Impatiens lhunzeensis J. Tian, G. W. Hu & Q. F. Wang, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Tian, Jing
name: Yuan, Tao-Hua
name: Peng, Shuai
name: Yang, Zhu-Zhu
name: Hu, Guang-Wan
name: Wang, Qing- Feng
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Plantae
Tracheophyta
Magnoliopsida
Ericales
Balsaminaceae
Impatiens
Impatiens lhunzeensis

description: 1. Impatiens lhunzeensis J.Tian, G.W.Hu & Q.F.Wang, sp. nov. (Figs. 1 & 2, Fig. 3: A1–I1)
Type: — CHINA. Xizang: Shannan Prefecture, Lhunze County, Zhari Township, evergreen broad-leaved forests along understory streams, 2671 m, 28°35′58″N, 93°24′14″E, 14 July 2022, J. Tian & C. Zhang TIBET-TJ3 (holotype: HIB, HIB0209753; isotypes: HIB, HIB0209754, HIB0209755, HIB0209756).
Diagnosis: — Impatiens lhunzeensis is different from I. radiata Hook.f., I. harae H.Ohba & S.Akiyama, I. drepanophora Hook.f. (1905: 22), I. principis Hook.f. (1908: 246), and I. eubotrya Miq. (1860: 397) by a combination of following characters: indumentum present on the stem, leaf blade densely hairy, racemose inflorescence, peduncle hairy in lower parts, reniform dorsal petal, navicular lower sepal, broadly ovate to sub-orbicular upper petals, and triangular oblong lower petals.
Description: —Annual, non-succulent herbs, 24–50 cm high; stems erect, robust, branched, densely hairy. Leaves alternate; petiole 0.5–2.5 cm long, densely hairy, with 2 clavate basal glands; leaf blade ovate, 1–8 × 0.8–3.5 cm, densely hairy above and on veins beneath, lateral veins 5–9 pairs, margin crenate, apex acuminate. Inflorescence in upper leaf axils, racemose, 6–26-flowered; peduncle 5–10 (to 15) cm long, lower parts hairy, upper parts glabrous; pedicel 1.4–1.9 cm long; bracts ovate, 0.2–0.3 cm long, persistent, apex glandular slender. Flowers pale-pinkish to white, 1.8–2.1 cm long, small; lateral sepals 2, ovate-lanceolate, 0.2–0.3 cm long, apex long mucronulate; lower sepal navicular, apex rostellate, ca. 0.5× 1.2 cm, gradually tapering into straight 0.6–0.8 cm long spur; dorsal petal reniform, apex rounded, ca. 0.3 × 0.5 cm; lateral united petals white to pink, 1.6–1.8 cm, 2-lobed; upper petal broadly ovate to sub-orbicular, 0.2–0.3 × 0.2–0.3 cm, lower petal triangular oblong, 1.0–1.2 × 0.5 cm, apex obtuse. Anthers obtuse. Ovary 5-carpellate. Capsule linear, 1.8–2.2 cm. Seeds unknown.
Etymology: —The specific epithet “ lhunzeensis ” refers to the type locality, Lhunze County. The Chinese name is given as “̎子凤仙花” (lóng-zǐ-fèng-xiān-huā).
Phenology: —Flowering late July to August, fruiting late August to September.
Habitats: —Moist roadside ditches on the forest margins in the mountains at an elevation range from 2500 to 2800 m.
Distribution: — Impatiens lhunzeensis is only found in Lhunze, Xizang, China.
Phylogenetic position:— Phylogenetic analysis shows that the new species is nested within I. sect. Racemosae, along with three closely related species: I. principis, I. eubotrya, and I. drepanophora. The clade consisting of the new species and its close relatives is strongly supported by both maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference phylogenetic trees (Fig. 4).
description: Published as part of Tian, Jing, Yuan, Tao-Hua, Peng, Shuai, Yang, Zhu-Zhu, Hu, Guang-Wan & Wang, Qing- Feng, 2024, A new species of Impatiens (Balsaminaceae) from Southern Xizang, China with supplementary knowledge on I. leptocarpa Hook. f., pp. 47-62 in Phytotaxa 661 (1) on page 52, DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.661.1.3, http://zenodo.org/record/13218290