Flemingia chappar Buch., 1852

Do, Truong Van & Gao, Xin-Fen, 2020, Taxonomic revision of the genus Flemingia (Leguminosae) from Indo-Chinese floristic region, Phytotaxa 429 (1), pp. 1-38 : 18-19

2. Flemingia chappar Buch. -Ham. ex Benth. (1852: 244). Type:— MYANMAR. Tong Dong, 1826, Wall.Cat. 5757D (Holotype, K-001122034!)

Shrubs or sub-shrub, erect, 1–2 m tall. Branchlets terete, slender, densely appressed hairs. Petiole 2–4 cm long, densely brown villous, thickened at both ends. Stipules narrowly ovate, 2–3 mm long, caducous. Leaves 1-foliolate; leaf blade orbicular-cordate, 4–4.5 cm long, papery or thinly leathery, adaxially glabrous or sparsely pubescent except for veins, abaxially with dense, orange, with sessile glands; basal veins 3, lateral veins pinnate, three–four pairs, venation distinct and prominent; apex cuspidate, base slightly cordate. Inflorescence a thyrse, axillary or terminal; inflorescence axis 3–7 cm long, densely brown hairy; cymules each enclosed by concave bract; bracts reniform, 1.8–2.5 cm long, 2.2–2.8(–3) cm wide, membranous, glabrous, with obvious reticulate veins, persistent, apex emarginate. Flowers 6–8 mm long; pedicel 5–15 mm long, densely hairy. Calyx tube 4–5 mm long, calyx lobes lanceolate as long as of the tube, densely pubescent, with orange glands. Corolla white; standard with lobe as long as broad, contracted above auricles, and obovate or obcordate; wings oblong; keel slightly curved. Stamens diadelphous; staminal tube 6–7 mm long; vexillary stamen free, 4.5–5 mm long. Pods elliptic, 10–15 long, 6–10 mm wide, densely brown villous, covered with glistening red glands.

Iconography citation: — Nguyen (1979: 139): plate 22, figures 10–16; Wei (1995: 317): plate 75, figure 1; Pham (1999: 968), figure 3878.

Ecology and phenology: — Flemingia chappar grows in grassland, roadsides, secondary forest or deciduous dipterocarp forest, elev. 1300 m. Flowering from December to March, fruiting from February to May.

Distribution: — Myanmar, China, Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand.

Notes: — F. chappar is most similar to F. strobilifera by sharing a thyrse inflorescence with cymelets enclosed by large folded bracts, but it clearly differs from the latter by the morphological characters of leaflet blade (orbicular-cordate vs. ovate to elliptic) and leaflet base (deeply cordate vs. slightly cordate to rounded).

Representative specimens: — CAMBODIA. Battambang, Rosmei Sang Ha, Vidal 4662 (P) . LAOS. Luoang Prabang: Ban Na Kham , Vidal 735B (VNM-00012539) ; Sayaboury, Vidal 4292 (P). Vientiane: km 20 route Tha Ngon, Vidal 1949 (P) . THAILAND. Nan: 50 km West of Ban Luang , 100 O 21 ’ E, 18 O 51 ’ N, elev. 600 m, 22 November 1993, K.Larsen et al. 44739 (AAU). Chieng Rai: Chun, 18 December 1967, B.Nimanong & S.Phusomsaeng 144 (BKF). Tak: Maesot, near Khao Phra War, elev. 400 m, 21 January 1983, H.Koyama et al. 32838 (BKF). Nakhon Phanom: Kut Khulu, elev. 200 m, 15 December 1963, T.Smitinand 8432 (BKF) ; Maetak : 3 March 1958, K.Larsen 9583 (BKF) . CHINA. Yunnan: Mengla, Mengwang , 26 June 2013, J.W.Li 3403 (HITBC-1511531) ; 3 March 2009, H.L.Qing 283 (HITBC-0012855); 28 November 1991, G.D.Tao 44253 (HITBC-0012857); 4 November 2005, S.S.Zhou 3090 (HITBC-0012854).