Bredia bullata J. H. Dai & Ying Liu, 2022

Dai, Jin-Hong, Nong, Shi-Yue, Guo, Xi-Bin, Do, Truong Van, Liu, Yan, Zhou, Ren-Chao & Liu, Ying, 2022, Three new species of Bredia (Sonerileae, Melastomataceae) from the Sino-Vietnamese border area, PhytoKeys 195, pp. 107-125 : 107

Bredia bullata J. H. Dai & Ying Liu sp. nov.

Figs 3 , 4

Type.

China. Yunnan Province: Malipo County, Ba-bu Town, Da-nong Village , 1,300 m, under forests, on limestone rocks, 30 May 2020, Jin-hong Dai and Ying Liu 849 (holotype: PE; isotypes: A, SYS) .

Diagnosis.

Distinguished in Bredia by its adaxially strongly sunken leaf veins (vs. veins not sunken), with interveinal areas prominently bullate each with an apical seta (vs. smooth, not bullate).

Description.

Shrubs, 0.4-1.0 m tall. Stems erect and branched, terete, densely pubescent with 0.5-1 mm long, spreading, uniseriate to multiseriate hairs with or without a glandular head. Leaves opposite; petiole 3-12.5 cm long, puberulous with 0.5 mm long, spreading and often uniseriate hairs with or without a glandular head; blade ovate-cordate to elliptic-ovate, 4-22 × 2-12.5 cm, papery, secondary veins 2 or 3 on each side of midvein, all veins strongly sunken adaxially and prominent abaxially, with interveinal areas prominently bullate, each with an apical seta, adaxial surface green to dark green, sometimes with white zones along the midvein, sparsely puberulous with minute appressed uniseriate hairs, abaxial surface pale green to purplish, densely villous with uniseriate hairs, base cordate, margin ciliate and densely serrulate with each tooth having a terminal seta, apex acute or short acuminate. Inflorescence terminal, a cyme or cymose panicle, 8-27-flowered, peduncle 3.5-6.5 cm long, densely puberulous. Flowers bisexual, radial but androecium slightly bilateral, 4-merous, pedicles, hypanthium and calyx lobes densely puberulous; pedicels 0.6-1.7 cm long; hypanthium yellowish-green to purplish, funnel-shaped, 4-7 × 4-6 mm; calyx lobes 4, orbicular, 3 × 3 mm; petals 4, pink, broadly obovate to rounded, ca. 1.0 cm long, margin undulate and ciliate with glandular hairs, apex oblique; stamens 8 in two whorls, isomorphic, subequal in length with the outer whorl slightly longer than the inner one, filaments ca. 6-9 mm long, bent with the anthers to one side of the flower, anthers lanceolate, 6-8 mm long, purplish-pink, connective forming a 1 mm long, yellow dorsal spur and 2 yellow ventral lobes; ovary half inferior, locules 4, apex of ovary with membranous crown, crown margin ciliate with glandular hairs; style ca. 1.2 cm long, basally sparsely puberulous. Capsule 7 × 5 mm, funnel-shaped; placentation axial, placentas non-thready; seeds numerous, ca. 1 mm long, cuneate.

Phenology.

Flowering May to June, fruiting June to August.

Etymology.

The specific epithet is based on the bullate leaves.

Distribution.

Bredia bullata is currently known from Malipo County, Yunnan Province, China and Quan Ba District, Ha Giang Province, northern Vietnam (Fig. 2 ), occurring in forests on limestone slopes near mountain tops and on cliffs of moist limestone caves at 1,000-1,400 m.

Additional specimens examined.

Vietnam. Ha Giang Province: Quan Ba District, Bat Dai Son Commune, Pai Chu Phin Village , Bat Dai Son Nature Reserve , 23.137864N, 104.999178E, 1,300 m, 5 June 2021, Do Van Truong DVT420 (VNMN); Tung Vai Commune, Kho My Village , Kho My limestone cave, 23.092797N, 104.905840E, 1,164 m, 6 June 2021, Do Van Truong DVT464 (VNMN) .

Figures

Figure 2. Distribution of Bredia bullata (solid circle), B. nitida (triangle), and B. enchengensis (star).

Figure 3. Holotype of Bredia bullata, Jin-hong Dai and Ying Liu 849 (PE). Scale bar: 5 cm.

Figure 4. Bredia bullata A habit B a flowering branch C a branchlet showing spreading hairs with and without glandular head D adaxial (top) and abaxial (bottom) leaf surfaces E closeup of adaxial leaf surface showing interveinal areas prominently bullate, each bulla with an apical seta F flowering inflorescence G two petals (upper left and middle), bud showing rounded calyx lobes (lower left), inner and outer stamens (lower middle), and longitudinal section of flower (right) showing isomorphic stamens and ovary crown H top view of old capsule (left) and longitudinal section of young fruit showing enlarged ovary crown (right). Scale bars: 5 mm (G, H). All from Jin-hong Dai and Ying Liu 849 (A, PE, SYS).