Primula mianyangensis G. Hao & C. M. Hu. The 2013, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Wu, Xing
name: Xu, Yuan
name: Hu, Chi-Ming
name: Hao, Gang
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2013
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Plantae
Tracheophyta
Magnoliopsida
Ericales
Primulaceae
Primula
Primula mianyangensis

description: Primula mianyangensis G.Hao & C.M.Hu, sp. nov. (Fig. 1)   
 Type: ⎯ CHINA. Sichuan: Mianyang City, An Xian, Cha Ping Xiang, summit of Qian Fo Shan, 31° 74' N, 104° 21' E, 2750 m elev., 20 June 2012, Y . Xu 120112 (holotype: IBSC; isotype: IBSC).   
 Species affinis P. kialensi Franch. et P. sociali Chen & C. M. Hu sectionis Aleuritiae Duby, a priore imprimis scapo nullo, foliis longe petiolatis differt; ab altera statura majore, pedicellis ad 5 cm longis, floribus multo maioribus valde diversa.   
 Herbs, perennial, 5 − 8 cm tall, with a short rootstock covered with the remains of old leaves. Leaves variable, inner leaves smaller, leaf blade obovate to oblanceolate, 0.8 − 1.8 cm long, pale yellow farinose on both surfaces, obscurely toothed above the middle, base gradually tapering into a winged petiole usually as long as the blade; outer leaves long petiolate, petioles 3 − 4.5 cm long, ca. 2 times the length of the leaf blade, not winged; leaf blade elliptic, 1.5 − 3 × 0.6 − 13 cm, membranous when dry, apex obtuse to more or less acute, base attenuate, margin dentate-serrate from lower 1/3, abaxially densely pale-yellow farinose, adaxially glabrous; lateral veins 6−7 on each side of the midvein, reticulation of veins obscure on both surfaces. Scape never develops. Flowers distylous, 2 to many arising from leaf rosette. Pedicels 3.5 − 5 cm, glabrous, with a very small scale-like bract near the base. Calyx narrowly campanulate, 8 − 9 mm, sparsely yellow farinose on both surfaces, 5 − veined, split to 2/3 of its length; lobes lanceolate, apex acuminate. Corolla pale rose − purple, with a pale yellow or white eye; limb 1.8 − 2 cm wide; lobes obovate, 6 − 7 × ca. 6 mm, bilobed, lobules entire; thrum flower with corolla tube ca. 10 mm long, stamens inserted towards apex, style ca. 3 mm long, reaching to the lower 1/3 of the tube. Capsule ovoid-ellipsoid, ca. 5 mm long, shorter than the persistent calyx, opening by valves.   
 Distribution, habitat and conservation status: ⎯ The new species is currently known only from the type locality in Sichuan, Mianyang City, An Xian, Cha Ping Xiang, Qian Fo Shan (ca. 31° 74' N, 104° 21' E). It grows on moist cliffs of the summit at 2750 m elevation, flowering from May to mid-June. To date, only one population with approximately 500 individuals has been found in an area of 5 km 2. According to IUCN red list criteria (IUCN 2001), this species should be included in the category‘Critically Endangered’ (CR) (B2abiii).   
 Etymology: ⎯ The epithet of the new species is taken from the Chinese pinyin, “mianyang”, the name of the city in northern Sichuan, China, and the Latin suffix, “ − ensis,” meaning “of origin or place”, referring the type locality and known distribution of the new species.   
 Additional specimens examined (paratype): ⎯ CHINA. Sichuan: Mianyang city, An Xian, Cha Ping Xiang, summit of Qian Fo Shan, 3000 m elev., 29 April, 2012, Y . Xu & Y. J. Liu 120056 (IBSC).   
 Discussion: ⎯ In the genus Primula, flowers are usually borne on scapes forming umbellate subcapitate, racemose or spicate inflorescences, but in some species of sections Petiolares Pax (1889: 173) and Minutissimae Pax (1889: 202) the scapes initially are not fully developed and hidden in the leaf-rosette, while after anthesis they elongate and become conspicuous. Species with solitary flowers and without a scape, although rather rare, occur in sections Petiolares, Minutissimae and Aleuritia. The new species, being a robust plant with leathery capsule opening by valves, can be easily distinguished from other non-scapose species in sections Minutissimae and Petiolares. In section Aleuritia, P. socialis is similar to P. mianyangensis in having yellow farina and lacking a scape, but the new species is a much robust plant, up to 8 cm tall, with longpetioled leaves and larger flowers. In the general appearance the new species also resembles P. kialensis, but can be easily distinguished by its basal rather than scapose flowers. The main morphological differences between P. mianyangensis, P. socialis and P. kialensis are summarized in Table 1.
description: Published as part of Wu, Xing, Xu, Yuan, Hu, Chi-Ming & Hao, Gang, 2013, Primula mianyangensis (Primulaceae), a new species from Sichuan, China, pp. 49-52 in Phytotaxa 131 (1) on pages 49-51, DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.131.1.9, http://zenodo.org/record/5086012