Cephalaria saldaensis Göktürk, Hamzaoğlu & Yüceol, 2023

Göktürk, Ramazan Süleyman, Yüceol, Fulya, Galatali, Selin, Kaya, Ergun, Hamzaoğlu, Ergin & Koç, Murat, 2023, A New Cephalaria (Caprifoliaceae) Species from Turkey, Phytotaxa 587 (2), pp. 173-183 : 175-178

Cephalaria saldaensis Göktürk, Hamzaoğlu & Yüceol sp. nov. ( Figs. 1−2 )

Type:— TURKEY. Burdur: Yeşilova, Eşeler Mountain, the upper part of Salda Lake , between the ski resort and the fire watchtower, serpentine stony places, 37°27’39.547’’N, 29°39’322’’E, 1880 m a.s.l., 26 August 2022, R.S.Göktürk 8317 & F.Yüceol (holotype AKDU!, isotypes ANK!, GAZI!, HUB!, PAMUH!).

Description:—Slender, erect or ascending perennial herbs. Stem up to 1 m tall, simple, longitudinally striate, minute puberulent in the lower and middle part, glabrous in the upper part. Leaves coriaceous, reticulate rugose, minute puberulent; lower leaves simple or lyrate; simple leaves and segments entire or denticulate, acute at apex; simple leaves linear-lanceolate, lanceolate or oblanceolate, 4−10 × 0.4−1.6 cm; lyrate leaves broadly lanceolate in outline, 5−12 × 0.5−2.2 cm, with 1-2 segments, lateral segments oblong or linear-lanceolate, 0.3−1.2 × 0.4−0.7 cm, terminal segments larger than lateral ones, lanceolate or ovate, 2.5−4 × 0.3−1.3 cm; cauline leaves simple, lanceolate or linear-lanceolate, 3−9 × 0.4−1.4 cm; upper leaves simple, sessile, linear, 0.3−4 × 0.1−0.2 cm. Capitula ovoid, 15−25-flowered, 1−1.6 mm in diameter in flower, 0.4−1 cm in diameter in fruit. Involucral bracts broadly ovate-orbicular, 3−5 × 2−4 mm, pale purple to violet, pilose, margins ciliate, obtuse at apex; receptacular bracts oblanceolate, 6−10 × 2−4 mm, strawcoloured at the base, purple-brown to violet in dorsal and at apex, pilose, margin ciliate, pilose at apex, subacute or acute at apex. Calyx cupuliform, 1 mm in diameter, with irregular teeth. Corolla pale blue, pinkish-purple or white, 8−11 mm long, densely adpressed pilose outside. Involucel 4-angled, 5−8 mm long in fruit, pilose, 4 long and 4 short teeth at apex; long teeth 1.8−2.2 mm long, short teeth 1−1.5 mm long.

Distribution and ecology:— Cephalaria saldaensis is endemic to South-WestAnatolia, Turkey ( Fig.3 ). This species grows in serpentine stony places at altitudes between 1380−1880 meters. This endemic new species is associated with other endemics such as Verbascum trapifolium (Stapf 1885: 88) Huber-Morath (1973: 16) var. flabellifolium (HuberMorath 1973: 12) Karavelioğulları & Aytaç (2008: 17) , Minuartiella serpentinicola Koç & Hamzaoğlu (2019: 164) , Clinopodium troodi (Post 1900: 97) Govaerts (1999: 19) subsp. vardaranum (Leblebici 1974: 76) Govaerts (1999: 19) and non-endemic plants such as Phlomis armeniaca Willdenow (1800: 119) , Peucedanum alpinum (Sieber ex Schultes 1820: 414) B.L.Burtt & P.H.Davis (1949: 227) , Pinus nigra J.F.Arnold (1785: 8) subsp. pallasiana (Lambert 1828: 2) Holmboe (1914: 29) var. pallasiana , Prometheum sempervivoides (Fischer ex M.Bieberstein) H.Ohba (1978: 169) , Sideritis libanotica (1812: 8) Labillardière subsp. linearis (Bentham 1848: 440) Bornmüller (1932: 140) , Papaver pilosum Sibthorp & Smith (1809: 360) subsp. strictum (Boissier & Balansa 1859: 8) N.Wendt ex Kadereit (1996: 292) , Leontodon hispidus Linnaeus (1753: 799) subsp. hispidus , Campanula stricta Linnaeus (1762: 238) subsp. libanotica (A.D. Candolle 1839: 463) Boissier (1875: 924) .

Phenology: —Flowering from April to May. Fruiting from May to June.

Proposed conservation status: — Cephalaria saldaensis is known only from three adjacent localities with small subpopulations in Eşeler Mountain. It is suggested that this new species should be placed under the IUCN threat category “Critically Endangered (CR)” ( IUCN 2019), because the estimated area of occupancy is less than 10 km 2, and only known 1 location, the population size of the new species is estimated to be less than 50 mature individuals in each subpopulation [CR B2ab(ii, iii, v)+C2a(i)]. The population size of the new species may decrease in the near future due to intense grazing pressure and anthropogenic effects.

Etymology: —The specific epithet is derived from Salda Lake.

Proposed Turkish name for the new species:—Salda pelemiri.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Cephalaria saldaensis Göktürk, Hamzaoğlu & Yüceol, sp. nov. A) General view in nature; B) Close-up view of flowering capitula; C) Close-up view of fruiting capitula.

FIGURE 2. A) Lower leaves of Cephalaria saldaensis (a), C. dirmilensis (b), C. scoparia (c). a1 and a2) simple leaves, a3) lyrate leaves; b1 and b2) simple leaves, b3) lyrate leaves; c1) simple leaves, c2 and c3) lyrate leaves. B) Reproductive parts of Cephalaria saldaensis (a), C. dirmilensis (b), C. scoparia (c). 1) involucral bract; 2) receptacular bract; 3) involucel with caylx.

FIGURE 3. Distribution of Cephalaria saldaensis (), C. dirmilensis (), C. scoparia ().