Platanthera nematocaulon (Hook.f.) Kraenzl., Orchid.Gen.Sp.

Platanthera nematocaulon (Hook.f.) Kraenzl., Orchid.Gen.Sp. View in CoL 1:942.1901. Habenarianematocaulon Hook.f., Fl. Brit. India View in CoL 6(17): 154. 1890. Peristylus nematocaulon (Hook.f.) Banerji & Prabha Pradhan, Orchids Nepal Himalaya 106. 1984. Peristylus nematocaulon (Hook.f.) J.J.Wood, Kew Bull. View in CoL 41(4): 811. 1986, comb. superfl. Lectotype (designated by Efimov & Jin, 2014): INDIA , Sikkim, s.loc., s.d., Hooker 14 (K [K000387513 digital image!]; isolecto K [K000387512 digital image!]).

Habenaria juncea King & Pantl., J. Asiat. Soc. Bengal, Pt. 2, Nat. Hist. 65: 132. 1896. Platanthera juncea (King & Pantl.) Kraenzl., Orchid. Gen. Sp. 1: 942. 1901. Lectotype (designated here): INDIA , Sikkim, Lachen Valley, 11000 ft., August 1895, Pantling 406 (L [L0061416 digital image!]; isolecto L (L0061414 digital image!), AME [AMES00099902 digital image!]).

Distribution: India , Bhutan, China and Nepal.

Specimens examined: INDIA , Sikkim, Bangerong, 10000 ft., September 1894, Pantling 341 (CAL); East Sikkim district, Tsomgo, 3933 m, 06.08.2006, A.N. Rao 28518 (BSHC); Yakla, 15.10.1869, Clarke 10029 (K digital image); North Sikkim district, Lachen Valley, July 1897, Pantling 406 (BM, LE, K, P digital images); Lachung to Katao, 3276 m, 02.08.2019, K. Prasad 86543 (CAL, BSID); Ling too, 25.08.1878, Demgloo s.n. (CAL); Shingba Rhododendron Sanctuary, 3350 m, 07.08.2014, D.K. Agrawala 38896 (BSHC); s.loc., s.d., Hooker 271 (K digital image); s.loc., August 1877, King 4446 (CAL); s.loc., August 1886, Elwes s.n. (CAL); Pakyong district, Gnatong, August 1894, Pantling 406 (BM, K, P digital images). West Bengal, Darjeeling district, Phalut, 03.08.1972, Kanai et al. 726199 (TI digital image); Phalut-Ratho Chu-Ramam, 04.08.1972, Kanai et al. 726200 (TI digital image); Sandakphu- Sabargam-Phalut, 02.08.1972, Kanai et al. s.n. (TI digital image); Singalelah Range, 10000 ft., July 1896, Pantling 341 (CAL); Ibid., 10000 ft., August 1896, Pantling 341 (CAL); Ibid., 10000 ft., August 1896, Pantling 406 (BM, K, P, M digital images); Singalelah (Singalila), Phalut-Sabargan-Sandakphu, 19.07.1969, Hara et al. 726215 (TI digital image).

Notes: Habenaria nematocaulon was originally described by Hooker (1890) and placed in section Hologlossa Hook.f. Later King and Pantling (1896) described yet another species, H.juncea from Sikkim, which is closely allied to the previous one. The protologues and type specimens of H. juncea and H. nematocaulon are virtually matching. Kraenzlin (1901), in his revision, shifted both P. juncea and P. nematocaulon to Platanthera . Following the view of Seidenfaden (1977), Wood (1986) shifted P. nematocaulon to Peristylus and synonymised P. juncea under it. The recent molecular study ( Jin et al., 2014) has revealed that P. nematocaulon is nested within the Platanthera clade.

Further study revealed that there was also a need to typify Habenaria juncea . Wood (1986) considered the specimen at K as the holotype, but this is incorrect as this specimen is not a part of the original collection and was collected after the species described. Pearce and Cribb (2002) reported a specimen at CAL as the holotype but this specimen is not available. King and Pantling (1896) described H. juncea based on plants collected by Robert Pantling (no. 406) in August 1895 at 11000 feet from Lachen Valley (Sikkim Himalaya). Three relevant specimens are presently available at AMES and L. There are 14 more specimens preserved at E, GH, K, LE, M, P and W with the same collection number (406), collected by Pantling from Sikkim Himalaya but they are devoid of the above collection information (as in the protologue). None of these specimens were specifically designated as type by King and Pantling (1896). Therefore, here the author designates the L specimen (L0061416) as lectotype as it fits best the description provided in the protologue.