Peliosanthes sinica F.T.Wang & Tang.

Borah, Dipankar, Taram, Momang & Tanaka, Noriyuki, 2024, Peliosanthes maheswariana D. Borah, N. Tanaka & Taram, sp. nov. (Asparagaceae), from Arunachal Pradesh, NE India, and P. sinica new to India, Adansonia (3) 46 (1), pp. 1-8 : 6

Peliosanthes sinica F.T.Wang & Tang.

( Fig. 3 )

Flora Reipublicae Popularis Sinicae 15: 253 ( Wang & Tang 1978). ORIGINAL DESCRIPTION. — Species nova caulis 5.5-18.5 cm vel ultra longo plus minusive procumbenti notabilis.

TYPE MATERIAL. — China • Yunnan, Simao; 1200 m; plant 30 cm high; flowers violet; 28.IV.1957; China – Soviet Union joint expedition to Yunnan 8178 (holo-, PE [ PE00036760 ], image seen) .

DISTRIBUTION. — NE India (Arunachal Pradesh – new record), NE Thailand ( Chayamarit et al. 2014), NE and central Laos ( Averyanov et al. 2015), SW China ( Wang & Tang 1978).

PHENOLOGY. — Flowering in November-December (Arunachal Pradesh).

HABITAT AND ECOLOGY. — Plants of P. sinica were growing in abundance in dry floor of subtropical forests of Sessa (Arunachal Pradesh). SPECIMENS EXAMINED. — India • Arunachal Pradesh, West Kameng district , Sessa; 700-800 m; 02.XII.2022; D. Borah & M. Taram 4016 (ASSAM!) .

China • Yunnan, Cheli Hsien [Jinghong]; 1400 m; X.1936; C. W . Wang 79161 (para-, PE [ PE00036761 , PE00290266 ]) .

Laos • Vientian Prov., Kasi Distr. ; c. 900 m; 22.III.2013; L. Averyanov et al. LA-VN 723 ( LE [ LE01049919 ]) • Houphan Prov., Hem Distr. ; 700-900 m a.s.l.; 12.IV.2015; N. T. Hiep et al. LA-VN 1378 ( LE [ LE01058044 ], P [ P00991539 ]) • Xiangkhouang Prov., Kham Distr. ; 1200-1400 m a.s.l.; 4.IV.2015; T. H. Nguyen et al. LA-VN 1074 ( LE [ LE01049915 ], P [ P00910379 ]) .

REMARK

Peliosanthes sinica is characterized by the long, proximally creeping stem, tufts of leaves at intervals, peduncles shorter than the inflorescence, small anthers 0.4-0.6 mm long, and half-inferior ovaries abruptly tapering into a conical style. It is similar to both P. pachystachya W.H.Chen & Y.M.Shui and P. minutiflora N.Tanaka, J.Murata & S.K.Wu , but differs from the former mainly by the shorter pedicels (2-2.5 vs 9-10 mm long, Chen & Shui 2003), and from the latter by the larger flowers (6-8.5 vs 2.5-3 mm in diameter, Tanaka et al. 2013).

DESCRIPTION ( BASED ON SPECIMENS FROM INDIA) Terrestrial glabrous evergreen perennial herbs. Stem up to 50 cm long, up to 0.5 cm in diam. including proximal creeping portion, part above ground usually erect, 15-20 cm high, unbranched, apical portions covered with several basally imbricate transitory sheathing scales up to 7.5 cm long, annual nodes spaced at intervals of 10-16 cm, scars of scales between annual nodes 5-8 (excluding those on annual nodes), spaced up to 4 cm. Roots few, wiry, some stilt-like, proximally rigid, up to 3 mm in diam. Leaves 1-3 from annual node, suberect, petiolate; petiole sub-terete, 8-15 cm long, 2 mm wide; blade narrowly elliptic, 16-20 cm long, 3.5-5(7) cm wide, base attenuate, margin entire, often wavy, apex acute to acuminate, sub-plicate, main longitudinal veins 9-13, transverse veinlets fine, sub-perpendicular to longitudinal veins. Flowering stem (including peduncle and inflorescence rachis) 13-18 cm long, flattened, longitudinally ribbed, purplish green; peduncle erect, sometimes curved, rigid, 2-4 cm long, 2 mm wide, greenish; inflorescence a raceme, rachis 11-14 cm long, green, bearing 21-30 flowers. Bracts on peduncle 2, floral bract 1 for each flower (bracteole lacking), narrowly triangular, 6-10 mm long, 1-5 mm wide (when flattened), green or light green, hyaline along margins. Flowers solitary in bracts, usually slightly ascending to rachis, 6-8.5 mm across, pedicellate; pedicels straight, sub-terete, 2-2.5 mm long, slightly ascending, green to purple. Perianth fleshy, dark purple, distally 6-cleft; proximal syntepalous part (tubular part) obconic, 2 mm high, 3 mm long, basally abruptly narrowed into short stalk which is 1.2 mm long and shorter than pedicel; segments outspread, often recurved, ovate or triangularovate, 2.5-3.3 mm long, 2-2.5 mm wide (outer 3 slightly wider at base than inner 3), usually slightly revolute laterally, apex obtuse. Stamens 6, monadelphous; corona epitepalous, annular, wall thickened toward base, incurved, orbicular to hexagonal at base, 0.5 mm high, 3.5-4 mm in diam. at base, dark purple, distally scarcely lobed, apical opening rounded, 2-2.5 mm in diam.; anthers 6, elliptic or orbicular, c. 0.5 mm long, introrse, sessile, nearly vertically attached to orifice of corona, creamy; pollen creamy. Pistil 1; ovary half-inferior, distal exposed portion hemispheric, 0.7 mm high, 2 mm wide at base, trilobed, slightly purplish, trilocular; ovules 4 in one locule, borne on basal central placenta; style conoid-columnar, 1 mm long, purple, trilobed, apically truncate; stigma trisected, c. 0.4 mm across.

TAXONOMIC RELATIONSHIPS

As said above, Peliosanthes sinica is considered to be very close to both P. pachystachya and P. minutiflora . These three species are so similar in many characters that their taxonomic identities are to be reexamined more closely by analyzing their variation on a wider range of specimens. Comparison of character states between P. sinica and four related species is made in Table 1 .

The habitat discovered in West Kameng District, Arunachal Pradesh, India, which lies on a southern flank of the southeast Tibetan Plateau, is now the westernmost locality in distribution of P. sinica .

Since a total of 13 species of Peliosanthes have been reported from NE India ( Odyuo et al. 2020; Roy et al. 2020), the present discoveries of the two species, P. maheswariana sp. nov. and P. sinica , bring the total number to 15 in this region.

Figures

FIG. 3. — Peliosanthes sinica F.T.Wang & Tang.: A, entire plant; B, distal part of flowering plant in late anthesis; C, abaxial surface of leaf; D, young inflorescence; E, F, portion of inflorescence in late anthesis;G, flower;H, longitudinal section of flower.Photos by D.Borah;layout by D.Borah & N. Tanaka.Scale bars:A,B, 10 cm.