Veronica microcarpa Boiss.

Veronica microcarpa Boiss. View in CoL

Diagnoses Plantarum Orientalum Novarum, ser. 1, 4:76 ( Boissier 1844).

TYPE CITATION. — “Hab. Prope Bayazid Aucher no. 5097 et in provi. Aderbidjan [= Azerbaijan] no. 5096 ”.

LECTOTYPE. — Designated by Riek (1935: 45, second-step lectotype designated here): “ Aderbidjan Aucher-Éloy-Hebier d’Orient no. 5096 ”(likely collected 1837), G[ G00343634! ].

ISOLECTOTYPES (designated here). — G[ G00343582 !], MO[ MO-176194!* ], BM[ BM000997941! ], KW-Turcz.!, OXF!, P[ P03555941* , P03555943* ].

SYNTYPES. — “ Bayazid Aucher-Éloy-Herbier d’Orient no. 5097 ” BM[ BM000997942!* ], G[ G00343633* ], OXF!, P[ P03555940* , P03555943* ].

Nomenclatural note. Veronica microcarpa is an ascending to decumbent perennial herb occurring between Eastern Turkey and Western Iran. In phylogenetic analyses including samples from throughout its range, it is rather isolated despite morphologically rather similar to other species of the region, such as V. orientalis . It is noteworthy that there is a disrepancy between ploidy of plants measured flowcytometrically (2×, Eastern Turkey; Sonibare et al. (2014)) and those from chromosome numbers (4×, Armenia, Meskova et al., in Rice et al. [2015]). Boissier (1844) cited two collections of Aucher-Éloy (no. 5097 from “prope Bayazit”, Eastern Turkey, no. 5096 from “Aberbidjan”). Riek (1935) typified the name with the latter. There are two specimens of this collection in G, of which one was donated to the herbarium after Boissier’s death but before Riek published his typification. Therefore, a second-step lectotypification seems advantageous.