Lilium shenxianjuense Y.L.Xu & X.F.Jin

Ye, Ming-Yue, Zhou, Xin, Peng, Ya-Jun, Zhu, Zhi-Ming, Li, Pan, Xu, Yue-Liang & Jin, Xiao-Feng, 2024, Lilium shenxianjuense (Liliaceae), a new species from Zhejiang, China, Phytotaxa 640 (2), pp. 161-170 : 165-169

Lilium shenxianjuense Y.L.Xu & X.F.Jin , sp. nov. (神仙居百Ḃ) (Figs 3,4)

Type:— CHINA. Zhejiang Province: Taizhou City , Xianju County, Mount Shenxianju , under Hongmeng Bridge on cliff, elev. 781 m, 28°40'37"N, 120°36'21"E, fl, 9 Jun 2019, Xu & Zhu 1453 (holotype: ZM; isotype: ZM) .

Lilium shenxianjuense is similar to L. concolor and L. lancifolium , but mainly differs in the cliff habitat, two bracts at pedicle base (versus one bract at pedicle base), glabrous nectaries (versus papillose or fimbriate) and style about twice as long as ovary (versus slightly shorter/ca. 3× as long as ovary; Table 2 ).

Perennial herbs with ovoid to ellipsoid bulbs, 3.5–4.0 cm long, 2.0– 3.5 cm in diameter; scales white or whitish yellow, ovate-elliptic, 3.2–3.5 × 2.0– 2.5 cm. Stems 40–60 cm tall, dark purple, 4–5 mm in diameter, densely papillose. Leaves alternate, usually on middle to upper part of stems, lower ones with linear blades, lowest longer than upper, 2–10 × 3–5 mm, margin and adaxially papillose, with midribs abaxially papillose. Flowers 4–10 in a short-raceme, erect or ascending, red-orange, unspotted; pedicels 2.5–3.7 cm long, glabrous, base with 2 bracts; bracts linear, 10–20 × 3–6 mm, margin papillose; tepals 6, in 2 whorls, apex obtuse, outer 3 linear or linear-lanceolate, 48–60 × 8–11 mm, inner 3 narrowly elliptic, 48–60 × 12–15 mm, glabrous; nectaries glabrous; filaments filiform, glabrous, 1.8–2.1 cm long, anthers lunate, dark red-orange, 0.8–1.1 cm long; ovary cylindrical, green, 8–10 mm long, 2–3 mm in diameter, styles 1.7–1.9 cm long, thickened apically, glabrous, stigmas slightly trilobed. Capsules broadly obovoid, 1.8–2.0 × 1.5–1.6 cm, narrowly 6-winged. Seeds yellow-brown, compressed, broadly ovate to elliptic-ovate, 3.5–5.0 × 3–4 mm, winged.

Etymology:— Referring to the type locality, Mount Shenxianju.

Phenology: —Flowering and fruiting June–July.

Habitat and distribution:— Currently known only from a small population at the type locality on cliffs at 550– 810 m.

Conservation status:— According to IUCN criteria ( IUCN Standards and Petitions Committee 2022), we suspect that L. shenxianjuense should be considered to be critically endangered (CR-D). Only one population with eight small sub-populations with less than 50 individuals have been found on cliffs in the type locality, and the habitats are well preserved. Its area of distribution is less than 5 km 2. Conservation work for this species is urgently needed.