b. Sanicula orthacantha var. brevispina Boissieu (1906: 421) . Figs. 2, 6, 8, 15.

Type:— CHINA, Sichuan, Emei Shan, E.H. Wilson 7104 [P03226637!, lectotype designated by Pimenov (2017); isolectotypes BM!, K!]. Fig. 2 .

= Sanicula orthacantha var. stolonifera Shan & Liou (1979: 297), syn. nov.

Type:— CHINA, Sichuan, Emei Shan, Jingangzui, 2450 m, 8 May 1957, K.H. Yang 54432 (NAS00040551!, lectotype designated here; isolectotype KUN0463177!). Fig. 6 .

Diagnostic characters:—Rhizome slender, elongate and lignified nodes stoloniferous.

Distribution and habitat:— Sanicula orthacantha var. brevispina is distributed on Emei Shan, Sichuan, China (Fig. 17). It grows on slopes or at forest margins at altitude of 1900‒2865 m.

Phenology:—Flowering and fruiting from later April to July.

Lectotypification: Sanicula orthacantha var. stolonifera was described on the basis of a single collection K.H. Yang 54432. We have been able to trace two specimens of the collection at NAS and KUN. As discussed by McNeill (2014), these sheets all syntypes as Shan & Liou (1979) did not designate a type for this variety. According to ICN Art. 9.11 (Turland et al. 2018), here we designate NAS00040551, which is well preserved and bears the annotation “ Sanicula orthacantha S. Moore var. stolonifera Shan et S.L. Liou var. nov., Type!”, as lectotype.

Additional specimens examined:— CHINA. Sichuan: Emei Shan, Anonymous 1733 (PE), Anonymous 13155 (NAS, SM), S.Y. Chen et al. 3906 (NAS, SM), S.Y. Chen 7558 (SM), W.P. Fang 6527 (NAS, PE), Y.Y. Ho 5998 (NAS), L.C. Hu 50340 (AU), C.H. Li 1122 (NAS), H.M. Li & W. Zhou 1054 (NAS), H.M. Li & Y.S. Zhang 1151 (NAS), M.L. Sheh 83615 (NAS), S.L. Sun 2559 (KUN, TIE), T.H. Tu 55 (IBK, NAS, PE), T.H. Tu 231 (NAS, PE), K.H. Yang 55113 (KUN, NAS, PE).

Note:— In the protologue of Sanicula orthacantha var. brevispina, Boissieu (1906) only cited the single collection E.H. Wilson 7104, which kept at BM, K and P respectively, and all well preserved and agree with the original description. As discussed by McNeill (2014), these sheets all syntypes as Boissieu (1906) did not designate a specimen as the type of S. orthacantha var. brevispina . According to ICN Art. 9.17 (Turland et al. 2018), Pimenov (2017) listed the P sheet as holotype of this variety is an error to be corrected to lectotype (McNeil 2014). Therefore, the P (barcode P03226637) sheet should be cited as lectotype, and the sheets at BM and K are isolectotypes.

According to the records of Shan (1936), Hiroe (1979), Sheh & Phillippe (2005), and Pimeov (2017), Sanicula orthacantha var. brevispina is also distributed to Hongya in Sichuan , Nanchuan in Chongqing, and Northern Shaanxi . After critical examination of sufficient specimens of Sanicula and field observation in Sichuan and Chongqing , we consider this variety only occurs on Emei Shan in Sichuan, China .