Kalanchoe miniata, Hils. & Bojer ex Tulasne, 1857

Smith, Gideon F. & Shtein, Ronen, 2021, Nomenclature and taxonomic placement of the infraspecific taxa recognised in the Malagasy Kalanchoe miniata (Crassulaceae subfam. Kalanchooideae) by Perrier de la Bâthie and Boiteau and Mannoni in the 20 century, Phytotaxa 514 (2), pp. 118-128 : 119-120

Nomenclature of Kalanchoe miniata of Perrier de la Bâthie (1924)

Regarding K. miniata, Perrier de la Bâthie (1924: 21) stated (translated into English from the original French): “It is with good reason that Mr Hamet (1)* reunited K. subpeltata Baker with this primitive species [ Kalanchoe miniata ]. But this very widespread species [ Kalanchoe miniata ], clearly distinguished by its short calyx and its swollen corolla tube, is subdivided into a certain number of geographical races, sufficiently constant to be considered as small species, and this fact is interesting to note as an example of a species in the process of subdivision. Most of these races appear to be well established, for all the individuals in the places where they occur are almost always strictly similar to each other. However, one of them seems to be, on the contrary, in the process of individual variation. I have grown all these variations in my garden in Antananarivo for several years and cultivation has not changed their characters.”

*“M. Hamet (1)” refers to Hamet (1908: 20–21 [36–37]), the second part of the two-part monograph of Kalanchoe of Hamet (1907, 1908). Both parts of the monograph were furnished with two sets of page numbers. Hamet (1908: 20 [36]) synonimised K. subpeltata Baker (1887: 472) under K. miniata .

Perrier de la Bâthie (1924: 21–22) then proceeded to validly publish four [nos 2–5 in the list that follows] of the five names for the ‘races’ that he distinguished in K. miniata . Nomenclaturally, these were:

1. K. miniata ‘race’ ‘ typica ’ Perrier de la Bâthie (1924: 21), nom. inval. ( Turland et al. 2018: Art. 24.3), i.e., K. miniata ‘race’ miniata ;

2. K. miniata ‘race’ subpeltata ( Baker 1887: 472) Perrier de la Bâthie (1924: 21) ;

3. K. miniata ‘race’ confertifolia Perrier de la Bâthie (1924: 22);

4. K. miniata ‘race’ subsessillis Perrier de la Bâthie (1924: 22); and

5. K. miniata ‘race’ andringitrensis Perrier de la Bâthie (1924: 22).

Under Turland et al. (2018: Art. 4.3) the creation of supplementary ranks, such as ‘race’, is permitted. In the period that Perrier de la Bâthie conducted work on Kalanchoe (1910s–1920s), several influential works mainly published in France still made use of the term ‘race’ [French] or ‘proles’ [Latin] for a supplementary rank variously intercalated between subspecies [sometimes misnamed ‘forme’] and variety (see for example Rouy & Camus 1901 and Bonnier 1921). Descoings (2003: 166) treated ‘race’ as having “…no rank…” and rather used the notation “[?]” for them.

Names numbered 3 to 5, above, and one new combination, number 2, above, that Perrier de la Bâthie (1924: 21–22) published have priority only at the rank of ‘race’, as well as under Art. 53.3 of Turland et al. (2018).