Leucas fulvipila Bramley

Meerts, Pierre, 2022, New identifications of Lamiaceae (Lamioideae and Scutellarioideae) from D. R. Congo, Rwanda and Burundi, Bothalia (a 9) 52 (1), pp. 1-7 : 4

* Leucas fulvipila Bramley

Leucas descampsii in Angulo (1970) quoad Michel & Reed 2336, non Briq.

Leucas tettentis in Sebald (1980) quoad Lewalle 5625, Michel & Reed 2336, Reekmans 536, non Vatke

Distribution: Burundi, Tanzania, Zambia.

Habitat: Brachystegia woodlands;alt. 850–1500 m.

Specimens examined: BURUNDI: Lacs Edouard & Kivu: Bururi, Rumonge , 03°59’S, 29°26’E, alt. 850 m, forêt claire, 2 May 1971, Reekmans 536 ( BR) ; Rumonge , 03°59’S, 29°26’E, alt. 800 m, forêt claire, 13 May 1952, Lewalle 5625 ( BR, WAG) . Rwanda-Burundi: Kinyinya Mosso , 03°39’S, 30°20’E, forêt de Cryptosepalum , 6 Jun. 1952, Michel 2483 ( BR) ; Kinyinya Mosso , 03°39’S, 30°20’E, forêt de Brachystegia , 8 May 1952, Michel & Reed 1862 ( BR) ; [Nyamabuye] Mosso , 03°28’S, 30°19’E, forêt de Cryptosepalum , 13 May 1952, Michel & Reed 2336 ( BR) ; Bururi, Rubindi , 04°15’S, 29°33’E, alt. 900 m, sous-bois de forêt claire à Brachystegia , 16 Apr. 1978, Reekmans 6935 ( BR, WAG) .

Discussion: Leucas fulvipila is a recently described species ( Paton et al. 2009). The materials from Burundi were previously misidentified as L. tettensis Vatke by Angulo (1970) and Sebald (1980), on account of the stiff cilia on bract margins; however, the calyx is quite different. It is closely related to the widespread L. stormsii Gürke , from which it is easily distinguished by the 1–2 mm pale yellow cilia on bract margins, much longer than bract width. The new localities extend the species’ range ± 400 km to the north.

Bibliography: Paton et al. (2009, 2013).