Acanthophyllum yasamin-nassehiae Joharchi & Pirani, 2013

Pirani, Atefeh, Joharchi, Mohammad Reza & Memariani, Farshid, 2013, A new species of Acanthophyllum (Caryophyllaceae) from Iran, Phytotaxa 92 (1), pp. 20-24 : 21-23

Acanthophyllum yasamin-nassehiae Joharchi & Pirani , sp. nov. ( Fig. 1 ).

Type:— IRAN. North Khorassan province: NE Jajarm, 19 km west of Showqan village , 37° 20´21.0 ” N, 56° 40´36.1 ” E, 1256 m, 7 September 2008, Memariani & Zangooei 41448 (holotype FUMH!) .

Diagnosis:— Similis A. lilacino et A. brevibracteato , sed differt ab A. lilacino bracteis calyce brevioribus, foliis crassiusculis, indumento non scabrido et differt ab A. brevibracteato caulibus a medio valde ramosus, bracteis convicibus, calycibus non angulato-costatis.

Description:—Subshrub, pulvinate, 25–30 cm high, densely branched from the middle (few branches at the base), covered with ±dense and simple to multicellular hairs. Stems brownish; internodes subequal, (8–)9.5–10.5(–12) mm long. Leaves subulate, (13–)14.5–16.5(–18) long, 1.5–2 mm wide, sparsely hairy, rigid, thickened, horizontally spreading, with a terminal yellowish mucro. Inflorescence cymose, multiflowered, (18–)20–40(–45) mm in diameter, with peduncles 10–12 mm long; flowers sessile. Floral leaves 6–14 × 1.5–2 mm, the uppers bract-like, the lowers leaf-like, not exceeding the calyx. Bracts shorter than calyx, 5.5–6 mm long, 1.5–2 mm wide, lanceolate, narrowly hyaline at the margins, mucronate, with prominent midrib, sometimes recurved at the apex. Bracteoles similar to the bracts, 4.5–5 mm long, about 1.5 mm wide, lanceolate, hyaline at the margins, mucronate, with prominent midrib, sometimes recurved at the tip. Calyx tubular, 5-ribbed, 7–8 mm long, with 5 subequal teeth; teeth 0.5–1 mm long, narrowly triangular, mucronulate. Petals pink, clawed, blade lanceolate, obtuse at the apex, 12–12.5 mm long, about 2 mm wide, about 5 mm longer than the calyx. Ovary ovate, styles 11 mm long, ovules 4. Stamens 5, about 14 mm long. Fruit capsule, with one mature seed. Seed ovate-reniform.

Etymology:—The species is dedicated to Mrs. Yasamin Nasseh, the Iranian botanist at Herbarium of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad (FUMH).

Distribution, ecology and conservation remarks: — A. yasamin-nassehiae is a narrow endemic species currently known only from the type locality. Its distribution area overlap with those of the related species ( Fig. 2 ). The new species includes late summer flowering plants which grow on semi-saline soils of the plain located between southern foothills of Aladagh mountain range in SW Bojnord and northern foothills of Salook and Bahar ranges in NE Jajarm. The main co-occurring species are Astragalus podolobus Boissier (1849: 49) , Diaphanoptera khorasanica Rechinger (1940: 42) , Suaeda microphylla Pallas (1803: 52) , Halothamnus glaucus ( von Bieberstein 1808: 185) Botschantzev (1981: 157) , Halimocnemis pilifera Moquin- Tandon in De Candolle (1849: 195), Kaviria aucheri (Moquin-Tandon in De Candolle 1849: 207) Akhani (in Akhani et al. 2007: 948), Pyankovia brachiata ( Pallas 1803: 30) Akhani & E.H. Roalson (in Akhani et al. 2007: 949), and Sophora pachycarpa Schrenk ex Meyer (in Fischer et al. 1843: 89). The habitat of A. yasamin-nassehiae is threatened by human activities (road constructions between Showqan and Jajarm). On the basis of the IUCN Red List categories and criteria ( IUCN 2010) this species is here evaluated as critically endangered [CR, B1ab(iii) + B2ab(iii)]. Another endangered endemic species ( D. khorasanica ) grows in the same place of A. yasamin-nassehiae . Therefore, a conservation planning for the threatened ecosystem and species is needed.

Taxonomical notes:—The new species certainly belongs to sect. Oligosperma, showing however peculiar inflorescence and stem characteristics. Morphologically similar species are A. brevibracteatum Lipsky in Shishkin (1936: 790) and A. lilacinum Shishkin (1936: 787 , 892). It is characterized by short bracts never exceeding the calyx, non-glandular hairs, and brownish stems which are densely branched from the middle. It differs from A. brevibracteatum in having dense simple to multicellular hairs, non-angled ribs of the calyx, and convex bracts with hyaline margin, while differs from A. lilacinum by short bracts with non-crisped hairs, and by short thickened leaves ( Table 1).

studies of the only one know population of A. yasamin-nassehiae (five individuals), fifteen populations of A. lilacinum and five

populations of A. brevibracteatum .

Figures

FIGURE 1. Acanthophyllum yasamin-nassehiae (drawing by Nona Karimzadeh from holotype). A: Habit, B: Flower.

FIGURE 2. Distribution map of A. yasamin-nassehiae, A. lilacinum, and A. brevibracteatum.