Litsea salmonea A. Chev.  2023, sp. nov.
Creators: name: De Kok, Rogier P. J.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Plantae
Tracheophyta
Magnoliopsida
Laurales
Lauraceae
Litsea
Litsea salmonea

description: 12. Litsea salmonea A.Chev. ex de Kok, sp. nov.
(Figs 12; 13)
Litsea salmonea A.Chev, unpublished; P.H.Hô, Illustrated Flora of Vietnam 452 (Hô 1991), nom. inval.); Nguyén Kim Đào, Lauraceae in Checklist of Plants Species of Vietnam 2: 87 (Nguyén Kim Đào 2003), nom. inval.).
DIAGNOSIS. — This species differs from its close relative Litsea balansae Lecomte by having terminal leaf buds which are ovoid and sparsely hairy (terminal leaf buds are linear and velutinous in L. balansae); leaves thinly leathery with scalariform tertiary nerves and indistinct on both surfaces, and a petiole 8-10 mm long (leaves membranous with reticulate tertiary nerves and distinct on both surfaces; petiole 3-6 mm long in L. balansae).
TYPE SPECIMEN. — Vietnam. Nha Trang, Massif du Hȏn Bâ, 1.IX.1918, Chevalier 38880 (holo-, P [P02003527]; iso-, K[K000815578], P [P02003528, P02003529, P02003530, P02259646, P02259647]).
VERNACULAR NAME. — Vietnamese: Bời lời thịt cá hồi (Nguyén Kim Đào 2017: 398).
DISTRIBUTION. — Vietnam (see Fig. 12).
ECOLOGY. — Growing in forest between 1000-1500 m altitude; flowering in September; fruiting in August.
CONSERVATION. — Endangered (EN B1ab(i,iii), B2ab(ii,iii)). This species is only known from two collections, each representing a single locality in Vietnam. An analysis of the Extent of Occurrence (EOO) and Area of Occupancy (AOO) gives an IUCN Conservation Assessment of Endangered.
ADDITIONAL COLLECTIONS SEEN. — Vietnam, Tonkin, Chapa, 22°20’3.984”N, 103°50’51”E, VIII.1932, Pételot 5374 (P01976415, P01976458).
DESCRIPTION
Tree.Twigs slender, 1.2-2 mm thick, angular in cross-section, sparsely hairy when young; hairs appressed, yellowish; terminal leaf bud ovoid, 2.4-5.3 mm long, apex acute, sparsely hairy. Leaves alternate, lower surface coloured salmon red; blade elliptic to lanceolate, 5-15 × 2.3-5.5 cm, apex long acuminate, base cuneate, blade thinly leathery, penninerved, secondary nerves 5-6 pairs, curving near margin, tertiary nerves scalariform; upper surface sparsely hairy at base and on major nerves, midrib and secondary nerves raised, tertiary nerves indistinct; lower surface sparsely hairy, more densely hairy on major nerves, midrib and secondary nerves raised, tertiary nerves indistinct; petiole channelled, 8-10 mm long, slender, sparsely hairy.
Inflorescence axillary, 10-13 mm long, a raceme bearing pedunculate single umbels along an axil, sparsely hairy, bracts leaf-like; bracteoles caducous. Flowers unknown.
Fruits globose, 7-7.8 × 8.7-9.5 mm, apex rounded, smooth, glabrous; cupule 4.8-5 mm diameter, margin entire, sparsely hairy; stalk tapering upwards, 2 mm thick (see Fig. 13).
NOTES
No evidence that this name was ever validly published could be found, and it is therefore validated here. Although, the flowers are unknown for this species, which is problematic for its generic placement, its other morphological characters (like the inflorescence shape and cupule) fit well in Litsea and traditionally it has been placed in this genus.
description: Published as part of De Kok, Rogier P. J., 2023, The Lauraceae Juss. of Indo-China: fifteen new species, four new combinations and two neotypifications, pp. 1-25 in Adansonia (3) (3) 45 (1) on page 18, DOI: 10.5252/adansonia2023v45a1, http://zenodo.org/record/7522473