Ceropegia luzhiensis, a new species of Apocynaceae from Yunnan, China

Abstract

Ceropegia luzhiensis X.D. Ma & J.Y. Shen, a new species from Yimen, Yunnan, China, is described and illustrated. This species is similar to C. hookeri C. B. Clarke, C. intermedia Wight and C. manoharii Sujanapal, Salim, Anil & Sasidh., but clearly differs in its indumentum, the shape of leaf, the length of peduncle and pedicel, the shape and size of corolla and the shape of interstaminal corona lobe. A table including the morphological characters of related species and a dichotomous key to all 20 species of Ceropegia occurring in China are provided.

Ceropegia sunhangii, a new species of Apocynaceae from Yunnan, China

“…4). Due to the interference of human activities, such as grazing, and wood cutting, the survival of many Ceropegia species is threatened, and even in an endangered state when they are described and published (Wu et al 2019;Ma et al 2022a). Therefore, it's crucial to conduct a systematic investigation and collection of Ceropegia in Yunnan to better understand the plant diversity of China before too late.…”

“…Morphological observations and measurements were based on living plants, dry specimens with stereoscopes, and vernier calipers. Literature studies included relevant monographs and recently published papers of Ceropegia (Wu et al 2019;Ma et al 2022a;Ma et al 2022b). We reviewed all the specimens of Ceropegia in KUN, and the specimens in PE were checked via the Chinese Virtual Herbarium (CVH, http://www.cvh.ac.cn).…”

“…(Bruyns et al 2017). This genus is distributed in the Old World ranging from the Spanish Canary Islands in the West, through Africa, Madagascar, Arabia, India, Southeastern Asia, the Southwestern Pacific region, and Northeastern Australia (Meve and Liede-Schumann 2007;Murthy et al 2012;Bruyns et al 2015;Wu et al 2019;Kidyoo et al 2021;Ma et al 2022a).…”

“…Located on the Eurasian continent, China's vast territory, complex topographies, and climate types have contributed to the wealth of Chinese botanical diversity (Sun et al 2017;Chen et al 2020). In China, 22 Ceropegia species have been recorded, including 17 traditional Ceropegia species, 2 formerly included in Brachystelma, and three newly published species (Li et al1995;Wu et al 2019;Ma et al 2022a;Ma et al 2022b). According to our latest statistics, 15 of the 23 domestic Ceropegia are distributed in Yunnan, including the new species described here this time.…”

\(\textit{Ceropegia vietnamensis }\) (Asclepiadoideae, Apocynaceae), a new species from Vietnam

“…In the last few years, many new species have been described for the genus (e.g. Karuppusamy & Ravichandran, 2017;Kidyoo & Paliyavuth, 2017a, b;Bruyns, 2018;Kidyoo, 2018;Kidyoo & Kidyoo, 2019;Murugesan et al, 2019;Wu et al, 2019;Kidyoo, 2021;Murugesan & Mao, 2021;Phonepaseuth & Rodda, 2021;Styles & Meve, 2021;Thulin et al, 2021;Ma et al, 2022a;Ma et al, 2022b). In Vietnam, Ceropegia L. was first reported with three species by (Loureiro, 1790): Ceropegia candelabrum L. as a new record and two new species Ceropegia obtusa Lour.…”