Licuala caespitosa Henderson & Nguyen Quoc Dung, 2017

Henderson, Andrew & Dung, Nguyen Quoc, 2017, New species of Lanonia, Licuala, and Pinanga (Arecaceae) from Vietnam, Phytotaxa 323 (2), pp. 159-172 : 164

publication ID	https://doi.org/10.11646/phytotaxa.323.2.4
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13696706
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03C38781-FF8D-FFF6-FF77-6C79FB23F9DA
treatment provided by	Felipe
scientific name	Licuala caespitosa Henderson & Nguyen Quoc Dung
status	sp. nov.

Treatment

Licuala caespitosa Henderson & Nguyen Quoc Dung View in CoL sp. nov. ( Fig. 5 View FIGURE 5 )

Type:— VIETNAM. Da Nang City, Hoa Vang District, Ba Na-Nui Chua Nature Reserve, road to summit, 16°00’N, 108°02’E, ca. 350 m elevation, 20th April 2017, A. Henderson & Nguyen Quoc Dung 4211 ( holotype VFM!, isotype NY!).

It differs from the similar Licuala glaberrima in its clustered ( versus solitary) stems, solitary or paired flowers ( versus solitary), and tubular calyces ( versus calyces with pedicellate base).

Stems clustered, to 3.0 m tall, 5.0 cm diameter. Leaf number not recorded; sheaths not recorded; ligules prominent, to 55.0 cm long; petioles to 165.0 cm long, thorny for only about 30.0 cm proximally with short thorns to 0.5 cm long; blades to 95.0 cm across, split into 28-32 segments, these with straight sides; costa continuous into central segment, forming a petiolulate base to segment; middle segment 52.0 cm long, 4.5 cm wide at apex; lateral segment 35.0 cm long, 0.5 cm wide at apex; segments briefly indented at the apex, and with minute, brown scales abaxially. Inflorescences erect amongst the leaves, to 120.0 cm long, branched to 2 orders; prophylls not recorded; rachis bracts elongate, tubular, ca. 20.0 cm long; partial inflorescences 3; rachillae glabrous, to 19.0 cm long; flowers 3.0 mm long, mostly solitary, a few paired on proximal parts of rachillae, distantly and spirally arranged, yellow at anthesis; calyx 2.0 mm long, glabrous, tubular, scarcely lobed at the apex; corolla 3.0 mm long, glabrous, split for ca. two thirds its length into 3, valvate petals; stamens 6; staminal ring 0.5 mm high; filaments free for 0.7 mm; anthers rounded, 0.5 mm long; pistil 1.5 mm long including a 0.7 mm long style, glabrous; fruits not recorded.

Distribution and habitat:—Central Vietnam in Ba Na-Nui Chua Nature Reserve in lowland rainforest on steep slopes at 350 m elevation.

Taxonomic notes:— Licuala caespitosa is known from only a single specimen from Ba Na-Nui Chua Nature Reserve. It is similar to L. glaberrima , differing in its larger size, clustered stems, solitary or paired flowers, and tubular calyces. Licuala glaberrima occurs over 400 km further to the south in Khanh Hoa province.