Viola austroyunnanensis Y. S. Chen 2023, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Liao, Shu-Yuan
name: Liao, Jun-Jie
name: He, De-Ming
name: Wu, Jian-Yong
name: Chen, You-Sheng
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Plantae
Tracheophyta
Magnoliopsida
Malpighiales
Violaceae
Viola
Viola austroyunnanensis

description: <i>Viola austroyunnanensis</i> Y.S. Chen, <i>sp. nov.</i> (Figure 1–3). Type: CHINA, Yunnan, Wenshan county, Zhuilijie town, Yahuzhai, 103°22′16.57”E, 23°17′16.37”N, 1580 m, 24 Apr. 2020, <i>You-Sheng Chen et al. WS1214</i> (holotype IBSC; isotypes IBSC, PE). Herbs perennial. Rhizome robust, to 7 cm long. Stolons elongated, glabrous, usually with scattered leaves and rosette new plants. Leaves nearly basal or alternate on aerial stolons; stipules mostly free, green, lanceolate, ca. 1 cm long, ca. 2 mm wide, margin long fimbriate-dentate, apex acuminate, base adnate to petioles; petioles 1.5–6.5 cm long, glabrous, wingless; leaf blade ovate-cordate, 2–5.5 cm long, 2–3.7 cm wide, adaxially glandular pubescent, abaxially glabrous, base cordate, margin obtusely dentate, apex acute. Flowers blue-purple to white; pedicels usually exceeding leaves in flowering period, glabrous, 2-bracteolate above middle; bracteoles opposite, linear. Sepals oblong, glabrous, ca. 5 mm long and ca. 1 mm wide, apex acute, basal auricles short, 0.5–1 mm long, 3-veined, margin glabrous outside, apex truncate. Petals oblong-obovate, 10–11 mm long, apex obtuse, lateral ones glabrous, anterior one ca. 9–11 mm long (spur included), apex acute; spur saccate, short, 2–3 mm long, stout, 2.2 mm in diam.; spur of 2 anterior stamens angular, slightly longer than anthers, apex acute. Ovary conic, glabrous; styles clavate, base slightly geniculate, thickened upward, slightly flat at apex, conspicuously margined on lateral sides, shortly beaked in front, with a stigma hole open upward at tip of beak. Capsule ellipsoid, ca. 7 mm long, glabrous. <b>Distribution and habitat</b>: <i>Viola austroyunnanensis</i> is found from Wenshan county and Yuanyang county, southeastern Yunnan province, China. It was observed to grow in sparse evergreen forests or karst rocky thickets at elevations from 1500 to 2000 m. <b>Phenology</b>: Flowering from March to April, fruiting from April to October. <b>Etymology</b>: The epithet “ <i>austroyunnanensis</i> ” refers to the distribution range of the new species, southern Yunnan province. <b>Additional specimens examined</b> (<b>paratypes</b>): China, Yunnan, Wenshan county, Zhuilijie town, Yahuzhai, 1577 m, 18 Oct. 2019, <i>You-Sheng Chen et al. WS0422</i> (IBSC); Yuanyang county, Huangmaoling town, Dashan, 1930 m, 20 Oct. 2019, <i>You-Sheng Chen et al. YY0426</i> (IBSC); Yuanyang county, Daping town, Huizhulin, 2000 m, 2 Apr. 2020, <i>You-Sheng Chen et al. YY1233</i> (IBSC); Yuanyang county, Huangcaoling town, Dapai, 1500 m, 4 Apr. 2020, <i>You-Sheng Chen et al. YY1310</i> (IBSC). <b>Discussion:</b> <i>Viola austroyunnanensis</i> belongs to <i>V.</i> sect. <i>Diffusae</i> (Becker 1923: 113) Wang (1991: 100) based on the plant with aerial stolons, stipules mostly free, base adnate to petioles, and margins long fimbriate-dentate, styles clavate, and base slightly geniculate, conspicuously margined on lateral sides. Phylogenetically, <i>V</i>. <i>austroyunnanensis</i> is resolved as a member of <i>V</i>. sect. <i>Adnatae</i>. Therefore, the systematic position of <i>V</i>. <i>austroyunnanensis</i> needs further research. <i>Viola austroyunnanensis</i> is most similar to <i>V. fargesii</i> Boissieu (1902: 333) in its habit (perennial herbs has slender, elongated stolons with scattered leaves), leaf cordate, aerial stolons and lower petals with short spur, but differs from the latter by its stolons, petioles, stipules, abaxial leaf surface and sepals all glabrous (vs. white puberulous), later petals glabrous (vs. beard), flower color usually blue-purple (vs. white); corolla throat nearly white (vs. yellow). The ML tree shows the <i>V. fargesii</i> as a single sister clade with <i>V</i>.sect. <i>Bilobatae</i> (Becker 1917: 226) Juzepczuk (1949: 439), <i>V</i>. sect. <i>Diffusae</i> and <i>V</i>. sect. <i>Adnatae</i>.
description: Published as part of <i>Liao, Shu-Yuan, Liao, Jun-Jie, He, De-Ming, Wu, Jian-Yong &amp; Chen, You-Sheng, 2023, Viola austroyunanensis (Violaceae), a new species from Yunnan province of China, pp. 153-161 in Phytotaxa 613 (2)</i> on pages 154-158, DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.613.2.4, http://zenodo.org/record/8346503
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