| Asteraceae |
|---|
 Cirsium rhizocephalum C. A. MEYER subsp. rhizocephalum C. A. MEYER |
Cirsium MILLER |
| C. rhizocephalum C.A.Meyer, Verz. Pfl. Cauc. 70 (1831). Dwarf perennial, usually acaulous, rarely with a wingless stem up to 15 cm. Basal leaves rosulate, sparsely arachnoid or subglabrous, elliptic to oblong, 3-18 x 1-3 cm, subentire, sinuate-lobed or pinnatilobed to pinnatipartite, margined by stout or weak l-7(-10) mm spines, tapering into a short petiole; cauline leaves (when present) sparse and pinnately lobed. Capitula 1-10, con-ferted and subsessile in centre of rosette, rarely subsolitary on a short peduncle. Involucres hemispherical, subglabrous, 15-25 mm, purplish or greenish. Phyllaries 4-6-seriate, median oblong-lanceolate, acute, scarcely vittate, shortly spinose-mucronate or tapering into a 1-4 mm spine. Corollas 18-27 mm, purple (rarely white). Achenes c. 4 mm. Pappus 11-19 mm. Fl. 8. Mountain pastures, damp turf and by streams, 1400-3000 m. 1. Leaves pinnatifid to pinnatipartite, 6-18 cm, lobes shortly lobulate and stoutly spined; capitula usually 3-10; phyllaries spiny-mucronate (spine usually less than 1 mm) subsp. rhizocephalum 1. Leaves subentire to simple sinuate-lobed to ½-way, 3-8 cm long, lobes sub-entire and pectinate-margined with slender spines; capitula usually 1-2; phyllaries tapering into a (l-)2-4 mm, often erecto-patent spine subsp. sinuatum subsp. sinuatum (Boiss.) Davis & Parris in Notes R.B.G. Edinb. 33:430 (1975). Syn: C. rhizocephalum C.A.Meyer var. sinuatum Boiss., Fl. Or. 3:542 (1875). Type: [Turkey A7/8] in Armenia Turcicae alpinis Alischerikhan inter Trape-zuntem (Trabzon) et Baibut (Bayburt), 1900 m, Kotschy suppl. 631. E., N.E. & S. Anatolia. A8 Rize: d. Ikizdere, Cermanin Y., above Cimil, 2700 m, D. 21088! A9 Kars: 43 km from Kars to Göle, 2180 m, Buttler 14534! Çoruh: Yalnizçam Da. between Ardanuç and Kutul Y., 1400 m, D. 32479! C5 Niğde: Gisl Deppe (Kizil Tepe), 2440 m, Kotschy 1853:293! 322! C10 Hakkari: Sat Da., 2600 m, Duncan & Tait 134! Caucasia. The two subspecies recognized here may intergrade in Caucasia, but are usually well distinguished in Anatolia and largely allopatric. The species is also recorded from A4 (Ilgaz Da., Bornm. 1890:330b) and C6 (Maraş: Berit Da., Hausskn.), but we are not sure to which race they belong. Two anomalous gatherings need comment: B6 Sivas (Deliktaş (Sivas to Kangal), 1900 m, D. 24835!) has deeply pinnatifid leaves like subsp. rhizocephalum, but phyllaries and leaf spines similar to those of subsp. sinuatum; A5 Amasya (Ak Da., 1700 m, Bornm. 1889:330!) is like a caulescent variant (stems 10-15 cm) of subsp. rhizo-cephalum, but in stature and phyllaries is intermediate between the latter and the Transcaucasian taxon treated in Fl. URSS 28:204 as C. frickii Fisch. & Mey. (C. esculentum (Sivers) Meyer subsp. frickii (Fisch. & Mey.) Petrak), The status of C. rhizocephalum (incl. subsp. sinuatum) remains open to question. It has often been treated as a subspecies of C. esculentum (European Russia and C. Asia), a plant of which we have seen very little material; the complex is also closely allied to the European C. acaule (L.) Scop. [402] |