Centaurea spectabilis (Fisch. & C.A.Mey.) Schultz Bipontinus (1847: 326)

Ranjbar, Massoud & Negaresh, Kazem, 2013, A revision of Centaurea sect. Phaeopappus (Asteraceae, Cardueae), Phytotaxa 123 (1), pp. 1-40 : 33

13. Centaurea spectabilis (Fisch. & C.A.Mey.) Schultz Bipontinus (1847: 326) . Fig. 16 .

Basionym: Psephellus spectabilis Fischer & Meyer (1837: 43) . Amberboa spectabilis (Fisch. & C.A.Mey.) Candolle (1838: 561) . Phaeopappus spectabilis (Fisch. & C.A.Mey.) Boissier (1845: 124) . Tomanthea spectabilis (Fisch. & C.A.Mey.) Takhtajan (1939: 241) . Type: AZERBAIJAN. Nakitschiwan, in herbidis vallis Koschadara, 6 July 1829, Szowits 482 (holotype LE!, isotypes G-DC!: three sheets, K!: two sheets, LE!, M!: two sheets, P!: four sheets, TBI!: three sheets, W!, photo BASU!).

Phaeopappus armenus Jaubert & Spach (1847: 13) . Type : ARMENIA. s.c. s.n. (holotype P!, isotype P!).

Perennial plants, usually completely grayish-green or grayish, with woody rootstock, sometimes thick, 30–80 cm tall. Stem erect, sometimes ascending, simple or rarely branched above. Leaves ± densely covered with tomentose-canescent hairs on both sides. Basal and lower leaves distinctly large, ca. 26 × 6–8 cm, petiole 11– 17 cm long, almost pinnatisect or lyrate, segments in 3–7 pairs, lateral segments lanceolate or oblonglanceolate, sometimes lanceolate-elliptic, decurrent along rachis, 8–12 mm broad, terminal segment slightly to distinctly larger, lateral segments 5–18 mm wide, rarely undivided, acute or acuminate at apex. Median cauline leaves sessile, very variable, pinnatisect to pinnatifid (often with few asymmetric lobes only in upper 1/2) or undivided, 8–12 cm long, broadly lanceolate or oblong, not decurrent, short cuspidate at apex. Upper cauline leaves sessile, smaller, 2–8 × 1.2–2.3 cm, undivided, lanceolate or oblong, not decurrent, shorter than capitula, mucronate at apex. Capitula solitary at end of branches, peduncle 30–40 mm long; involucres subglobose, truncate at base, 25–30 × 25–28(–30) mm. Phyllaries multiseriate, imbricate, coriaceous, glabrous and smooth. Outer phyllaries oblong; appendages ca. 5 × ca. 8 mm (cilia and spine included). Median phyllaries oblong; appendages 6–8 × 5–7 mm (cilia and spine included). Inner phyllaries oblonglinear; appendages ca. 5 × ca. 4 mm (cilia and spine included). Appendages concealing only basal part of phyllaries, blackish-brown, triangular; cilia numerous, 4–12 on each side, 3–5 mm long; spine narrowly triangular, sometimes slender, 3–6 mm long, slightly longer than the nearest cilia. Flowers yellow; central florets hermaphrodite, ca. 27 mm long, corolla 13–14 mm long, anther tube usually violet; peripheral florets sterile, finely dissected, not radiant. Achenes oblong, blackish or brownish, glabrous, 6–8 mm long, up to 3 mm wide. Pappus 13–17 mm long, scabrous, violet or brown, innermost series not longer than others. Flowering from June to July.

Taxonomic and distributional remarks: — Centaurea spectabilis generally occurs in E Turkey, NW Iran, Transcaucasia and Armenia. It is an Irano-Turanian element known only from the mid-montane zone ( Wagenitz 1975). Centaurea spectabilis grows on meadows and meadow-steppe slopes, among scattered shrubs or in forest steppe, at elevations of 1750–2400 m. In the Flora of Turkey ( Wagenitz 1975), C. spectabilis comprises 3 varieties, of which only var. spectabilis is found in Iran. It is narrowly distributed in W Azerbaijan Province, NW Iran ( Fig. 2 ). The 2 other varieties, C. spectabilis var. araneosa and C. spectabilis var. microlopha have many differences from the type variety. Boissier originally described these varieties as Phaeopappus microlophus Boissier (1845) and P. araneosus Boissier (1875) . The species rank is restored for these taxa in the present study.

Chromosome numbers: —Unknown.

Selected specimens examined:— IRAN. Prov. W Azerbaijan: Targavar , 2200 m, Siami 1166 ( TARI!); between Targavar and Soluk, Siami 1172 ( TARI!) . ARMENIA. 7 km W from Erakh village , 1065 m, 28 May 2005, K. Tamanyan 313.0 (P!) . Ad radices meridionales montis Aragac secus viam a pago Agarak ad lacum Kari ducentem, 1900–2100 m, Gabrielian 12819 (E!) . TURKEY. B9 Erzurum: Ağri to Horasan, E. of pass, 2150 m, Lamond 2566 (E!); 2 km SW of Hamur ( Murat valley ), 1670 m, 1 June 1966, Davis 44160 (E!); 15 km from Eleskirt to Horasan, E of Tahir pass, 2200 m, 24 July 1966, Davis 47191 (E!); Nemrut, 2500 m, 2 August 1972, A. Tatli 499b (E!) . Van: d. Çatak , Kavuşşahap Da., 2000 m (2400 m), Davis 22998 (E!) . Prov. Tunceli: Hozat-Ovacik , 1800 m, 14 July 1957, Davis & Hedge 31093 (E!) .

Figures

FIGURE 2. Distribution of Centaurea albonitens (1), C. spectabilis (2), C. aucheri (3), C. phaeopappa (4), C. assadii (5), C. indistincta (6), C. farsistanica (7), C. phaeopappa subsp. jiroftensis (8), and C. handelii (9) in Iran.

FIGURE 16. Centaurea spectabilis (Fisch. & C.A. Mey.) Schultz-Bip. (Szowits 482, P). A. habit. B. close up of capitule.