Echiostachys ecklonianus (H. Buek) Levyns
Creators: name: Velani, N.
name: Boatwright, J. S.
name: Magee, A. R.
name: Manning, J. C.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Plantae
Tracheophyta
Magnoliopsida
Boraginales
Boraginaceae
Echiostachys
Echiostachys ecklonianus

description: <b>1.</b> <i>Echiostachys ecklonianus</i> (H.Buek) Levyns in J. Linn. Soc., Bot. 49: 448 (1934). <i>Lobostemon ecklonianus</i> H.Buek in Linnaea 11: 144 (1837); C.H.Wright in Fl. Cap. 4(2): 41 (1904). <i>Echium ecklonianum</i> (H. Buek.) DC. &amp; A.DC., Prod. 10: 14 (1846). Type: South Africa, Western Cape, Simonstown (3418): ‘ Hottentotshollandskloof (Stellenbosch)’ (<i>−</i> BB/BD), <i>Ecklon &amp; Zeyher 83</i> (SAM-51023!, lecto., designated here). <i>Note</i>: We designated the SAM material as lectotype as it is the only original material that we have been able to locate. Duplicates of other <i>Lobostemon</i> species described by Buek (1837) are available online [https://plants.jstor.org accessed November 2022] but only this one of L. <i>ecklonianus</i>. <i>Lobostemon galpinii</i> C.H.Wright in Fl. Cap. 4(2): 41 (1904). <i>Echium galpinii</i> (C.H.Wright) I.M.Johnst. in Contrib. Gray Herb. 73: 52 (1924). Type: South Africa, Western Cape, Caledon (3419): ‘Houw Hoek Mountains’ (<i>−</i> AA), flowers purple, 8 Nov 1897, <i>Galpin 4349</i> (K-000418996, holo.-image!; PRE!, iso.). <i>Common name:</i> Pink Boragebrush Caespitose perennial herbs; rootstock slender or cylindrical. <i>Radical leaves</i> 7 to 12, sub-erect, oblanceolate, 50 <i>−</i> 150 <i>X</i> 5 <i>−</i> 18 mm, obtuse or acute, narrow and petiole-like below, abaxial and adaxial surfaces adpressed strigose-villous with a mix of long and short trichomes <i>±</i> 1 2 mm long, trichomes simple or pustular, white; petiole-like base densely strigose to villous. <i>Flowering stem</i> arising laterally to leaf tuft, flexed outwards at base then erect, 200 <i>−</i> 400 mm long, villous with patent hairs 1 <i>−</i> 2 mm long, base strigose to villous; cauline leaves sub-erect, smaller than radical leaves, oblanceolate, obtuse or acute, abaxial and adaxial surfaces strigose-villous. <i> In <i>fl</i> orescence</i> a dense, cylindrical pseudo-spike of numerous 1 to 3(6)-flowered cymules, 40 <i>−</i> 80(175) <i>X</i> (15 <i>−</i>)20 <i>−</i> 40(<i>−</i> 50) mm; pedicels 1 <i>−</i> 2 mm long, strigose-pilose; bracts linear-oblanceolate, 5 <i>−</i> 10 mm long, lowermost bracts somewhat leaf-like. <i>Calyx</i> slightly accrescent to <i>±</i> 9 mm long in fruit, sepals linear-oblanceolate, 3 <i>−</i> 6 mm long, obtuse, densely pilose or sericeous. <i>Corolla</i> funnel-shaped, 6 <i>−</i> 8 mm long, purplish, pinkish or blue, tube 4 <i>−</i> 6 mm long, outer surface very sparsely villous mainly opposite filament insertion, inner surface bearded between filament bases, lobes <i>±</i> equal, ovate, 2 mm long, central veins sparsely hairy or glabrous. <i>Stamens</i> inserted 2 <i>−</i> 4 mm from base of corolla tube, subequal or usually one stamen shorter than others, 7 <i>−</i> 10 mm long, longest stamen exserted <i>±</i> 4 mm from tube, shortest exserted <i>±</i> 2 mm; filaments bearded at base for 2 <i>−</i> 4 mm with hairs running shortly onto tube below filament insertion; anthers <i>±</i> 0.5 mm long. <i>Style</i> 10 <i>−</i> 13 mm long, exserted <i>±</i> 4 mm from tube, sparsely villous in lower two thirds. <i>Nutlets</i> ellipsoid, inner surface with median ridge, nearly smooth [<i> <i>fi</i> de</i> Levyns (1934)]. <i>Flowering time:</i> Aug <i>−</i> Nov(Dec). (Figs. 1A &amp; 2). <i>Distribution and ecology: Echiostachys ecklonianus</i> is restricted to the extreme southwestern parts of Western Cape, South Africa, from the lower slopes of Sir Lowry’ s Pass on the western foothills of the Hottentot’ s Holland Mountains and the western Riviersondered Mountains at Greyton and along the Kleinrivier Mountains to near Bredasdorp [there is a single early record from Swellendam dating from the early nineteenth century (<i>Mund SAM 18,643</i>) but the species has not been recorded east of Bredasdorp since that collection] (Fig. 3); on gravelly or loamy slopes and flats at altitudes up to 285 m a.s.l., flowering best after fire. <i>Diagnosis and relationships: Echiostachys ecklonianus</i> is distinguished by the relatively short, obtuse radical leaves 50 <i>−</i> 150 mm long (including petiole-like base) and <i>±</i> one half or two thirds the length of the flowering stem and not conspicuously silky at the base, and by the small purplish, pinkish or blue flowers with the corolla 5 <i>−</i> 8 mm long. The filaments are bearded at the basal 2 <i>−</i> 4 mm, the hairs not forming a distinct brush-like tuft. The nutlets are reported to be <i>±</i> smooth (Levyns, 1934). <i>Echiostachys incanus</i> has similarly small flowers 5 <i>−</i> 9 mm long but the corolla is consistently whitish in color, the leaves are usually longer, 130 <i>−</i> 230(<i>−</i> 260) mm long and often <i>±</i> as long as the flowering stem, with characteristic acute or attenuate apices, and the base of the petiole-like portion is conspicuously silky. In addition, the hairs at the base of the filaments are congested in a distinct brush-like tuft, and the nutlets are markedly rugose-tuberculate. The two species are largely parapatric but both have been recorded from near Greyton (<i>E. ecklonianus</i>: www.inaturalist.org/observations/95176242 &amp; 91,533,267; <i>E. incanus</i>: www.inaturalist.org/observations/11111653 &amp; 52,704,559) and possibly also Elim and Swellendam, although there are no recent collections of <i>E. incanus</i> from Elim, and none of either species from Swellendam since the early nineteenth century. <i>Additional specimens examined</i> South Africa. WESTERN CAPE. <b>3320 (Montagu)</b>: Swellendam (<i>−</i> CD), without date, <i>Mund SAM 18,643</i> (SAM). <b>3418 (Simonstown):</b> Sir Lowry’ s Pass, lower slopes (<i>−</i> BB), 6 Sep 1931, <i>Levyns 3209</i> (BOL); Sir Lowry’ s Pass (<i>−</i> BB), Oct 1900, <i>Bolus s.n.</i> (BOL); 19 Nov 1944, <i>Barker 3381</i> (NBG); Elgin (-BD), Sep 1929, <i>Bolus 20,002</i> (BOL); Elgin Basin, Arieskraal Farm (<i>−</i> BD), 285 m, 13 Sep 1995, <i>Rode 449</i> (NBG). 3419 <b>(</b> Caledon): Kleinmond, in slightly clayey soil (<i>−</i> AA), Jul 1938, <i>Esterhuysen 1455</i> (BOL); Houw Hoek (<i>−</i> AA), Sep 1902, <i>Bolus 9944</i> (BOL); 26 Sep 1954, <i>Barker 1038</i> (NBG), 10 Sep 1997, <i>Goldblatt &amp; Manning 10,735</i> (NBG); Viljoen’ s Pass (<i>−</i> AA), Dec 1924, <i>Rogers 28,934</i> (SAM); near Bot river (<i>−</i> AA), 24 Jul 1931, <i>Salter 1213</i> (BOL); western Riviersonderend Mountains, Elandskloof 59, Rusty Gate farm (<i>−</i> AB), 6 Dec 2012, <i>Helme 7688</i> (NGB); Palmiet River, Grabouw (<i>−</i> AC), 8 Oct 1896, <i>Guthrie s.n.</i> (NBG); Oct 1948, <i>Stokoe 63,194</i> (SAM); Hemel en Aarde Mt, (<i>−</i> AC), 30 Sep 1928, <i>Gillett M.107</i> (NBG); Kogelberg State Forest (<i>−</i> AC), 150 m, 6 Aug 1993, <i>Kruger 1162</i> (NGB); Fernkloof Nature Reserve (Northcliff) Hermanus (<i>−</i> AD), 21 Oct 1982, <i>Burman 880</i> (BOL); near Hermanus (<i>−</i> AD), Dec 1930, <i>Levyns 3014</i> (BOL); Hermanus (<i>−</i> AD), Oct 1903, <i>Bolus 9684</i> (BOL); Hermanus, Rotary Drive, burnt slope (<i>−</i> AD), 10 Oct 1974, <i>Goldblatt 3011</i> (NGB, PRE); ENE of Stanford, (<i>−</i> AD), 25 Sep 1949, <i>Acocks 15,502</i> (PRE); N side of Akkedisbergpas, Bosch River 609, west of Klein River (<i>−</i> BC), 186 m, 2 Nov 2008, <i>Helme 5718</i> (NBG); Elands Kloof (<i>−</i> BD), 10 Oct 1951, <i>Levyns 9773</i> (BOL); 5.5mi [9 km] NE of Die Dam, (<i>−</i> CA), 23 Sep 1962, <i>Acocks 22,765</i> (PRE); near Uitkraal (<i>−</i> CB), 2 Oct 1935, <i>Muir 4996</i> (NGB); Fairfield Hills (<i>−</i> DA), 29 Aug 1928, <i>Lewis 5301</i> (NBG); Bredasdorp (<i>−</i> DA), 4 Sep 1943, <i>Van Thikeck 326</i> (NGB); Viljoenshof on road to Ratel River (<i>−</i> DA), 4 Sep 1964, <i>Van Breda 1736</i> (NGB, PRE); between Bredasdorp and Elim (<i>−</i> DA), Sep 1933, <i>Levyns 4522</i> (BOL); 8 Oct 1950, <i>Heginbotham 166</i> (NBG); near Elim and Gansbaai (<i>−</i> DA), Oct 1947, <i>Stokoe 63,195</i> (SAM); Baardskeerdersbos (<i>−</i> DA), 4 Sep 1943, <i>Hockole 8584</i> (BOL); 4 Sep 1943, <i>van Niekerk 326</i> (NBG); between Elim and Hagedasberg [Akkedisberg] Pass (<i>−</i> DB), 6 Aug 1947, <i>Levyns 8433</i> (BOL); near Elim (<i>−</i> DB), Oct 1894, <i>Bolus 9999</i> (BOL). <i>Imprecise locality</i>: Hottentots Holland, Oct 1817, <i>Mundt 51,024</i> (SAM).
description: Published as part of <i>Velani, N., Boatwright, J. S., Magee, A. R. &amp; Manning, J. C., 2023, Taxonomy of the small southern African endemic genus Echiostachys Levyns (Boraginaceae: Boraginoideae), pp. 244-256 in South African Journal of Botany 156</i> on pages 245-246, DOI: 10.1016/j.sajb.2023.03.019, http://zenodo.org/record/8013411
description: {"references": ["Buek, H. W., 1837. Echia capensia. Linnaea 11, 129 - 149.", "Levyns, M. R., 1934. The cytology of Lobostemon and Echiostachys in relation to taxonomy. Ann. Bot. 48, 355 - 362."]}