Oreocharis tetrapterus F.Wen, B.Pan & T.V.Do in Pan et al. 2019: 83.

China. Guangxi: Hezhou City, Lisong Town, Gupo Mountain, 24°39'N, 111°36'E, elev. ca. 950 m, on moist surface of granite rocks, in flower, 25 August 2018, Wen Fang WF160825-01 (holotype: IBK!, isotype: IBK!).

Oreocharis brachypodus J.M. Li & Z.M. Li in Li and Li 2015: 296.

China. Guizhou: in the vicinity of Tongren city, on rather cool rocks and very steep banks of cool, clammy soil that grows a fine film of moss, elev. 1300 m, 9 April 2014, Jia-Mei Li 2304 (holotype: HEAC!); ibid. Jia-Mei Li 2305 (paratype: HEAC!).

The gender of the genus name, Oreocharis, is feminine, but the suffix of the scientific name, “-us,” is typically masculine. For Oreocharis tetrapterus (Pan et al. 2019), the correct orthography of the name of the new species is O. tetraptera, is written by using an inaccurate gender, namely “tetrapterus”, in the citation of the type of the new species (p. 85), in the discussion of the Etymology (p. 86) and in the notes of the illustration (pp. 86, 87 and 88). In the other new taxon, Oreocharis brachypodus (Li and Li 2015), the correct orthography of the epithet “brachypoda” should be used to replace “brachypodus”. The inaccurately-used name gender appeared in the citation of the type of the new species (p. 296) and in the notes of the illustration (pp. 297 and 298). Thus, here we correct and revise two new species’ names as Oreocharis tetraptera and O. brachypoda.

Oreocharis aimodisca is morphologically similar to O. longifolia (Craib) Mich.Möller & A.Weber and O. muscicola (Diels) Mich.Möller & A.Weber in the appearance and colour of its flowers, but differs from the latter two species in its leaf blade oval to ovate, base cordate or auriculate, margin crenate, peduncle densely brown villous and pubescent, corolla outside densely pubescent and four separated fertile stamens, pistil densely pubescent and disc blood red.

Figure 1. 

Oreocharis aimodisca Lei Cai, Z.L.Dao & F.Wen, sp. nov. A habit B pistil with disc and calyx C old capsule D front view of flower E opened corolla showing stamens and staminode F side view of a flower G adaxial view of the anther. Drawn by Xuan-Lin Zhu.

China. Yunnan: Shizong County, Wulong Town, Dachang Village, Xiaofakuai, 24°39'N, 104°10'E, elev. ca. 2122 m, on the surface of wet rocks, in flower, 10 September 2019, Lei Cai & Pin Zhang CL275 (holotype: KUN!, isotypes: KUN!, IBK!).

Perennial herb, rhizome 5–18 mm long, 3–5 mm in diameter. Leaves 6–18, basal, petiole 2.5–10.5 cm long, brown villous and pubescent, leaf blade oval to ovate, 2.5–7.0 × 1.8–5.5 cm, adaxially densely appressed pubescent, abaxially puberulent, densely brown pubescent along veins, lateral veins 3–6 on each side of midrib, adaxially inconspicuous, abaxially conspicuous, apex acute, base cordate or auriculate, slightly oblique sometimes, margin crenate. Cymes axillary 2–5, inflorescence 1–5-flowered; peduncle 5.5–16 cm long, brown villous and pubescent; bracts 2, lanceolate to narrowly triangle, 5–8 × 1.5–2.8 mm, outside brown pubescent, inside glabrous, margin nearly entire to denticulate; pedicel 1.2–3.5 cm long, densely pubescent. Calyx 8–12 mm long, 5-lobed to the base, lobes unequal, linear-lanceolate or narrowly triangular, 8–12 × 1.5–2.2 mm, both sides densely pubescent, margin denticulate. Corolla yellow, 2.8–3.6 cm long, outside densely pubescent, inside puberulent in the throat and on adaxial lobes, the lower part forms red stripes on the throat and lobes, tube coarsely tubular, gradually expanded from base to the throat, 2.0–2.6 cm long, 6–10 mm in diameter; limb 2-lipped; adaxial lip 2-lobed to middle, semicircular, lobes 4–5 × 4–5 mm, abaxial lip 3-lobed to middle, semicircular, 5–6 × 5–7 mm. Stamens 4, 1.5–1.8 cm long, adnate to corolla 4–7 mm from the base; filaments linear, sparsely pubescent; anthers oblong, 2-loculed, dehiscing longitudinally, connective glabrous; staminode 1, 0.6–0.8 mm long, inserted ca. 3 mm from the base. Disc ca. 1.2 mm high, blood red, margin undulate. Pistil 1.6–2.4 cm long; ovary long cylindrical, densely pubescent, 1.0–1.4 cm long; style 6–10 mm long, densely pubescent; stigma bilobed, flabellate. Capsule linear, 3.5–4.8 cm long.

Figure 2. 

Oreocharis aimodisca Lei Cai, Z.L.Dao & F.Wen, sp. nov. in natural habitat A, B plants with flowers in the wild C habitat. Photographed by Lei Cai.

Flowering from August to September; fruiting from September to December.

Oreocharis aimodisca is currently known from two adjacent populations at the type locality, Shizong County, East Yunnan, China. The new species commonly growing with other plants in shady and wet places on the middle part of mountain slopes under primary evergreen broad-leaf forest and shrubbery on karstic limestone at an elevation of over 2000 m.

The original specific epithet ‘aimodisca’ derives from the Greek ‘αίμα’ meaning blood red and ‘δίσκος’ meaning discus.

The Chinese name of the new species is “Diān Dōng Mǎ Líng Jù Tái” (滇东马铃苣苔). The first two words, “Diān Dōng,” mean east of Yunnan, the next four words, “Mǎ Líng Jù Tái,” mean Oreocharis in Mandarin.

Based on our field investigations, the new species is currently only known from the type locality with two contiguous subpopulations, in total ca. one thousand mature individuals were present within 5000 m² (AOO). Since no special surveys were carried out for delimiting its distribution and information about threats is not very clear, this species was provisionally considered to be Critically Endangered [CR B2(a)] in terms of the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria (IUCN 2019).

Oreocharis aimodisca is morphologically similar to O. longifolia and O. muscicola in the corolla yellow and coarsely tubular; however, it is different from the latter two species by the shape of the leaf blade, indumentum characters of the peduncle, pedicel, calyx, corolla and pistil and separated stamens. The comparison of morphological characters on related species is provided in Table 1.

Figure 3. 

Oreocharis aimodisca Lei Cai, Z.L.Dao & F.Wen, sp. nov. A habit B adaxial (lower half) and abaxial leaf surface (upper half) C side view of a flower D front view of flowers E pistil with disc and calyx F opened corolla showing stamens and staminode G opened corolla with pistil and calyx H fresh fruits I old capsules. Photographed by Lei Cai.

Oreocharis longipedicellata morphologically resembles O. panzhouensis Lei Cai, Y.Guo & F.Wen in its ovate leaf blade, yellow flower, four separated fertile stamens, oblong anthers and bilobed, flabellate stigma, but can be easily distinguished from this species in the peduncle 20–28 cm long, bract lanceolate to elliptic, margin denticulate, the calyx 5-lobed to the base, stamens adnate to corolla 3–4 mm from base and the pistil 1.5–2 cm long.

Figure 4. 

Oreocharis longipedicellata Lei Cai & F.Wen, sp. nov. A habit B front view of flower C opened corolla showing stamens and staminode D pistil with disc E calyx lobes. Drawn by Xuan-Lin Zhu.

China. Yunnan: Malipo County, Mengdong, on the surface of moist rocks (Cultivated in GCCC nursery, Guilin Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences) in flower, 24 August 2019, Fang Wen WF190824-01 (holotype: KUN!, isotype: IBK!).

Perennial herb, rhizome 0.8–2 cm long, 3–5 mm in diameter. Leaves 8–15, basal, petiole 3.5–8.0 cm long, densely brown villous, leaf blade elliptic to ovate, 3.0–5.5 × 2.4–4.5 cm, adaxially densely pubescence, abaxially pubescent, densely brown villous along veins, lateral veins 3–6 on each side of midrib, apex rounded, base slightly oblique sometimes, cordate to auricula-cordate, margin crenate, with brown villous. Cymes axillary 2–5, inflorescence 4–8-flowered; peduncle 20–28 cm long, brown villous; bracts 2, lanceolate to elliptic, 10–12 × 2.5–5.0 mm, adaxially densely villous, abaxially glabrous, sometimes upper part pubescent, margin denticulate; pedicel 2.0–3.5 cm long, densely villous. Calyx 6–9 mm long, 5-lobed to the base, lobes triangular lanceolate to narrowly triangular, 6–9 mm long, 1.5–2 mm wide, outside brown villous, inside glabrous, margin denticulate. Corolla sigmoid, yellow, 2.2–2.8 cm long, outside pubescent and glandular-pubescent, inside glandular-pubescent in the throat and on adaxial lobes, tube cylindrical, slightly bent near the mouth, 1.8–2.2 cm long, 5–7 mm in diameter; limb 2-lipped; adaxial lip 2-lobed to near base, semicircular, lobes 4–5 × 3.8–4.2 mm, abaxial lip 3-lobed to base, semicircular to oval, 6–8 × 5–7 mm. Stamens 4, 1.0–1.3 cm long, adnate to corolla 3–4 mm from the base; filaments linear, glabrous; anthers oblong, 2-loculed, dehiscing longitudinally, connective glabrous; staminode 1, 0.6–1.0 mm long, inserted ca. 1 mm from the base. Disc ca. 1.5 mm high, yellow, margin undulate. Pistil 1.5–2.0 cm long, glabrous; ovary long cylindrical, 10–12 mm long; style 4–6 mm long; stigma bilobed, flabellate. Fruit unknown.

Flowering from August to October; fruiting unknown.

Oreocharis longipedicellata is currently known by only one population at the type locality, Mengdong, Malipo County, southeastern Yunnan, in the China and Vietnam border area. The species was observed to grow on the surface of moist rocks in the karst region.

The specific epithet ‘longipedicellata’ refers to the relatively-long peduncle of the new species. This species has almost the longest pedicels in the genus Oreocharis.

The Chinese name of the new species is “Cháng Gěng Mǎ Líng Jù Tái” (长梗马铃苣苔). The first two words, “Cháng Gěng,” mean the long peduncle. The next four words mean Oreocharis in mandarin.

Figure 5. 

Oreocharis longipedicellata Lei Cai & F.Wen, sp. nov. A plants cultivated in GBG B adaxial and abaxial leaf surface C front view of flowers D side view of a flower E petiole F pistil with disc and calyx G, H opened corolla showing stamens and staminode. Photographed by Fang Wen.

The new species could be endangered, but more data is needed to evaluate as the field distribution information is not sufficiently detailed.

Oreocharis longipedicellata most resembles recently published O. panzhouensis in the yellow flower, four separated stamens, calyx 5-lobed to the middle and stigma bilobed, flabellate. Nevertheless, it differs from the latter species in several other characteristics (see Table 2).