Ficinia echinata Muasya, 2020

Muasya, A. M., Stirton, C. H. & Archer, C., 2020, Ficinia pygmaea is not conspecific with F. limosa, and a description of a new species of Ficinia (Cyperaceae) from South Africa, South African Journal of Botany 128, pp. 128-131 : 129-131

3. Ficinia echinata Muasya sp. nov.

Type: South Africa: Western Cape, Caledon (3419): Springfield (— DD), 19 Sep 1983, Esterhuysen 36063 ( BOL, hol.!; BR!, C!, K!, PRE!, iso.).

Perennial, caespitose with an abbreviated rhizome to 1.5 — 3.2 mm diameter. Culms 25 — 75 mm tall, 0.6 — 1.5 mm thick, but c. 4.0 mm thick across the rim of the leaf sheath, glabrous. Leaf sheaths 15 — 33 mm long, glabrous, not papery, wine-red, not sticky, ligule absent. Leaf blades well developed and longer than peduncle, 30 — 65 mm long, glabrous, flattened to canaliculated, terminating in a sharply-pointed apex. Involucral bracts 2 — 3, channelled and base partially sheathing spikelets, 10 — 33 mm long, margins glabrous. In fl orescences capitate, 8.9 — 12.5 X 4.6 — 6.2 mm, each with 3 — 6 spikelets. Spikelets 7.8 — 11.5 X 1.7 — 2.9 mm, terete, yellowish green, 8 — 15 florets. Glumes 6.3 — 10.2 mm long, boat-shaped with a mucro 0.5 — 1.5 mm long; margins entire. Style trifid. Stamens 3, anthers 1.6 — 4.2 mm long, connective crested. Nutlets 1.8 — 2.3 X 1.0 — 1.5 mm, dark brown, smooth; hypogynous disk to 0.5 mm long, cupular, 3-lobed ( Fig.1 ).

Etymology: The specific epithet echinata (=prickly) refers to the rigid and sharp tips of leaves and bracts giving the plant a hedgehoglike morphology.

Diagnostic characters: Ficinia echinata is most similar to F. limosa , differing in its tufted habit with an abbreviated rhizome (versus wiry rhizomes), growing in compact clumps to 200 mm wide (versus not clumped), and sharp tipped leaves and bracts (not sharp); Table 1.

Distribution and ecology: Ficinia echinata is currently known from the edges of salt pans in Fynbos vegetation, below 100 m, in the Agulhas plain ( Fig. 2 ). All localities are within Agulhas Sand Fynbos vegetation (FFd 7; Mucina and Rutherford, 2006).

Conservation status: Ficinia echinata is a habitat specialist currently known from three small populations. While two of the populations are in private conservation areas and there are no known threats, the area of occupancy is small and each population has fewer than 500 plants. We therefore assess this taxon to be Vulnerable (VU D1; Von Staden et al., 2009).

Additional specimens examined

South Africa. WESTERN CAPE: 3419 (Caledon): Elim-Bredasdorp road at Langvlei (— DB), 27 Nov 2011, Muasya, Stirton and Job 6308 (BOL); Langvlei (— DB), 23 Jan 2012, Muasya, Kilian, Job and Euston-Brown 6413 (BOL); Langvlei (— DB), 24 Jan 2012, Muasya, Kilian, Job and Euston-Brown 6421 (BOL); Langvlei (— DB), 21 Jul 2012, Muasya & Lemaire 6584 (BOL); Langvlei (— DB), Helme 4542 (BOL); Langvlei (— DB), 20 Jan 1980, Stirton 8235 (PRE); Bredasdorp to Elim, margins of vlei (DB), 6 Oct 1947, Levyns 8429 (BOL); Springfield (— DD), 25 Sep 1933, Compton 4386 (BOL, K); salt pan (— DD), 14 Nov 2014, Muasya and Ito 7203 (BOL). 3420 (Bredasdorp): Potberg (— BC), 2 Jan 1971, Thompson 1140 (PRE); 10 km WNW Cape Infanta (— BD), 22 Aug 2019, Helme 9564 (BOL).

Figures

Fig. 1. Ficinia echinata: (A) habit; (B) leafy culm; (C) inflorescence; (D) glume. All drawn from Helme 4910 by K-L Kilian.

Fig. 2. Distribution of species allied to Ficinia pygmaea.