Hieracium hypochoeroides subsp. cilentanum Di Grist., Gottschl. & Raimondo, 2016

Gristina, Emilio Di, Gottschlich, Günter & Raimondo, Francesco M., 2016, Hieracium hypochoeroides subsp. cilentanum (Asteraceae), a new taxon from S Italy, Phytotaxa 246 (3), pp. 192-197 : 192-196

Hieracium hypochoeroides subsp. cilentanum Di Grist., Gottschl. & Raimondo , subsp. nov. ( Fig. 2 ).

Type:— ITALY. Campania, Parco Nazionale del Cilento e Vallo di Diano, Monte Cervati , Sanza ( SA), 40°17 ʹ 25.21 ʺ N, 15°28 ʹ 38.81 ʺ E, 1860 m, carbonate rocks, 09 July 2015, E. Di Gristina 102652 (holotype: PAL!; isotypes: PAL-Gr!, FI!, Hb. Gottschlich-63952!) .

Diagnosis:— Ab Hieracio hypochoeroide subsp. serinensi involucris maioribus, involucri phyllis pilis simplicibus densioribus et longioribus differt.

Plant perennial, rosulate. Rhizome stout or slender, oblique or horizontal. Stem erect, stout (Ø 0.8–2.2 mm), (8-)10– 26(-32) cm high, green, seldom brownish-purple at base, subtly striate, phyllopodous, beneath with few to moderately dense, 1–2.5 mm long, whitish, ± crisp, dentate simple hairs, sparse minute (up to 0.1 mm long) yellowish glandular hairs and sparse or lacking stellate hairs, above with few to moderately dense, 1–2 mm long, crisp, distally white and dark-based, dentate simple hairs, sparse, 0.1–0.2 mm long, blackish glandular hairs and few to moderately dense stellate hairs. Basal leaves (3-)4–6(-7), petiolate; petiole 1–4 cm long, green, often brownish-purple at base, with moderately to rather dense, 2–3 mm long, whitish, ± crisp, dentate simple hairs; sparse minute (up to 0.1 mm long) yellowish glandular hairs; sparse or lacking stellate hairs; lamina ovate-lanceolate, ovate or obovate, 2–6 × 1–3 cm, glaucous-green or grey-glaucous, irregular spotted, attenuate or truncate, margin in lower half denticulate, dentate to serrate-dentate, in upper half denticulate or entire, acute or rounded-obtuse, with whitish, crisp, dentate simple hairs 1–3(–4) mm long, which are sparse to moderately dense above (later leaves often becoming glabrous), moderately dense on margin, rather dense along midrib on lower surface; sparse minute (up to 0.1 mm long) glandular hairs on margin; and sparse or lacking stellate hairs. Cauline leaves 0–1, linear-lanceolate, 0.5–1.5 × 0.1–0.3 cm, colour and indument similar to those of basal leaves. Stem scapose or synflorescence furcate, branches 0–2, straight, 6–7 cm long, each with a single capitulum; acladium 6 cm long. Peduncles with 1–3(-4) linear, green or dark green bracts 1–4(-5) mm long, with moderately to rather dense, 0.5–2 mm long, crisp, distally white and dark-based, dentate simple hairs; sparse blackish-yellow, 0.1–0.3 mm long, glandular hairs; and moderately covered with stellate hairs. Involucre almost globose, 10–13(–15) mm long. Involucral bracts dark green, lighter at margin, linear-lanceolate, 10–13(–15) × 0.4–1 mm, acute, with rather dense, crisp to curved, 1–3 mm long, distally white and dark-based simple hairs; sparse minute, (up to 0.1 mm long) yellowish glandular hairs; at base and along proximal part of margin with few to moderately dense stellate hairs. Corolla limb ligulate, yellow, glabrous. Styles yellow. Achenes 3.5–4.5 mm long, dark brown.

Etymology:—The epithet cilentanum refers to Cilento National Park, where the plant grows.

Biological form:—Rosulate hemicryptophyte.

Phenology:—Flowering late-Jun to the second decade of July ( Fig. 3). Fruiting in July.

Distribution and ecology:— Hieracium hypochoeroides subsp. cilentanum is confined to the carbonate rocks of Monte Cervati (or Monte Cervato) ( Fig. 1 ), Sanza, Salerno Province, within the “Parco Nazionale del Cilento e Vallo di Diano”. The only known population counts about 100 individuals occurring on north-exposed rocks, at the upper border of the beech wood, in a restricted area between 1840 and 1870 m of elevation, around the Sanctuary of the Madonna della Neve. Hieracium hypochoeroides subsp. cilentanum belongs to a chasmophytic plant community characterised by several biogeographically taxa, such as Primula auricula , Valeriana montana , Edraianthus graminifolius , Campanula scheuchzeri s.l., etc.

Conservation status:—According to the IUCN (2014) criteria for the conservation status assessment, due to its restricted area and low number of plants—in the only know location 40–60 mature individuals were estimated— Hieracium hypochoeroides subsp. cilentanum should be classified as “Endangered” (EN): D.

Taxonomic relationship:—In southern Italy, the H. hypochoeroides complex has so far been represented by four subspecies: H. hypochoeroides subsp. lucanicum (Arvet-Touvet in Guadagno 1908: 250) Di Gristina et al. (2015b: 465), H. hypochoeroides subsp. montis-scuderii Di Gristina et al. (2013: 49), H. hypochoeroides subsp. peracutisquamum Di Gristina et al. (2015a: 376) , and H. hypochoeroides subsp. serinense ( Zahn 1921: 614) Greuter (2008: 334) . Among these hitherto known taxa, H. hypochoeroides subsp. cilentanum resembles most closely the Lucanian endemic H. hypochoeroides subsp. serinense . However, they are clearly distinct by involucre size and indumentum of the phyllaries (dense and longer simple hairs) ( Fig. 4 , Tab. 1). Also features of the basal leaves show significant differences ( Tab. 1).

Figures

FIGURE 1. The single known location of Hieracium hypochoeroides subsp. cilentanum.

FIGURE 2. Hieracium hypochoeroides subsp. cilentanum: holotype.

FIGURE 4. Hieracium hypochoeroides subsp. cilentanum: capitulum with simple hairs.