Discovering a new plant species from Son La, Vietnam

21/04/2022

Under the scientific research cooperation on the diversity of limestone floras of southern China and northern Vietnam, botanists from Vietnam National Museum of Nature, Vietnam Academy of Science & Technology (Vietnam), Guangxi Institute of Botany, Guangxi Zhuangzu Autonomous Region and Chinese Academy of Sciences, China, and the Gesneriad Society (USA) discovered and described a new plant species, namely Chayamaritia vietnamensis F.Wen, T.V.Do, Z.B.Xin & S.Maciejewski (Gesneriaceae). The new species was found out during a joint expedition on the limestone flora from Xuan Nha Nature Reserve, Son La province, Vietnam, co-organized by Gesneriad Conservation Center of China (GCCC), Guangxi Institute of Botany and Vietnam National Museum of Nature, Vietnam Academy of Science & Technology.

Morphology of Chayamaritia vietnamensis (Photos by Do Van Truong)

The genus Chayamaritia D.J.Middleton & Mich.Möller (Gesneriaceae) comprises of two species Chayamaritia banksiae and C. smitinandii occurring in Laos and Thailand. The genus is firstly reported for the flora of Vietnam. The newly described species can be easily distinguished from the known Chayamaritia species by its peltate leaf blades. Besides, it differs from C. banksiae by its leaf blades apex rounded and margin entire (vs. apex shortly acuminate, and margin minutely dentate); bracts 3, apex rounded and margin entire (vs. 2, apex acuminate and margin dentate); calyx lobes inside glabrous and margin entire (vs. inside with white appressed hairs in upper half, margin coarsely dentate); corolla lobes margin entire (vs. margin being minutely dentate); lateral staminodes 2.5–4 mm long (vs. 5.5–11 mm long). It also differs from C. smitinandii by its leaf blades apex rounded and margin entire (vs. apex acuminate and margin minutely dentate); bracts 3, ovate narrow and apex rounded (vs. 2, narrowly elliptic to lanceolate, somewhat falcate, apex acuminate); calyx lobes inside glabrous and margin entire (vs. inside densely pubescent, margin slightly toothed or appearing as large sessile glands on margin).

The result was published on Phytokeys 177: 45-53 (2021).

Source: Vietnam National Museum of Nature
Link to Vietnamese version