Bartsia lydiae S. P. Sylvester 2014, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Sylvester, Steven P.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2014
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Plantae
Tracheophyta
Magnoliopsida
Lamiales
Orobanchaceae
Bartsia
Bartsia lydiae

description: Bartsia lydiae S.P.Sylvester, sp. nov. (Fig. 1–3)
Species perenne distincta ab aliis speciebus notis sect. Laxae, a quibus caulibus vel foliabus hirsutus, pilis glandulosis, corolla purpurea.
Type:— PERU. Cusco, Prov. Urubamba: Distr. Urubamba, Área de Conservación Privada (ACP) Mantanay, 10 km up the valley from Yanahuara in the small valley 3 km E of laguna Ipsaycocha, forest on the SW side of laguna Manalloqsa, 4614m, S13° 11' 59.2" W72° 08' 39.9", 23 June 2012, S.P. Sylvester 1754 (holotype USM!, isotypes CUZ!, GB!, ID!, MO!, Z!)
Ascending perennial (rarely annual) herb, (0.1–) 0.5–0.8 m tall, arising from a perennial woody crown, the shoots ascending or divaricate, branched chiefly at the base. Stems retrorsely white hirsute to villous with glandular hairs (the glands deciduous). Leaves divaricate, generally remote on stems, ovate to elliptic, 9–22(–28) × 4–8(–12) mm, obtuse, rounded to truncate at base (sometimes cuneate in smaller leaves and semi-amplexicaul in larger leaves), green to purple (in areas exposed to sunlight), hirsute with white glandular hairs throughout, the margins deflexed to slightly revolute, evenly crenate with 4–6(–7) lobulae along each side. Inflorescence loose, 5–12 cm long, and comprising 4–9 floral nodes, the lowermost internode 0.6–1.5 cm in fruit; bracts similar to foliage leaves; pedicels 2–4(–6) mm long. Flowers ascending, 9–12(–15) mm long. Calyx campanulate, 7–9(–10.5) mm long at anthesis, dark green to purple, hirsute with glandular, multicellular hairs (the hairs white with dark glands) and glandular moniliform hairs towards the calyx lobe apex, ± equally cleft, the lobes subulate, reflexed, obtuse to subacute, entire, the clefts 40–60% of calyx length. Corolla glandular puberulous with moniliform hairs, the galea cucullate, reddish purple, 9–12(–15) mm long, equal to or shorter than the lip, sometimes longer than the lip (galea length 0.85–1.0(–1.2) × lip length), the lip varying from deflexed and spreading in mature flowers to incurved and appressed in young flowers, 10–14 × 5–8 mm, ± gibbose, reddish purple, the tube puberulous with glandular moniliform hairs, light reddish purple fading to white. Anthers included, yellow, sparsely villous, ± distinctly mucronate, (1.2–) 1.4–1.9 mm long. Style 7–11 mm; stigma yellow-green to yellow, slightly bilobate. Capsule ovoid, 7–9 mm long, white setose, purplish. Seeds small, 0.6–0.8 mm long, pale brownish-white, relatively narrow winged.
Distribution:— (Fig. 3) Restricted to undisturbed areas of Polylepis Ruiz & Pav. (1794: 80) woodland in hard to access areas throughout the Cordillera Vilcanota, Cusco, Peru, at 4220-4820 m a.s.l.. Known from four localities; 1) Cliff ledges of the prominent SW facing cliff face 1.5 km S (170°) of Cancha Cancha village, Huarán. 2) Ledges of the prominent tower known by locals as “Kontorqayku”, 5 km NE of Huarán. 3) Surroundings of Laguna Manalloqsa, ACP Mantanay, 10 km up the valley from Yanahuara in the small valley 3 km E of Laguna Ipsaycocha. 4) Terrace on the N side of Laguna Qellococha, 5 km N of Huayocari village.
Habitat:— Relatively dry and exposed sites in montane Polylepis forest and forest edges, often sheltered close to rocks.
Etymology:— The name ‘ lydiae ’ is in recognition of botanist Dr. Lydia Hantsch and her scientific accomplishments.
Additional specimens examined:— PERU. Cusco. Prov. Calca: Distr. Calca, large ledge situated on the prominent SW facing cliff face 1 km SE of Cancha Cancha village, Huarán, 4524 m, S13° 14' 35.1" W72° 01' 13.5", 15 October 2010, S.P. Sylvester 127 (CUZ!, Z!); Distr. Calca, large ledge situated on the prominent SW facing cliff face 1.5 km S (170°) of Cancha Cancha village, Huarán, 4535 m, S13° 14' 35.3" W72° 01' 13.6", 24 March 2011, S.P. Sylvester 878 (CUZ!, ID!, Z!); Distr. Calca, large ledge situated on the prominent SW facing cliff face 1.5 km S (170°) of Cancha Cancha village, Huarán, 4522 m, S13° 14' 35.2" W72° 01' 14.1", 21 March 2011, S.P. Sylvester 815 (CUZ!, Z!); Distr. Calca, large ledge situated on the prominent cliff 1km S (150°) of Cancha Cancha village, Huarán, 4504m, S13° 14' 35.6" W72° 01' 14.8", 27 March 2011, S.P. Sylvester 939 (CUZ!, LPB, Z!); Distr. Calca, the Southern-most point of the prominent ledge situated on the SW facing cliff face 1.5 km S (170°) of Cancha Cancha village, Huarán, 4504 m, S13° 14' 36.6" W72° 01' 14.6", 07 April 2011, S.P. Sylvester 1017 (CUZ!, Z!); Distr. Calca, at the far S of the prominent ledge situated on the SW facing cliff face 1.5 km S (170°) of Cancha Cancha village, Huarán, 4544 m, S13° 14' 36.3" W72° 01' 14.4", 07 April 2011, S.P. Sylvester 1026 (CUZ!, Z!); Distr. Calca, the prominent ledge situated on the SW facing cliff face 1.5 km S (170°) of Cancha Cancha village, Huarán, 4544 m, S13° 14' 36.3" W72° 01' 14.4", 24 March 2012, S.P. Sylvester 1407 (CUZ!, Z!); Distr. Calca, the Polylepis forest to the E of the prominent tower known by locals as “Kontorqayku”, 5 km NE of Huarán, 4251 m, S13° 16' 09.6" W72° 01' 04.9", 06 June 2012, S.P. Sylvester 1649 (CUZ!, GB!, ID!, Z!); Prov. Urubamba: Distr. Urubamba, ACP Mantanay, 10 km up the valley from Yanahuara in the small valley 3 km E of Laguna Ipsaycocha, ledges on cliff side 250°W of Laguna Manalloqsa, 4624 m, S13° 11' 59.3" W72° 08' 39.7", 01 February 2011, S.P. Sylvester 464 (Z!); Distr. Urubamba, ACP Mantanay, 10 km up the valley from Yanahuara in the small valley 3 km E of Laguna Ipsaycocha, topmost of the ridge to the W of Laguna Manalloqsa, 4819 m, S13° 12' 09.5" W72° 08' 44.3", 25 June 2012, S.P. Sylvester 1730 (CUZ!, GB!, ID!, MO!, Z!); Distr. Huayllabamba, terrace situated on the N side of Laguna Qellococha and to the E of the waterfall, 5 km N of Huayocari village, 4221 m, S13° 16' 35.8" W72° 03' 01.4", 09 March 2011, S.P. Sylvester 680 (CUZ!, Z!).
Discussion:— Bartsia lydiae is easily recognised in the field by its glandular indumentum covering the leaves, stems and flowers and the reddish purple flowers with deflexed corolla lip (in mature flowers) and reflexed calyx lobes. The whole plant is covered with a persistent glandular-haired indumentum that separates it from all members of sect. Laxae except B. adenophylla Molau (1990: 63), which is a strictly annual plant with an erect, solitary habit and pale yellow flowers with glabrous anthers. Bartsia lydiae also bears resemblances to B. flava Molau (1990: 60) in the deflexed, wide (> 5 mm) corolla lip but B. flava is distinguished by a yellow corolla and absence of glandular hairs.
Bartsia lydiae was found to occupy all study sites in the Cordillera Vilcanota (Fig. 3) whilst studying differences in vegetation composition between anthropogenically disturbed puna grasslands and undisturbed zonal vegetation of crag ledges as part of a larger study attempting to reconstruct the potential natural vegetation (PNV, Zerbe 1998) of the puna (Sylvester et al. unpubl. data). From personal observation, this species constitutes an important part of the natural vegetation in this part of the high Andes and its frequency and abundance within relict patches of near natural vegetation gives cause to believe that this is an indicator species for the PNV, although analysis of the data will be needed to verify this claim (Sylvester et al., unpubl. data). Bartsia lydiae has not been found in accessible, disturbed or secondary, vegetation at similar or lower elevations in the Andes of the Cuzco region, despite a more thorough botanical exploration. This may relate to the species susceptibility to disturbance from grazing and burning (Sylvester, pers. observation).
description: Published as part of Sylvester, Steven P., 2014, Bartsia lydiae, a new species of Bartsia sect. Laxae (Orobanchaceae) from the southern Peruvian Andes with a revised key to Bartsia sect. Laxae, pp. 41-46 in Phytotaxa 164 (1) on pages 41-45, DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.164.1.4, http://zenodo.org/record/5132543