ARS Victoria Newsletter – April 2019

• Date: 11th April 2019

NEW SPECIES OF RHODODENDRON from Papua, Indonesia

Rhododedndron meagaii was recently described from Papua by Yasper Mambrasar and Prima Hutabart of LIPI at Bogor, the centre for plant taxonomy in Indonesia. It is in the section Hydranthe, which includes such species as R. konori, R. superbum, R. gardenia, R. phaeochitum and R. delicatulum. R. meagaii is distinctive in having elliptic leaves, irregular lengthed stamens, a glabrous corolla and dendroid scales on long stalks. Like most vireyas it is a shrub to 2m high. It was found in mossy forest and montane shrubberies on Mt Salju in Yalimo Regency in 2016. As yet it is not known beyond the type locality.

Mambrasar, Y. M. & Hutabarat, P. W. K. 2018. Rhododendron
meagaii, a new species of Rhododendron subgenus Vireya (Ericaceae)
from Papua, Indonesia. Reinwardtia 17(2): 97?100.

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