Myosotis lytteltonensis
Myosotis lytteltonensis is a species of flowering plant in the family Boraginaceae and a synonym of Myosotis australis. It was first described as a variety of M. australis, considered endemic to the South Island of New Zealand, then raised to species status, and subsequently synonymised with Myosotis australis in 2020. Plants of this species of forget-me-not are perennial rosettes with ebracteate inflorescences and white or yellow corollas with stamens that are fully included in the corolla tube or sometimes partly exserted.
| Myosotis lytteltonensis | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Boraginales |
| Family: | Boraginaceae |
| Genus: | Myosotis |
| Species: | M. lytteltonensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Myosotis lytteltonensis | |
Taxonomy and etymology
Myosotis lytteltonensis (Laing & A.Wall) de Lange or Lyttelton forget-me-not[3] is in the plant family Boraginaceae.[4] It was originally described in 1924 as a variety of Myosotis australis (as M. australis var. lytteltonensis Laing & A.Wall) by Robert Malcolm Laing and Arnold Wall, thought to be restricted to Banks Peninsula, Canterbury, New Zealand.[1] It was raised to species status by Peter de Lange in 2010.[2] In the latest taxonomic treatment, it was considered to be a synonym of Myosotis australis, a species of forget-me-not native to New Zealand, Australia and New Guinea, due to a lack of distinguishing morphological characters.[5]
The lectotype of M. australis var. lytteltonensis was collected in Lyttelton in 1917 by Robert M. Laing and is housed at the Allan Herbarium of Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research in Lincoln (CHR 17637).[6][5] It was designated by Lucy B. Moore, and there is also an isolectotype at the same institution (CHR 17636).[5][7]
The species epithet lytteltonensis refers to the type locality, Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand.[8]
According to the latest taxonomic treatment,[5] the following names are all synonyms of Myosotis australis: M. mooreana Lehnebach,[9] M. lytteltonensis (Laing & A.Wall) de Lange[2] (and M. australis var. lytteltonensis Laing & A.Wall;[1]), and M. australis var. conspicua Cheeseman.[10]
Breeding system
Flowers of Myosotis lytteltonensis were found to be 'initially herkogamous' in a study on the breeding system of six different species of New Zealand Myosotis.[11]
Phylogeny
One individual of Myosotis lytteltonensis was included in a phylogenetic analysis of standard DNA sequencing markers (nuclear ribosomal DNA and chloroplast DNA regions).[12] In the chloroplast DNA network, the sample of M. lytteltonensis was close to M. goyenii and M. australis, but its relationships in the nuclear ribosomal DNA network were less clear.[12] In general, within the southern hemisphere lineage, species relationships were not well resolved in that study.[12]
Distribution and habitat
Prior to its synonymy with Myosotis australis, M. lytteltonensis was thought to be endemic to Banks Peninsula, Canterbury, South Island, although some specimens from Marlborough (South Island) and southern North Island have also been identified as M. lytteltonensis.[5][4][1]
Conservation status
Myosotis lytteltonensis was listed as Threatened - Nationally Critical on the most recent assessment (2017-2018) under the New Zealand Threat Classification system for plants, with the qualifiers "RR" (Range Restricted) and "Sp" (Sparse).[13] M. australis was listed as Not Threatened in the same assessment.[13]
References
- Robert M. Laing; A. Wall (1924). "The Vegetation of Banks Peninsula: Supplement 1". Transactions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute. 55: 438–444. ISSN 1176-6158. Wikidata Q118751411.
- Peter James de Lange; Peter Brian Heenan; David Norton; Jeremy Rolfe; John Sawyer (2010). Threatened Plants of New Zealand. ISBN 978-1-877257-56-8. Wikidata Q106497831.
- "Christchurch District Plan Site of Ecological Significance, Site Significance Statement" (PDF). Christchurch City Council. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
- "Myosotis lytteltonensis". New Zealand Plant Conservation Network. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
- Meudt, Heidi; Thorsen, Mike; Prebble, Jessica (1 January 2020). "Taxonomic revision of the Myosotis australis group (Boraginaceae) native to Australia, New Zealand and New Guinea". Australian Systematic Botany. 33 (6): 477. doi:10.1071/SB20014.
- "Lectotype of Myosotis australis var. lytteltonensis". Landcare Research Systematics Collection Data. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
- "Isolectotype of Myosotis australis var. lytteltonensis". Landcare Research Systematics Collection Data. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
- Pender, Richard. "Urtica linearifolia and Myosotis australis var. lytteltonensis, two threatened plants" (PDF). Canterbury Botanical Society Journal. 33: 38–45.
- Lehnebach, Carlos (21 August 2012). "Two new species of forget-me-nots (Myosotis, Boraginaceae) from New Zealand". PhytoKeys (16): 53–64. doi:10.3897/phytokeys.16.3602. ISSN 1314-2003. PMC 3492931. PMID 23233811.
- Cheeseman, T. F. (1906), Manual of the New Zealand flora, J. Mackay, Govt. Printer, doi:10.5962/BHL.TITLE.12003, OCLC 4397520, OL 234533M, Wikidata Q51396409
- Robertson, Alastair William; Lloyd, David G. (1 January 1991). "Herkogamy, dichogamy and self-pollination in six species of Myosotis (Boraginaceae)". 5 (1): 53–63.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - Meudt, Heidi M.; Prebble, Jessica M.; Lehnebach, Carlos A. (1 May 2015). "Native New Zealand forget-me-nots (Myosotis, Boraginaceae) comprise a Pleistocene species radiation with very low genetic divergence". Plant Systematics and Evolution. 301 (5): 1455–1471. doi:10.1007/s00606-014-1166-x. ISSN 2199-6881.
- Lange, Peter J. de; Rolfe, Jeremy R.; Barkla, John W.; Courtney, Shannel P.; Champion, Paul D.; Perrie, Leon R.; Beadel, Sarah M.; Ford, Kerry A.; Breitwieser, Ilse; Schönberger, Ines; Hindmarsh-Walls, Rowan (May 2018). "Conservation status of New Zealand indigenous vascular plants, 2017" (PDF). New Zealand Threat Classification Series. 22: 1–86. OCLC 1041649797.
