Cremanthodium dibangii (Asteraceae): a new species of Himalayan
sunflower from Arunachal Pradesh, India
Abstract
Based on morphological and molecular evidence, we herein described
Cremanthodium dibangii (Asteraceae) as a new species from India. The
species was found growing in the subalpine meadows of Dibang Valley,
Arunachal Pradesh, India. A Nucleotide Basic Local Alignment Search Tool
(BLASTn) search of the nrDNA ITS region and the plastid trnC-petN
intergenic spacer sequences revealed sequence similarities to C.
stenoglossum Y.Ling & S.W.Liu (98.88 % identity) and C. rhodocephalum
Diels (99.62 % identity), respectively. Further, phylogenetic tree
reconstruction of the ITS placed C. dibangii as sister to C.
stenoglossum and C. campanulatam, while the trnC-petN tree depicted C.
dibangii as a separate clade. Morphologically it is related to C.
thomsonii C.B.Clarke and C. pulchrum R.D.Good in having reniform leaves
and ligulate heads but differs from these in having size of basal leaves
size; number of stem leaves, ray florets and phyllaries; and length of
style. The diagnostic characteristics, affinities with allied taxa and
colored illustration are provided to facilitate easy identification.