Alkanna malatyana Şenol & Yıldırım, 2014

Yildirim, Hasan & Şenol, Serdar Gökhan, 2014, Alkanna malatyana (Boraginaceae), a new species from East Anatolia, Turkey, Phytotaxa 164 (2), pp. 124-132 : 125-130

Alkanna malatyana Şenol & Yıldırım , sp. nov. ( Figures 1 , 2 , 3A–E )

Diagnosis: — Alkanna malatyana is related to A. mughlae . It differs from A. mughlae by greenish habit (not greyish); sparse indumentum (not dense); stem 3–10 cm long (not 8–15 cm); cymes 1 per stem (not 1-several); corolla 10 –12 mm long, limb 5–7 mm in diam. (not 13–1 5 mm long, limb 7–10 mm in diam.); nutlets 2–3 mm wide, densely long tuberculate, fawn to light brown nutlet (not 1.5–2 mm, densely short tuberculate; light brown to brown). It is also slightly resembles A. kotschyana and A. confusa . It differs from them by dwarf caespitose habit (not relatively tall); cymes 1 per stem (not 1- several); color tube 10– 12 mm long, limb 5– 7 mm in diam. (not 15–24 long, limb 9-15 mm in diam.); nutlet 2– 3 mm long, densely long tuberculate, cream to pale fawn (not 3–4 mm long, scrobiculate-reticulate, dark brown); habitat bare calcareous rocky cliffs (not rocky limestone or metamorphic slopes).

Type: — TURKEY. B7 Malatya Akçadağ district, on calcareous rocky cliffs, 1320 m, 18 May 2011, H. Yıldırım 1801 (holotype: EGE ; isotypes: EGE , GAZI , ANK , ISTF ).

Description: —Perennial, dwarf caespitose, stem 3–10 (– 12) cm long, up to 1 mm long spreading pilose, sparsely setiform hairy up to 1.5 mm and ± glandular hairy. Roots reddish. Basal leaves oblanceolate to spathulate, 4–17 mm wide and 20–60 mm long, obtus to acute; densely tuberculate setiform, pilose, and ± glandular hairy. Cauline leaves oblong, lanceolate to eliptic, 4–11 mm wide and 6–22 mm long, densely tuberculate setiform, pilose, and ± glandular hairy. Cymes 1 per stem, c. 4–8 cm long in fruit. Bracts lanceolate to eliptic, 2–8 mm wide and 5–20 mm long, densely to sparsely tuberculate setiform, pilose, and ± glandular hairy. Pedicels erect, 1–2 mm long at flowering, recurved 2–3 mm long in fruit and pilose, without tuberculate setiform, and glandular hairy. Calyx, 1.5– 2 mm wide and 5–6 mm long in flowering time, 2–2.5 mm wide and 6–7 mm long in fruiting time, pilose, without tuberculate setiform, and glandular hairy. Corolla golden yellow, 10–12 mm long, glabrous outside, limb 5–7 mm in diam., tube 1.5–2 mm wide and 8–9 mm long, lobes 2–3 mm wide and 2–3 mm long. Nutlets 2–3 mm wide, cream to pale fawn, densely tuberculate; beak horizontal to slightly curved. Pollen prolate-spheroidal, 3 colporate, equatorial axis (9.12 –) 10.80 ± 0.33 (– 12.57), polar axis (10.45 –) 12.56 ± 43 (– 14.24), ornemantation psilate.

Discussion

Huber-Morath (1978) listed 31 Alkanna species in Turkey. After this revision, Alkanna was revised by H. Sümbül (1994). He stated that the total number of Alkanna species in Turkey was 35. In his report, he described two of them as new species, but this report did not constitute an effective up-to-date publication according to the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature ( McNeill et al. 2012).

Sümbül (1994) emphasized that the Alkanna species presumably originated in Anatolia. He stated that the indumentum of the plant, the corolla lobes length and width, corolla tube length and width, corolla indumentum, absence or presence of reddish colour in the roots (shikonin, a naphthoquinone derivative), and the length of inflorescence at fruiting time were quite important features for the identification of Alkanna specimens.

The hot spots of the Alkanna species in Turkey are extended from southwest to inner-south Anatolia, especially the Konya, Mersin, Karaman, Antalya, Burdur, Muğla and Isparta Provinces. Moreover, it is distributed from eastern Anatolia. Alkanna species with blue corollas inhabiting calcareous rocks shows very high variation in the indumentum type, indumentum on corollas, and leaf type particularly. We observed many interspecific blueflowered Alkanna populations in the areas at issue. Other species that show a high variation are the most common species; A. tinctoria ( Linnaeus 1753:132) , Tausch (1824:234), and A. orientalis Boiss. (1844:46) . Except for these Alkanna species in Turkey, the other remaining Alkanna species have more constant morphological characters.

Although there are many obligate chasmophytic blue-flowered Alkanna species , only two ‘obligate chasmophytic’ Alkanna species with yellow flowers ( A. mughlae and A. malatyana ) grow in Turkey. The other yellow-flowered species [for example A. kotschayana DeCandolle (1846: 98) , A.hirsutissima DeCandolle (1846: 101) , A. confusa Samuelsson (1950: 316) ] grow on different kinds of habitats, like scree, rocky slopes, and open forest areas.

Alkanna malatyana shows some morphological affinity to A. mughlae ( Figure 4 ). The corollas of both species are glabrous and yellow. Moreover, they grow on calcareous cliffs. However, it can be easily distinguished from A. mughlae by several noticeable features. The most important morphological characters are: greenish habit; spreading and sparsely pilose, setiform and ± glandular hairy indumentum; stem 3–10 cm long; oblanceolate to spathulate, obtuse to acute basal leaves; oblong, lanceolate to elliptic cauline leaves; 1 cyme per stem; corolla 10– 12 mm long, limb 5–7 mm in diameter; nutlet 2–3 mm wide, densely long tuberculate, and cream to pale fawn in colour. The differences between A. malatyana and A. mughlae are also summarized in Table 1 .

The nutlets of both species are densely tuberculate, but the nutlets of Alkanna malatyana are bigger than those of A. mughlae and the tubercles on the nutlet surface of A. malatyana are longer than those of A. mughlae .

Although A. malatyana shows some morphological similarities with A. confusa and A. kotschyana ( Figure 5 ), it clearly differs from both species based on the morphological differences presented in Table 1 .

Etymology: —The species epithet is derived from Malatya Province, where the new species was first discovered.

Distribution, Habitat and Ecology: — Alkanna malatyana is a local endemic restricted to Levent Canyon in Malatya, eastern Anatolia ( Fig. 3F ). It is an element belonging to the Irano-Turanian floristic region. The new species colonizes only on the calcareous rock cliffs in Levent Canyon, preferably those with eastern orientation, between 1,220 and 1,400 m a.s.l ( Fig. 3G ). It is an obligate chasmophytic species.

Suggested conservational status: —The population area of A. malatyana was calculated as 0.312 km 2, and ca. 900 individuals were observed in total. Following the criteria laid out by IUCN (2013), the plant is categorized as ‘Vulnerable’ (VU) D1 + 2, on account of its restricted distribution.

Additional specimens examined (paratypes):— TURKEY. Malatya: Akçadağ, Levent Canyon , on calcareous rocky cliffs, 1320–1400 m, 30 June 2010, S.G. Şenol & H. Yıldırım 1746 ( EGE!) ; ibid 20 June 2011, H. Yıldırım 2120 ( EGE!) ; ibid 21 June 2013, H.Yıldırım 2731 ( EGE!) .

Additional specimens examined (similar taxa): Alkanna mughlae : — TURKEY. Muğla: Ortaca, Dalyan, İztuzu , 5–20 m, on limestone cliffs, 16 March 1991, A. Güner 8128, H. Duman & H. Şağban (isotype: HUB!); Ortaca, Dalyan-Sülüngür gölü arası, 10–170 m, kalkerli kayalık yamaçlar 21 March 1991, A. Güner 8183, H. Duman & H. Şağban (HUB!); Bozburun tepesi batı yamaçlar, uçurum kayalıklar, 10–50 m, 15 June 1991, A. Güner 9385, M. Vural, A. A. Dönmez & H. Şağban (HUB!); Dalyan, Kaunos mezarlığı, 14 April 1991, Ş. Başaçık 8913295 (HUB!); Marmaris Kumlubük, Asar Tepe, Amos Harabeleri, 50 m, kaya üzeri, 29 June 1997, H. Şağban 1886 (HUB!). Dalyan, iztuzu, Kayalık uçurumlar, kalker kaya üzeri, 31 March 2006, H. Yıldırım & S. G. Senol 3249 (EGE!); ibid 31 March 2006, S. G. Senol & H. Yıldırım 1793 (EGE!).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Alkanna malatyana: A—habit, B—flowers, C-indumentum of stem, D—indumentum of leaves (drawing by Hasan Yıldırım), E and F—SEM photographs of nutlet and nutlet surface, G and H—SEM photographs of pollen grain (details from the holotype).

FIGURE 2. A and B—habit and habitat of Alkanna malatyana.

FIGURE 3. Alkanna malatyana: A—habit in flowering time, B—habit in fruiting time, C—flowering stem, D—flowers, E—fruiting stem; F—distribution map of: Alkanna malatyana (*), and Alkanna mughlae (•); G-habitat of Alkanna malatyana.

FIGURE 4. Alkanna mughlae: A—habit and habitat, B—flowers; C—nutlets of: 1—Alkanna malatyana, 2—Alkanna mughlae.

FIGURE 5. Alkanna kotschyana: A—habit and habitat, B—flowers; Alkanna confusa: C— habit and habitat, D—flowers.