Author

GP Jürgens

Passifloraceae

Passiflora edulis

by GP Jürgens

Sims

Bh2008 493 G762
Bhutan Samtengang, 2200m April

Description

Passiflora edulis, the passion fruit, is a climbing vine native to subtropical South America (its core GBIF records cluster in Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru) but now pantropically cultivated and naturalised, with records spanning Australia, the United States, South Africa, India and China. In the Himalaya it occurs as an introduced and cultivated plant, and the photographed individual from Samtengang in Bhutan at 2200 m, flowering in April, reflects this cultivated status in warm-temperate hill country rather than a native occurrence. It thrives in disturbed ground, hedges, plantation margins and gardens, scrambling over supports in frost-free to mildly temperate conditions.

It is a woody, evergreen, tendril-climbing perennial vine with deeply three-lobed, glossy, serrate leaves bearing axillary tendrils by which it ascends. The solitary, axillary flowers are large and intricate, with five sepals and five petals subtending a conspicuous corona of long, wavy filaments, white above and banded purple toward the base. The androgynophore raises five stamens and a tricarpellate ovary with three styles above the corona, the whole structure famously interpreted as emblematic of the Passion. The fruit is a globose to ovoid berry, purple or yellow at maturity, with a tough leathery rind enclosing numerous arillate seeds in fragrant, juicy, edible pulp.

Passiflora is a large, predominantly Neotropical genus celebrated for its elaborate, often bee-, bird- or bat-pollinated flowers and for hosting specialised heliconiine butterfly larvae on its cyanogenic foliage. P. edulis is one of the most economically important species, grown commercially for its fruit, and exists in distinct purple-fruited and yellow-fruited forms. Vigorous and readily naturalising, it is regarded as a weedy invader in some warm regions, though in the Himalayan context it remains a cultivated introduction.

Author: Sims · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of China Vol. 13, Flora of Bhutan Vol. 2, Flora of Nepal, Killip's The American Species of Passifloraceae

Rubiaceae

Pavetta tomentosa var. Glabrescens

by GP Jürgens

(Kurz.) Bremek.

Nepal 2001 488 ergebnis ergebnis
Nepal (Gorkha) Labubhesi 1100m, May

Description

Pavetta tomentosa var. glabrescens is a shrub of the warm subtropical and tropical forests of southern and southeastern Asia. GBIF records the species across a broad range encompassing India, Thailand, China, Myanmar, Nepal, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Bhutan, with some 530 occurrences. It grows in deciduous and semi-evergreen forest, woodland margins and scrub at low to mid elevations. The photographed material derives from Nepal in the Gorkha district at Labubhesi, around 1100 m, in May, a humid montane-foothill setting near the lower Himalayan slopes that marks the northern edge of its distribution.

The plant is an erect, branching shrub with opposite, simple, elliptic to oblong leaves that are entire, shortly petiolate and, in the typical variety, softly tomentose; in var. glabrescens the indumentum is reduced and the foliage tends towards near-glabrous, the distinguishing feature of the variety. Interpetiolar stipules are present, as is characteristic of Rubiaceae. The white, fragrant flowers are borne in dense terminal corymbose cymes; each has a four-lobed salverform corolla with a slender tube and a long, far-exserted style, the hallmark of Pavetta. Bacterial leaf nodules, harbouring nitrogen-related endophytes, occur as dark dots in the lamina. The fruit is a small globose, two-seeded berry, ripening black.

GBIF accepts the species, the variety reflecting the glabrescent extreme of a tomentose-pubescent continuum. Bremekamp, who monographed the genus, recognised numerous such infraspecific entities. The genus is notable for its near-obligate bacterial leaf symbiosis. Widespread and ecologically tolerant, the species is of no conservation concern.

Author: (Kurz.) Bremek. · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of Nepal, Flora of China, Bremekamp monograph of Pavetta

Orobanchaceae

Pedicularis bifida

by GP Jürgens

(Buch.-Ham.) Pennell

Nepal 99 901 ergebnis
West-Nepal Sepka 2700m, July

Description

Pedicularis bifida is a hemiparasitic perennial herb of the temperate and subalpine Himalaya, distributed through Nepal, India, Bhutan, China and Myanmar across some 250 documented records. It grows in moist meadows, forest clearings, shrubberies and along streamsides, generally between 2400 and 3800 m, flowering with the summer monsoon. The illustrated plant was collected at Sepka in West Nepal at 2700 m in July, within the typical mid-montane band where the species is most frequently encountered among tall-herb vegetation.

Like all lousewort, the plant is a root-parasite drawing water and nutrients from neighbouring hosts via haustoria. It forms erect, sometimes branched stems clothed with alternate to subopposite, pinnately lobed leaves bearing toothed segments. The flowers are aggregated into terminal leafy-bracted spikes or racemes; the calyx is tubular and toothed, and the strongly zygomorphic corolla is pink to rose-purple with a tube and a galeate upper lip whose apex is conspicuously bifid or beaked, the feature giving the epithet, and a spreading three-lobed lower lip. The four didynamous stamens lie within the galea and the fruit is an oblique, beaked loculicidal capsule.

The genus Pedicularis, transferred from Scrophulariaceae to Orobanchaceae on molecular grounds, reaches extraordinary diversity in the Sino-Himalaya, where elaborate corolla architecture promotes specialised pollination by long-tongued bumblebees. The bifid galea of this species reflects such floral specialisation. As a widespread, locally common meadow component, P. bifida is not considered threatened, though it depends on intact host-rich grassland communities.

Author: (Buch.-Ham.) Pennell · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of China, Annotated Checklist of the Flowering Plants of Nepal, Flowers of the Himalaya, Prain & Pennell revisions of Pedicularis

Orobanchaceae

Pedicularis clarkei

by GP Jürgens

Hook. f.

Sikkim2003 140 P189
Sikkim Dzongri 3920m 08.2003
Sikkim2003 193 P264
Sikkim Dzongri 3920m 08.2003

Description

Pedicularis clarkei is a hemiparasitic perennial lousewort of the eastern Himalaya, distributed through Nepal, China, India and Bhutan, with about 127 documented records and scattered cultivated or vouchered occurrences in France and Spain. It is an alpine plant of open meadows, moist turf, rocky slopes and snow-flush communities, growing predominantly between 3500 and 4500 m. The illustrated material was collected at Dzongri in Sikkim at 3920 m in August, a classic high-alpine ridge locality where the species flowers at the height of the short growing season.

As a root-hemiparasite the plant attaches to neighbouring hosts by haustoria while retaining green, photosynthetic foliage. It forms low tufted stems bearing alternate, pinnately divided leaves whose segments are toothed or further lobed. The flowers are crowded in terminal leafy-bracted spikes; the calyx is tubular and cleft, and the strongly zygomorphic corolla, pink to rose-purple, has a curved tube and a beaked, hooded galea (the upper lip) opposed by a broad three-lobed lower lip that serves as a landing platform. The four didynamous stamens are enclosed within the galea, and the fruit is an oblique, flattened capsule containing few seeds.

Named in honour of the botanist C.B. Clarke, the species belongs to the immensely diverse Sino-Himalayan radiation of Pedicularis, now placed in Orobanchaceae following molecular reclassification from the Scrophulariaceae. Its tubular, beaked corolla is adapted to pollination by long-tongued bumblebees active in the cool alpine climate. Though geographically restricted to high elevations, it is locally frequent within suitable habitat and is not presently regarded as threatened.

Author: Hook. f. · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of China, Annotated Checklist of the Flowering Plants of Nepal, Flowers of the Himalaya, Prain & Pennell revisions of Pedicularis

Orobanchaceae

Pedicularis elwesii

by GP Jürgens

Hook. f.

Sikkim2003 276 G379
Sikkim Dzongri 4300m, August

Description

Pedicularis elwesii is a hemiparasitic herb of the eastern Himalaya and adjacent high mountains of southwestern China, with a distribution spanning China, Nepal, India, Bhutan and Myanmar and some 532 georeferenced records compiled by GBIF. It is a plant of the alpine zone, characteristically inhabiting moist meadows, open turf, streamsides and stony slopes above the treeline, generally between about 3500 and 4500 m. The photographed material from Sikkim, on the Dzongri ridge at 4300 m in August, typifies its preferred habitat among short alpine grassland during the summer flowering peak that follows snowmelt and coincides with the monsoon.

It is a perennial forming a tuft of erect to ascending stems from a stout rootstock, with chiefly basal and cauline pinnatisect to pinnatipartite leaves whose oblong segments are toothed and crenate. The showy inflorescence is a dense terminal spike subtended by leaf-like bracts. As in many Himalayan louseworts the corolla is strongly two-lipped: a hooded galea formed by the upper lip, here often produced into a slender beak, encloses the anthers, while the broad three-lobed lower lip serves as a landing platform. Flowers are typically rose-pink to purplish; the fruit is an oblique, beaked loculicidal capsule.

The species belongs to the large, taxonomically intricate genus Pedicularis, exceptionally diversified in the Sino-Himalayan region where floral specialisation reflects coevolution with long-tongued bumblebee pollinators. Like its congeners it is a root hemiparasite, drawing water and nutrients through haustorial connections to neighbouring alpine plants while retaining functional chlorophyll. No major conservation concern is recognised given its wide range, though its meadows are sensitive to grazing and climatic shifts.

Author: Hook. f. · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of China, Flora of Bhutan, Pedicularis monograph (Tsoong / Prain)

Orobanchaceae

Pedicularis excelsa

by GP Jürgens

Hook. f.

Sikkim2003 486 P678
Sikkim Lachung Valley 3600m August

Description

Pedicularis excelsa is a tall hemiparasitic herb of the eastern Himalaya, recorded from Bhutan, India, Nepal, China and Mongolia; with only about 42 georeferenced records it is a regionally restricted subalpine to alpine species. It grows in open subalpine meadows, moist grassy slopes, forest clearings and streamsides, typically between 3000 and 4200 m. The plant photographed in the Lachung Valley of Sikkim at 3600 m in August occupies the monsoon-flushed alpine meadow zone, flowering at the height of the short Himalayan summer alongside other tall meadow herbs.

As the epithet "excelsa" suggests, it is among the taller lousteworts, an erect herb 40-100 cm tall with a stout taproot that forms haustorial connections to neighbouring plant roots. The stem bears pinnatisect leaves with toothed segments, partly basal and partly cauline. The flowers are crowded into a dense, elongate terminal spike; each corolla is strongly bilabiate, pink to purplish-red, with the upper lip (galea) compressed and beaked, enclosing the four didynamous stamens, and a broad spreading three-lobed lower lip. The calyx is tubular and toothed. The fruit is an oblique, beaked capsule containing several seeds.

Described by Hooker f. (Hook. f.), P. excelsa belongs to the large genus Pedicularis, now placed in the Orobanchaceae (formerly Scrophulariaceae), which reaches extraordinary diversity in the Sino-Himalaya. As a root hemiparasite it supplements its own photosynthesis by tapping host roots. The beaked galea is adapted to pollination by long-tongued bumblebees, which the Himalayan Pedicularis radiation has exploited through diverse corolla forms. Its restricted range and meadow habitat make it sensitive to overgrazing, though no formal threat status is assigned.

Author: Hook. f. · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of Bhutan, Flora of China, Flora of Sikkim Himalaya, Prain's revision of Indian Pedicularis (Orobanchaceae)

Orobanchaceae

Pedicularis globifera

by GP Jürgens

Hook. f.

Sikkim2003 496 G694
Sikkim Lachung Valley 3600m August

Description

Pedicularis globifera is a Sino-Himalayan hemiparasite distributed across China (CN), Nepal (NP), India (IN) and Bhutan (BT), with 293 GBIF occurrences indicating it is reasonably frequent through the central and eastern Himalaya. It inhabits open alpine meadows, damp grassy slopes and the margins of seepages and streams in the high subalpine to alpine zone, commonly between about 3500 and 4500 m. The figured plant was photographed in the Lachung Valley of Sikkim at around 3600 m in August, at the height of the monsoon flowering period when alpine Pedicularis are most conspicuous.

It is a perennial herb with a thickened rootstock, the parasitic roots forming haustoria on host grasses and sedges. Stems are erect, bearing leaves that are pinnately lobed to pinnatisect with crenate-toothed segments. The flowers are arranged in a dense, head-like or globose terminal cluster, the feature evoked by the epithet globifera. The calyx is tubular and lobed; the corolla is bilabiate, with an arched, beakless or shortly beaked galea forming the upper lip and a broad three-lobed lower lip. The four didynamous stamens lie within the galea. Fruit is an oblique, compressed capsule enclosing several seeds.

Pedicularis reaches its global diversity peak in the high mountains of western China and the Himalaya, and species such as P. globifera contribute to the spectacular alpine displays of these grasslands while playing an ecological role as bumblebee-pollinated hemiparasites that influence community structure. The genus is now firmly placed in Orobanchaceae following recognition of its parasitic biology and phylogenetic position.

Author: Hook. f. · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of China, Flora of Nepal, Flora of Bhutan, Tsoong's Monograph of the genus Pedicularis

Orobanchaceae

Pedicularis instar

by GP Jürgens

Prain ex Maxim.

Sikkim2003 255 P349
Sikkim Dzongri 4100m August

Description

Pedicularis instar is a high-alpine lousewort endemic to the eastern and central Himalaya, recorded from Nepal, the Indian state of Sikkim, Bhutan and adjacent southern China (Xizang); its tally of around 19 GBIF occurrences reflects both genuine rarity and the difficulty of access to its habitat. It is confined to open alpine meadows, moist turf, streamsides and scree margins above the treeline, broadly from 3,800 to 4,800 m. The plant photographed at Dzongri in western Sikkim at 4,100 m in August represents the species in full flower during the late-summer monsoon, when the alpine sward is most active and the soils reliably moist.

It is a perennial hemiparasitic herb arising from a short rootstock, with one or several erect, often glabrescent stems. The leaves are alternate to subopposite, pinnatisect into closely set, oblong, crenate-serrate segments, the basal leaves long-petiolate. The flowers are borne in a terminal raceme subtended by leafy bracts; each has a tubular, toothed calyx and a strongly two-lipped corolla, the galea (upper lip) helmet-shaped and frequently produced into a slender beak, while the lower lip is three-lobed and spreading. The corolla colour ranges from pink to purplish-red. The fruit is a flattened, asymmetrical capsule enclosing several seeds and dehiscing loculicidally.

Pedicularis is exceptionally species-rich in the Sino-Himalayan alpine zone, and P. instar belongs to the assemblage of beaked-galea species whose floral architecture is closely tied to pollination by long-tongued bumblebees. As a root hemiparasite it draws water and nutrients from neighbouring alpine plants while partly photosynthesising itself, a strategy contributing to fine-scale community structure in alpine turf. Its narrow elevational band and restricted Himalayan range make it potentially vulnerable to climate-driven habitat compression and grazing pressure, though it has not yet received a formal IUCN assessment.

Author: Prain ex Maxim. · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of China, Flora of Bhutan, Pedicularis of the Himalaya (Prain), monograph of Sino-Himalayan Pedicularis

Orobanchaceae

Pedicularis longiflora var. tubiformis

by GP Jürgens

(Klotzsch) Tsoong

Sikkim2003 90 P125
Sikkim above Choka 3200m 08.2003
Sikkim2003 199 G278
Sikkim above Choka 3200m 08.2003

Description

Pedicularis longiflora var. tubiformis is a hemiparasitic herb distributed across the high mountains of the eastern and central Himalaya and the Sino-Himalayan region, recorded from China, Nepal, India, Bhutan and Pakistan, with some 832 georeferenced occurrences documented in GBIF. It is a plant of moist alpine and subalpine habitats, favouring wet meadows, marshy ground, streamsides, seepage slopes and the margins of glacial pools, typically between 2700 and 4500 m. The photographed material was gathered in Sikkim above Choka at about 3200 m in August, during the summer monsoon when its populations flower most freely among the saturated turf.

The plant forms low tufted clumps from a fibrous rootstock, the several ascending to erect stems bearing both basal and cauline leaves. The leaves are oblong-lanceolate in outline and pinnately divided into closely set, crenate-dentate segments, often somewhat glabrous to sparsely hairy. The flowers are solitary or few in the upper axils, conspicuous for their very long, slender corolla tube that gives the species its epithet; the corolla is bright yellow, the galea (upper lip) abruptly bent and prolonged into a slender beak, while the lower lip is three-lobed and spreading. The fruit is an obliquely ovoid, beaked capsule enclosing several seeds.

Variety tubiformis is distinguished within the polymorphic P. longiflora complex chiefly by the proportions and curvature of the corolla tube and beak. As with most members of the genus, it is a root hemiparasite drawing water and nutrients through haustorial connections to neighbouring alpine plants, and its long-tubed yellow flowers are adapted to pollination by long-tongued bumblebees. Pedicularis reaches its greatest diversity in this part of Asia, and such wetland specialists are sensitive to hydrological change and grazing pressure on alpine pastures.

Author: (Klotzsch) Tsoong · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of China, Flora of Bhutan, Pedicularis monograph (Tsoong)

Orobanchaceae

Pedicularis megalantha

by GP Jürgens

D.Don.

BhutanPG2011 388
Bhutan Dur-Tso-Chu, 3400m June

Description

Pedicularis megalantha D.Don is a hemiparasitic perennial of the central and eastern Himalaya, with some 369 georeferenced GBIF occurrences from Pakistan, Nepal, northern India, Bhutan and adjacent southern Tibet (China). It favours moist subalpine and alpine meadows, open forest margins and damp streamsides, typically between about 2800 and 4200 m. The population photographed at Dur-Tso-Chu in Bhutan at 3400 m in June, beside a glacial-fed valley, is characteristic of the cool, humid summer habitats it favours, where it draws water and nutrients by haustorial attachment to the roots of neighbouring herbs and grasses.

The species forms erect, often unbranched stems 15-40 cm tall arising from a short rhizome and fascicled fleshy roots. The leaves are mostly cauline, oblong-lanceolate and pinnatisect, the lobes serrate to incised-dentate. The inflorescence is a loose terminal raceme of comparatively large, showy flowers; the calyx is tubular and cleft, and the corolla is pink to rose-purple with a strongly bent galea ending in a short slender beak that encloses the anthers, the lower lip broadly three-lobed. Pollination is by long-tongued bumblebees, and the fruit is an asymmetrical, beaked loculicidal capsule with several reticulate seeds.

Pedicularis is among the largest genera of Orobanchaceae and reaches its greatest diversity in the Sino-Himalayan region, where corolla architecture has radiated to match specialised bee pollinators. P. megalantha belongs to the large-flowered, shortly beaked alliance and is a conspicuous member of Himalayan meadow communities. As a root hemiparasite it influences surrounding vegetation and nutrient cycling. Though not assessed as threatened and locally frequent, its dependence on intact moist alpine turf makes it sensitive to overgrazing and to climate-driven shifts in the snow-melt regime.

Author: D.Don. · Sources: POWO (Kew), GBIF, Flora of Bhutan, Flora of China, Annotated Checklist of the Flowering Plants of Nepal, Robert R. Mill revision of Himalayan Pedicularis