Nyingchi edelweiss (Leontopodium nyingchiense) from Xizang, China, most similar to Leontopodium lingianum

NEWS - Nyingchi edelweiss (Leontopodium nyingchiense X.Z.Lan, W.L.Zheng & W.Q.He, sp. nov.) from Xizang (Tibet) Autonomous Region of China as a new species to science based on comparative morphological and molecular analysis which is morphologically most similar to Leontopodium lingianum (Y.L.Chen) Dickoré.

Leontopodium R.Br. ex Cass. is a herb or shrub with about 60 species worldwide, distributed in the mountains of Asia and Eurasia. In China, there are 37 species and 2 varieties, with 16 species endemic. This genus is a common component of grasslands and alpine slopes in western and southwestern China, with the Tibetan Plateau and 21 species distributed in Xizang.

During a national survey from 2013 to 2015, an unidentified Asteraceae species was found in Lulang Town, Nyingchi City, Xizang (Tibet) Autonomous Region. In August 2024, the species was reinvestigated with additional specimens and molecular material from leaves.

Leontopodium nyingchiense is a herb or subshrub in the Asteraceae, perennial, pulvinate, caespitose herb, monoecious or dioecious, less than 10 cm tall. Leaves alternate or verticillate, imbricate, sessile, nearly sheathless at the base, elliptic, entire; apex herbaceous, both surfaces silky lanate; lower part membranous and glabrous, white with a reddish tint when young, turning brownish upon maturity, 3–12 mm × 1.6–2.5 mm.

Capitula with uniform florets, either all male or all female, or bisexual florets, solitary at the apex of stems and branches, nearly sessile, immersed among leaves or slightly extending beyond them; ebractate.

Hemispherical involucre, 3–5 mm in diameter; phyllaries imbricate, in 3 series in male or monoecious capitula, in 5 series in female capitula; outermost bracts spatulate, entire, herbaceous, covered on both surfaces with lanate indumentum; middle and inner bracts 3–6 mm × 0.8–3 mm, lanceolate or linear, with fimbriate, lacerate margins, membranous, covered on the abaxial surface with lanate indumentum. Receptacle alveolate, with irregularly edged pits.

Female florets fertile; corolla tubular, 2.5–3 mm long, 4-lobed at the apex, with brown fimbriate, lacerate margins. Male florets (or bisexual florets) do not produce viable seeds, with a non-functional ovary; corolla tubular, 1–3 mm long, 5-lobed at the apex, with short triangular lobes and rough-edged margins.

Anthers linear, tailed at the base, without appendages at the apex; filaments free; stigma apex blunt. Achenes obovate-oblong, puberulous, ca. 1 mm long; sterile ovary ca. half the size of the achene, glabrous. Pappus in one layer, persistent, white, often serrulate, the upper part slightly thickened in male florets.

The new species is morphologically similar to L. lingianum but can be distinguished by monoecious and dioecious individuals, with some having male and female flowers in the same individual. The involucral bracts are in 3–5 series; the outermost series is herbaceous, while the middle and innermost series are membranous. The female corolla has a brown fimbriate apex and a fringed and rough tip, while the male corolla has lobes with rough and granulated edges. In addition, the achenes lack costae.

Flowers from July to early August and fruits from late August to mid-September. The epithet indicates the type locality in Nyingchi County, Xizang, China. The local name is lín zhī huǒ róng cǎo (Chinese pronunciation) and 林芝火绒草 (Chinese name).

L. nyingchiense is found in Lulang Town, Nyingchi City, Xizang, China, growing in Alpine grasslands at an elevation of 4400-4800 meters. This species is narrowly distributed with about 300-400 individuals. The habitat of Nyingchi Edelweiss is vulnerable to disturbance or degradation.

Original research

He W-Q, Zhao F-Y, Chu Z-F, Chai G-Z, Zhao K-H, Tian J-Q, Zhang B-X, Zhang F-Y, Liao Z-H, Zheng W-L, Lan X-Z (2024). Leontopodium nyingchiense (Asteraceae), a new species from Xizang (Tibet), China. PhytoKeys 249: 181-192, DOI:10.3897/phytokeys.249.136846

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