Allium oreotadzhikorum and Allium vallivanchense, two new species of Allium subg. Polyprason (alliaceae) from the central asian republic Tajikistan

Abstract

Two new Allium species were collected in the Vanch and Darvaz mountain ranges of western Pamir area. Despite inflorescence and flowers of A. vallivanchense R.M. Fritsch & N. Friesen sp. nova are similar to A. hymenorrhizum, the new species shows a widely extended (not clustered) growth form, fiber-like decomposing to reticulate (not strip-like) bulb tunics, shorter and finally somewhat pending (not strictly upright) leaf blades, relatively shorter leaf sheathes, narrow (inner ones bidentate) filaments, and narrower and mucronate (not obtuse) tepals. The flower characters agree well to other taxa of sect. Falcatifolia, but the leaf and bulb characters disagree. Preliminary molecular investigations using ITS as well as rbcL-atpB sequences pointed to a position as sister group of sect. Campanulata. The latter section owns dissimilar characters of inflorescences and flowers. Therefore affiliation of A. vallivanchense to sect. Falcatifolia seems the better solution currently. Allium oreotadzhikorum R.M. Fritsch sp. nova belongs to the taxonomically unclear alliance of A. talassicum sensu Vved. (sect. Oreiprason) and is characterized by violet (not whitish) filaments, and cylindrical (not semi-cylindrical), coarse leaves becoming tubular only when withering. The taxonomically probably incorrect application of the name A. talassicum Regel by Vvedensky is discussed. © 2009 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.