Herbarium study designates five nomenclatural types for names allied to Centaurea ambigua

A literature and herbarium study designated nomenclatural types for five names associated with Centaurea ambigua and proposed treating Centaurea laciniata as a heterotypic synonym of C. ambigua subsp. ambigua . The researchers examined original and related material housed in the APP, FI, G and NAP herbaria, with many specimens available through online collections. They assessed candidate specimens against the original descriptions, or protologues, and applied the nomenclatural rules of the Shenzhen Code.

The study concerned names rather than a clinical, experimental or population-level biological question. For Centaurea ambigua Guss., the authors designated the herbarium specimen NAP0005395 as lectotype. Gussone collected it on 20 August 1824 between Roccamorice and Santo Spirito alla Majella in Abruzzo.

They traced three pre-description records, including two associated with NAP0005395 and another held as NAP0005396, and considered the specimens and the protologue’s cited illustration to be original material. Preliminary analysis of herbarium specimens from the putative native range suggested that typical C. ambigua , characterized by small flower heads and pale involucral bracts, may be restricted to the low mountainous, calcareous parts of the northern Maiella in central Italy. The authors said that records from other areas of Abruzzo and other Italian regions require verification, and that the precise distribution range remains unresolved.

The study designated FI058574 as lectotype for Centaurea dissecta var. macrocephala , collected at Macchia Lunga in Abruzzo in 1888. The specimen was complete, well preserved and consistent with the 1904 protologue. Based on the type and field observations, the authors reported that this variety was morphologically different from the subspecies currently recognized under C. ambigua , but provisionally included it within the variability of C. ambigua subsp. nigra , primarily on the basis of its black involucral bracts.

For Centaurea dissecta var. melanocephala , the authors designated FI058575 as lectotype. It was collected near Monte Sirente in Abruzzo in July 1877. Other original specimens were also examined, including one with a label reading “M. Genziana,” which the authors interpreted as the present-day Mt. Genzana rather than the protologue’s “M. Lengiana.” Pending further systematic and taxonomic study, this variety was also provisionally included within the variability of C. ambigua subsp. nigra .

FI058572 was designated lectotype for Centaurea dissecta var. nigra . The specimen bears a label written by Fiori and was collected on 16 August 1893 on the rocky slopes of Pizzo Cefalone in the Gran Sasso d’Italia. Its morphology is consistent with the protologue and the current application of the name, which also underlies the combinations Centaurea parlatoris subsp. nigra , C. ambigua subsp. nigra and C. delucae .

For Centaurea laciniata Guss. ex DC., the Gussone specimen G00487426 was selected as lectotype. Collected in Abruzzo in 1831 and sent to de Candolle, it was complete, well preserved and consistent with the protologue. The authors noted that it might be a holotype, but selected it prudently as lectotype because additional original material could exist in other herbaria.

The traditional distinction for C. laciniata , now accepted as C. ambigua subsp. laciniata , was based on undivided lower leaves and pinnatifid upper leaves. The authors reported that these characters are inconsistent and lack taxonomic value because they also occur in C. ambigua sensu stricto. They therefore treated C. laciniata as a heterotypic synonym of C. ambigua subsp. ambigua .

The typifications and preliminary taxonomic conclusions leave questions about variation and distribution unresolved.

Subject of Research: Nomenclatural typification and taxonomy of Centaurea ambigua and allied names from Italy

Article Title: Typification of names allied to Centaurea ambigua ( Asteraceae ) from the Apennine Peninsula (Italy)

Article References: Bartolucci, F., & Conti, F. (2024). Typification of names allied to Centaurea ambigua (Asteraceae) from the Apennine Peninsula (Italy). Italian Botanist, 18, 215-223. https://doi.org/10.3897/italianbotanist.18.143065

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.3897/italianbotanist.18.143065

Keywords: Centaurea ambigua, Centaurea laciniata, nomenclatural types, lectotypes, herbarium specimens, taxonomy, systematics, Apennine Peninsula, Abruzzo, Italy, Typification, names