Dianthus burdurensis Hamzaoğlu & Koç, 2015

Hamzaoğlu, Ergin & Koç, Murat, 2015, Dianthus burdurensis (Caryophyllaceae), a new species from South-western Turkey, Phytotaxa 233 (2), pp. 196-200 : 197-199

Dianthus burdurensis Hamzaoğlu & Koç , sp. nov. ( Fig. 1‒2 )

Type:― TURKEY. Burdur: Between Yeşilova and Salda village, N slopes of Eşeler Mountain, small dry meadows in forest clearings, 37°29′08″N, 29°39′09″E, 1590 m a.s.l., 23 August 2014, Koç & Hamzaoğlu 7170 (holotype GAZI!, isotypes GAZI!, ANK!, HUB!).

Diagnosis: ― Dianthus burdurensis is similar to D. masmenaeus Boissier (1856: 51) from which differs in usually lacking of sterile shoots leaves, and in having the withered lower leaves, the inflorescence (3‒)5‒9(‒13)-flowered, petals 11.5‒15.5 mm long, and the limbs creamish-white.

Description: ― Perennial, solitary or few-stemmed herbs. Stems erect, slender at base, 25‒45 cm tall, simple or rarely branching from upper nodes, 6‒9-noded, glabrous above and usually puberulous below, greenish or sometimes purplish at base. Leaves linear, flattened in cross-section, glabrous, margins scabrous, with ciliate and scarious near base, apex 3-acuminate; sterile shoot leaves absent or very rarely present at flowering, if present, linear and loosely arranged; lower withered after anthesis, 20‒35 × 1‒2 mm; middle 30‒50 × 1‒2 mm, adpressed to stem, shorter than or as long as internodes, thin, 3-veined, sheaths 2‒2.5 times as long as wide; upper adpressed to stem, greenish at base, nodes ± swollen. Inflorescence usually simple or rarely branched, flowers in clusters, each one (3‒)5‒9(‒13)-flowered; pedicels 0‒1.5 mm, glabrous, greenish. Bracts greenish to straw-colored, linear-subulate to lanceolate, as long as or shorter than flowers. Epicalyx scales 4‒6, herbaceous, greenish or straw-colored; outer usually distinctly 5‒7-veined, glabrous, 2/5‒3/5 as long as calyx, linear-lanceolate, 6.0‒8.5 × 1.5‒2.0 mm, with scarious (0.3‒0.5 mm) margins, apex acute-obtuse except arista, arista 1/3‒1/2 as long as scale, separated from calyx; inner usually distinctly 7‒9-veined, glabrous, 1/2‒2/3 as long as calyx, linear-oblanceolate, 7.0‒11.0 × 1.8‒2.5 mm, with ciliate and scarious (0.4‒0.6 mm) margins, apex acute-obtuse except arista, arista 1/3‒2/5 as long as scale. Calyx oblong-lanceolate, 9.5‒16.0 × 2.2‒ 3.2 mm, distinctly 40‒45-veined, glabrous, greenish or straw-colored; teeth triangular-lanceolate, 2.5‒4.0 × 1.5‒2.0 mm, glabrous, 7‒9-veined, with ciliate and scarious margins, apex acuminate and mucronate, greenish or sometimes purplish tinged towards apex. Petals 11.5‒15.5 mm long; limb obovate to cuneate, 3.5‒5.5 × 2.5‒3.5 mm, about 1/3 as long as petal, about 2/3 exserted from calyx, unspotted, barbulate, creamish-white above, greenish beneath, completely greenish-yellow in dried, 4‒7-toothed, teeth irregular, broadly triangular, up to 1/6 as long as limb; claw 8.0‒10.0 × 1.0‒ 1.2 mm, collar as wide as claw. Capsule shorter than calyx. Seeds ovate, 2.0‒2.8 × 1.2‒1.7 mm, blackish.

Etymology: ―The specific epithet is derived from the name of the city, Burdur, where the holotype was collected.

Vernacular name: ―“ Burdur Karanfili” (Turkish).

Distribution and habitat: ― Dianthus burdurensis is known only from the type locality, Eşeler Mountain, Yeşilova, Burdur, where it grows at altitude of 1590 m on dry meadows in oak forest clearings.

Phenology: ―Flowering time July‒August, fruiting August‒September.

Conservation status: ―On the basis of IUCN red list categories and criteria ( IUCN 2014), Dianthus burdurensis cover an area (EOO) of about 30 km 2. The new species is here assessed as Critically Endangered (CR, B1a).

Seed Morphology: ― Dianthus burdurensis has seed ovate, 2.0‒2.8 × 1.2‒1.7 mm, black, granular; dorsal surface convex, with regular rectangular cells, tuberculate, with 5‒7 teeths per margin, teeth clear S-undulate; ventral surface flat, with regular rectangular cells, papillate, with 3‒5 teeths per margin, teeth S-undulate, not clear; apex beaked. D. burdurensis seeds are similar to D. masmenaeus ones concerning the shape of apex, color and dorsal surface. However, the D. masmenaeus seeds differ in size (2.3‒3.0 × 1.0‒ 1.3 mm) and have long, irregular rectangular/square-shaped ventral cells, 5‒9 teeths containing ventral surface cells with V-undulate, and apparent teeth ( Fig. 2 ).

Taxonomical notes ( Table 1):― Dianthus burdurensis is related to D. masmenaeus in its habit and limb hairiness ( Reeve 1967). It mainly differs from the latter taxa by the lower leaves withered after anthesis (not persistent in D. masmenaeus ), flowers in clusters, (3‒)5‒9(‒13)-flowered [flowers in fascicles, 2‒4(‒7)-flowered in D. masmenaeus ], outer epicalyx scales 2/5‒3/5 as long as calyx (1/2‒4/5 as long as calyx in D. masmenaeus ); petals 11.5‒15.5 mm long (not 14‒25 mm long as in D. masmenaeus ); limbs creamish-white above (not pink as in D. masmenaeus ); claws 8‒10 mm long (not 10‒16.5 mm long as in D. masmenaeus ).

Specimens Examined: ― Dianthus masmenaeus Boiss. TURKEY. Kayseri: Pınarbaşı, above Kaynar, Hınzır Mountain , Kurudere , 1900 m, 21 September 1980, Çelik 1570 (ANK!); Malatya: Doğanşehir, Erkenek town, around Radar , 1800 m, 4 July 1987, steppe, Aktoklu 663 ( HUB!) ; Adana: Tufanbeyli, above Tozlu village, towards Ziyaret Tepe , 1995 m, 15 July 2008, steppe,, Aksoy, Budak & Hamzaoğlu 5233 ( GAZI!) ; Sivas: Between Kangal and Hekimhan, around Höyüklü R / L station, 1930 m, 26 June 2010, calcareous rocks, Budak, Koç & Hamzaoğlu 5778, ( GAZI!) ; Niğde: Pozantı, above Hamidiye village, Karanfil Dağı ( Masmeneu Dagh ), 1860 m, 18 July 2014, rocky slopes, Koç & Hamzaoğlu 7092 ( GAZI!) (locus classicus) .

Figures

FIGURE 1. Morphological comparison of Dianthus burdurensis (A) and D. masmenaeus (B). 1: Habit. 2: Flower.

FIGURE 2. SEM photographs of the seed coat. Dianthus burdurensis (A) and D. masmenaeus (B). 1‒3: Dorsal surface. 4‒6: Ventral surface (Scale bars: 1 and 4 = 1 mm, 2 and 5 = 20 μm, 3 and 6 = 10 μm).