry (M CA) is 28.57 and interchromosomal asymmetry index (CV CL) is 38.36.

The chromosome number of M. babachii ( Fig. 3C ) and the chromosome number and morphology of M. erdalii ( Fig. 3A ) are reported here for the first time.

Taxonomic relationships:— M. erdalii is closely related to M. tenuiflorum and M. babachii , but differs by having glaucous habit, shorter scape (15–20 cm), scabrid leaf margins, glaucous greenish ivory fertile flowers (9–11 mm), whitish-pale violaceous sterile flowers (3–9 mm), pedicels of fertile flowers (12–15 mm) longer than 1.5–2 × perigone, pale violaceous pedicels of sterile flowers (10–20 mm) and larger capsule (12–18 mm). Despite all examined species share the same diploid chromosome number, M. erdalii differs from the related species in having 4 submetacentric (sm) and 4 subtelocentric (st) chromosome pairs. Also M. erdalii is distinguished from others species on the scatter plot of the three karyotypes (Fig 6).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Habit of M. tenuiflorum (A), M. babachii (B), M. erdalii (C).

FIGURE 3. Karyotypes of M. erdalii (A), M. tenuiflorum (B) and M. babachii (C).

FIGURE 5. Distrubution map of M. erdalii (stars), M. babachii (squares), and M. tenuiflorum (triangles) in Turkey.