Centaurea phaeopappa subsp. jiroftensis Ranjbar & Negaresh, 2013

Ranjbar, Massoud & Negaresh, Kazem, 2013, A revision of Centaurea sect. Phaeopappus (Asteraceae, Cardueae), Phytotaxa 123 (1), pp. 1-40 : 29-30

12a. Centaurea phaeopappa subsp. jiroftensis Ranjbar & Negaresh , subsp. nov. Figs. 14 , 15 .

Centaureae phaeopappae subsp. phaeopappae affinis, a qua planta ad 16 cm (nec 25–45 cm) alta, foliis superioribus saepe involucro distincte superantibus (nec non superantibus), involucro 29–33 × 35–40 mm (nec 20–25 × 20–25 mm), appendicibus phyllorum internum atropurpureis (nec brunneis vel atrobrunneis) differt.

Type: IRAN. Prov. Kerman: Jiroft toward Kerman, 10 km after Jiroft , 1450 m, 3 June 2011, Ranjbar & Negaresh 24214 (holotype BASU!, photo B) .

Perennial plants, usually completely grayish-white, with long woody rhizome bearing string-like roots, up to 16 cm tall. Stem erect, branched at the base, branches equal in length, rigid, striate, ca. 3.5 mm in diam. at the base, densely floccose-tomentose. Leaves always divided, pinnatisect to pinnatipartite, rarely bipinnate, densely covered with floccose-tomentose hairs on both sides. Basal leaves short-petiolate (petioles 4–5.2 cm long), petiole grooved, usually longer than stem, pinnatisect to pinnatipartite, segments in 11–13 pairs, linear, terminal segment slightly longer than lateral, segments entire or with 1–2 pairs of lobes, acuminate at apex. Lower cauline leaves short-petiolate (petioles 2.8–4.5 cm long), petiole grooved, pinnatisect to pinnatipartite, segments in ca. 15 pairs, linear, terminal segment slightly longer than lateral, segments entire or with 1–3 pairs of lobes, acuminate at apex. Median cauline leaves sessile, pinnatisect, segments in ca. 10 pairs, linear or narrowly lanceolate, segments entire or with 2–3 pairs of lobes, acuminate at apex. Upper cauline leaves sessile, pinnatisect, sometimes pinnatifid, segments in 1–4 pairs, linear, segments entire, acuminate or mucronate at apex, slightly longer than capitula. Capitula 2–3 on sessile peduncles, solitary at end of branches; involucres ovoid, large, 29–33 × 35–40 mm. Phyllaries multiseriate, imbricate, coriaceous, greenyellow, glabrous and smooth. Outer phyllaries oblong, oblong-ovate, 3–8 × 3–6 mm; appendages narrowly ovate, straw-coloured, pale brown in central part, 10–17 × 7–12 mm (cilia and spine included). Median phyllaries broadly ovate to oblong, 10.5–12 × ca. 9 mm; appendages triangular or broadly ovate, deep brown in central part, ca. 21 × 13–15 mm (cilia and spine included). Inner phyllaries broadly oblong to oblong, 16.5– 22 × 8–10 mm, sometimes margin membranous; appendages ovate or suborbicular, deep purple in central part, ciliate or lacerate, 6–15 × 5–10.5 mm (cilia and spine included). Appendages concealing a major part of phyllaries, moderately imbricate, pectinate-ciliate or lacerate, sometimes shortly decurrent on crenate margins; cilia white or pale brown, narrowly triangular, distinct, numerous, (6–)8–16 on each side, 1.2–5 mm long; spine narrowly triangular, 5.5–10 mm long, white or straw-coloured to brownish, much longer than the nearest cilia. Flowers yellow; central florets hermaphrodite, ca. 28 mm long, corolla with purple nerves, 5- lobed, lobes ca. 10 mm long, anther tube purple (in dry state pink); peripheral florets sterile, finely dissected, ca. 32 mm long, not radiant, 4-lobed, limb lobes filiform, ca. 8 mm long. Achenes immature; pappus persistent, multiseriate, scabrous, ca. 20 mm long, innermost series not longer than others.

Etymology: —The specific epithet refers to Jiroft city, where the new taxon is found.

Paratype: — IRAN. Prov. Fars: Larizangan village , 1835 m, 30 April 2011, Ranjbar & Negaresh 24558 ( BASU!) .

Habitat and ecology: —The new subspecies grows on a fallow field with scattered figs in a stony area ( Fig. 15 ). In addition, accompanying species were Avena barbata subsp. barbata , Aegilops kotschyi Boissier (1846: 129) , Bromus racemosus Linnaeus (1762: 114) , Echinops ceratophorus Boissier (1846: 100) , Ficus carica Linnaeus (1753: 1059) , and Amygdalus sp.

Taxonomic and distributional remarks: — Centaurea phaeopappa subsp. jiroftensis is a rare endemic of SE Iran, known only from the stony area in Kerman and Fars Provinces ( Fig. 2 ). The new subspecies is far from the main distribution area of C. phaeopappa (type locality in Azerbaijan Province, see Fig. 2 ). It is similar to C. phaeopappa in segmentation of leaves, size of cilia and spines, and color of flowers, but differs in some important characters (see Table 8).

Chromosome numbers: —Unknown.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Distribution of Centaurea albonitens (1), C. spectabilis (2), C. aucheri (3), C. phaeopappa (4), C. assadii (5), C. indistincta (6), C. farsistanica (7), C. phaeopappa subsp. jiroftensis (8), and C. handelii (9) in Iran.

FIGURE 14. Centaurea phaeopappa subsp. jiroftensis Ranjbar & Negaresh (Ranjbar & Negaresh 24214, BASU). A. habit. B. close up of capitule. C. outer phyllary. D and E. median phyllaries. F and G. inner phyllaries. H. central floret.

FIGURE 15. Centaurea phaeopappa subsp. jiroftensis (Ranjbar & Negaresh 24558, BASU). A. habit. B. close up of capitule. C. close up of leaves.