Tulipa buhseana Boiss.

Tulipa buhseana Boiss., Diagn. Pl. Orient. ser. 2, 4: 98 (1859). Fig. 15 Type. Iran • ‘ Prope Yezd Persiae’, Buhse (holotype G). General distribution. Afghanistan, China, Kazakhstan, Iran, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan (Tojibaev et al. 2022). Distribution in Kazakhstan and habitat. Aral region, Balkhash-Alakol, Betpak-Dala, Chu-Ili range, Karatau, Kyzylorda, Moiynkum, Trans-Ili Kungey Alatau, Turgay, Turkestan, and Western Tian Shan. This species grows on sandy and clay deserts, and semi-deserts also occur on the rubbly slopes of lowlands. Conservation status. The IUCN conservation status of this species requires assessment. Phenology. Flowering in March – April; fruiting in May – June. Notes. Tulipa buhseana was described by P. E. Boissier in 1859 based on the collections of V. A. Buhse from Iran. Collections of T. buhseana from the northern Balkhash region had filaments with sparse pubescence, while the collections from the vicinity of the Shieli town, Kyzylorda region had glabrous filaments. According to Christenhusz et al. (2013), Zonneveld (2009), Everett et al. (2013) and POWO (2024), T. buhseana is considered a synonym of T. biflora. However, these species are morphologically distinguished by the lowering of bulb sheaths on the inner. Additionally, the bulb sheaths of T. buhseana are densely hairy on the inner side, whereas those of T. biflora are tomentose. In the phylogenetic tree, T. buhseana and T. biflora were placed in different clades (Fig. 3). Therefore, additional studies are required to determine the taxonomic position of T. buhseana.