Glochidion malingheense C.Y. Deng & Gang Yao, 2022

Yao, Gang, Liu, Zengcai, Lang, Yuanxing, Liao, Desheng, Xu, Junbo, Luo, Shixiao & Deng, Chaoyi, 2022, Glochidion malingheense (Phyllanthaceae), a new species from Guizhou, China, Phytotaxa 561 (1), pp. 104-110 : 105-109

Glochidion malingheense C.Y. Deng & Gang Yao , sp. nov. ( Figs.1‒2 )

Diagnosis: Glochidion malingheense is most similar to G. oblatum Hook. f. in morphology, but much differs from the latter by its long pedicels of pistillate flowers that are up to 3 mm in length, oblong sepals of pistillate flowers, short cylindrical styles, subcircular to broadly ellipticum sepals of staminate flowers, 3 stamens and smaller capsules that are about 10 mm in diameter.

Type: — CHINA. Guizhou Province: Xingyi, Malinghe Canyon, C.Y. Deng & Z.C. Liu 2021082101 (holotype, IBSC) .

Description. Small trees, monoecious, up to 3.5 m tall. Branchlets angled, straight, pubescent. Leaf blades ellipticum to oblong, 6–12 × 2.5–4.5 cm, leathery, glabrous on both surfaces, base cuneate, slightly asymmetrical, apex acute or obtuse, margin entire; midvein elevated abaxially, lateral veins 5–8-paired; stipules triangular to narrowly triangular and slightly subulate at apex, 2–4 mm long; petioles 5–7 mm long, glabrous. Inflorescences in leaf axil, unisexual or mixed. Staminate flowers in axillary, inserted along the length of branchlets, solitary or in clusters, pedicels 5–8.5 mm long, sparsely pubescent or sub-glabrous; sepals 6, fleshy, biseriate (3 + 3), sparsely pubescent abaxially, outer 3 subcircular to broadly elliptic, 2.5–3 × 2–2.5mm, inner 3 spatulate, 2 × 1.5 mm, apex rounded or rarely acute; stamens 3, connate, clinandria longitudinally dehiscent. Pistillate flowers in axillary, inserted along the length of branchlets, solitary or sometimes 2–3 clusters, pedicels up to 3 mm long, densely pubescent; sepals 6, fleshy, biseriate, oblong, apex acute, sparsely pubescent abaxially; ovary depressed globose, densely tomentulose at the upper 1/4, ca. 1 mm in diameter, 4–6-locular; style connate into a short cylinder, ca. 1 mm long, tomentulose at the lower part, 4–6-lobed at apex, and then shallowly 2-lobed for each lobes. Capsules usually solitary or 2–3 in clusters, depressed globose, ca. 10 mm in diameter and 5 mm high, usually sub-glabrous or sparsely pubescent, shallowly 8–12-grooved or grooves obscure, pericarp usually 0.5–2 mm thick, lignified to some extent when dry; styles persistent at apex, shortly columnshaped; fruiting pedicels stout, 6–8 mm long. Seeds coat orange to red, seeds hemispheric, 2–3 mm in diameter.

Phenology: —Flowering from May to August and fruiting from August to November.

Etymology: — Glochidion malingheense is named after the type locality, Malinghe Canyon.

Chinese name: —Ma Ling He Suan Pan Zi (ḶKOiṞÊŦ).

Habitat and distribution: — Glochidion malingheense is found only in Malinghe Canyon in Xingyi , Guizhou Province, China ( Fig. 5 ). The species grows in forests and roadsides at an elevation of about 1000 m .

Figures

FIGURE 1. Glochidion malingheense C.Y. Deng & Gang Yao. A: Habit; B. Habitat; C: Stem.

FIGURE 2. Glochidion malingheense C.Y. Deng & Gang Yao. A–B: Branchlets; C: Pistillate flower; D: Connate styles (indicated by the black arrowhead) and ovary (indicated by the white arrowhead); E: Top view of connate styles; F–H: Staminate flower, stamens in ‘H’ are indicated by white arrowheads; I–J: Fruits, persistent styles in ‘I–K’ are indicated by black arrowheads; L: seeds.A & C–H: C.Y. Deng 2021051963 (IBSC); B & I–L: C.Y. Deng & Z.C. Liu 2021082101 (IBSC). Glochidion malingheense C.Y. Deng & Gang Yao (C.Y. Deng 2021051963, IBSC; C.Y. Deng & Z.C. Liu 2021082101, IBSC).

FIGURE 5. Distribution map of Glochidion malingheense C.Y. Deng & Gang Yao (red square) and G. oblatum Hook. f. (blue circular), drawn based on information of Chinese specimens.