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

Sukhorukov, Alexander P., Fedorova, Alina V., Kushunina, Maria & Mavrodiev, Evgeny V., 2022, Akhania, a new genus for Salsola daghestanica, Caroxylon canescens and C. carpathum (Salsoloideae, Chenopodiaceae, Amaranthaceae), PhytoKeys 211, pp. 45-61 : 45

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 ).

Figures

Figure 2. Akhania daghestanica A adult plant B the upper part of the inflorescence. Photographs by D. S. Shilnikov (Russia, Dagestan, Shamilsky distr., Hebda vill., 14 Jul 2020).

Figure 3. The distribution area of Akhania daghestanica. The insert map shows the location of Dagestan Republic (colored in red).

Figure 4. Morphological differences between Akhania and Caroxylon A non-gibbous leaf base in Akhania daghestanica B gibbous leaf base in Caroxylon laricinum C anther of Akhania daghestanica with a large appendage (vesicle) D anther of Caroxylon laricinum with a small appendage. Abbreviations: a - anther appendage, th - thecae. Scale bar: 1 mm. Black arrows indicate the leaf base.