Aspidistra dongxingensis C. R. Lin & Yan Liu 2024, sp. nov.

3. Aspidistra dongxingensis C.R. Lin & Yan Liu, sp. nov. (Fig. 3) Type:— CHINA. Guangxi: Dongxing City, Malu Town, Pingfeng Rainforest Park, on mossy rocks and along streamside in forests, rare, 21.674° N, 108.011° E, elevation 290 m a.s.l., 12 October 2018, Chun-Rui Lin & Liu-Xue Nong 1103 (holotype: IBK, isotype: IBK). Additional specimen examined (paratype):— CHINA. Guangxi: Guilin City, Botany Garden of Guilin, cultivation, 22 November 2021, Chun-Rui Lin 1383 (IBK, cultivated plant collected by Chun-Rui Lin from Dongxing City, Malu Town, 12 October 2018). Diagnosis:— The new species is morphologically similar to A. sessilistigma, but clearly distinguished by its leaf blade thin and soft, 9.5–14.5 cm long, perianth campanulate, tube 8–10 mm in diameter, anthers oblong, ca. 2 mm long, stigma 6–8 mm in diameter, upper surface dark purplish red and below white. Herbs perennial, evergreen, rhizomatous. Rhizome creeping, subterete, 4–6 mm in diameter, densely covered with nodes, and by pale gray-brownish flexuose fibres, roots numerous. Leaf sheath 4–5, purplish red, 1–4 cm long, enveloping base of petiole, becoming pale gray-brownish when dry. Leaves solitary, 1–2 cm apart; petiole stiff upright, 4.5–8 cm long, 2–3 mm in diameter, somewhat thicker towards the base, adaxially sulcate; leaf blade thin and soft, usually ovate-oblong to broadly ovate, 9.5–14.5 cm long, 4–6.5 cm wide, green, base suborbicular, abruptly narrowed to the petiole, inequilateral, apex acuminate, margin entire and somewhat irregularly wavy, midvein moderately prominent abaxially, each half of leaf blade with 7–8 inconspicuous secondary veins on lower surface. Peduncle short, 2–3 mm long, with 4–5 imbricate bracts, bracts gradually wider from base to top of peduncle, the distal ones at base of perianth broadly ovate, 8–10 mm long, ca. 8 mm wide, white with purplish red spots, apex obtuse. Flower solitary. Perianth campanulate, fleshy, uniformly dark purple to almost black, 6 lobed apically; lobes straight or slightly reflexed, subequal, broad ovate, 4–5 mm long, 4–6 mm wide at base, apex obtuse, inside with 2–3 obscure shallow longitudinal grooves at base; tube 5–6 mm long, 8–10 mm in diameter. Stamens 6, opposite to lobes, facing upwards, inserted at the base of perianth tube, near style base, positioned conspicuously lower than stigma, filaments 1–1.5 mm long; anthers oblong, yellow, ca. 2 mm long and ca. 1.5 mm wide. Pistil peltate, 4–5 mm long, ovary inconspicuous, style short, white, cylindrical, ca. 2 mm long, stigma enlarged, circular, disk shape, 2–3 mm thick, 6–8 mm in diameter, upper surface dark purplish red, finely papillose, with 3 radial, white or pale red, bifurcate lines from center to margin, its margin shallow 6-lobed and bent downwards, lower surface white. Phenology:— The new species was observed flowering from October to April of the following year. Etymology:— The specific epithet ‘ dongxingensis ’ is derived from the name of the type locality, dongxing City, Guangxi, China. The Chinese name is given as “ 东ẊDzuDzã ” (Chinese pinyin: dōng xīng zhī zhū bào dàn). Distribution and ecology:— The new species is currently known only from Malu town in Dongxing, southern Guangxi, China. It grows on shale rocks along streams in secondary broadleaf forests at elevations of 260– 350 m. Similar species:— The new species is similar to Aspidistra sessilistigma Aver. et al. in Averyanov et al. (2021: 4) in the leaf shape and flower color, but differs by the leaf blade thin and soft (vs. thick and rigid), 9.5–14.5 cm (vs. 14–22 cm) long, secondary veins obviously (vs. inconspicuously) on lower surface, perianth campanulate (vs. depressed urceolate), smaller tube 8–10 mm (vs. 18–24 mm) in diameter, anthers oblong (vs. narrowly ovate), smaller stigma 6–8 mm (vs. 16–19 mm) in diameter, upper surface dark purplish red (vs. yellow-brown), lower surface white (vs. dark violet to black). The new species is also similar to A. leucographa C.R. Lin & C.Y. Zou in Zou et al. (2017: 1964), but clearly distinguishable by leaves ovate (vs. narrowly lanceolate) and base suborbicular (vs. cuneate), smaller flowers 9–11 mm (vs. 15–19 mm) long and tube 8–10 mm (vs. 13–16 mm) in diameter, oblong (vs. ovate) anthers facing upward (vs. inward), shorter style 2 mm (vs. 6–7 mm) long, stigma upper surface with 3 radial, white or pale red, bifurcate lines from center to margin (vs. with 6 whitish irregular marks close to the margin). A detailed comparison of the three species is presented in Table 2.