Aquilegia gracillima | |
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Holotype of Aquilegia gracillima | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Order: | Ranunculales |
Family: | Ranunculaceae |
Genus: | Aquilegia |
Species: | A. gracillima |
Binomial name | |
Aquilegia gracillima | |
Synonyms [1] : 103 | |
Aquilegia helmandica Christopher Grey-Wilson |
Aquilegia gracillima is a species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae native to the area near Ghazni in eastern Afghanistan. The plant is understood as related to Aquilegia moorcroftiana , which has a range spanning into Afghanistan.
A. gracillima has small flowers that are white with rose tinging; its specific name literally translates as "very slender" or "insignificant". The species was first described by the Flora Iranica in 1992 from a specimen collected by Karl Heinz Rechinger in 1962.
Aquilegia gracillima is a perennial plant that favors temperate biomes. [2] The plant has glandular-pilose stems and is particularly cespitose. The plant's flowers are nodding and are colored white with rose tinging. The sepals are either oblong or elliptic-lanceolate and extend 10 millimetres (0.39 in) to 12 millimetres (0.47 in) in length. The nectar spurs are slender, ranging between 15 millimetres (0.59 in) and 17 millimetres (0.67 in) long. The blades are 7 millimetres (0.28 in) long. [1] : 103
Aquilegia gracillima was first described by Austrian botanist Karl Heinz Rechinger in 1992 within the Flora Iranica . [2] The plant was described from a single specimen. [1] : 104 The holotype was collected by Rechinger on July 2, 1962, in Afghanistan and is held in the herbarium of the Natural History Museum, Vienna. The type locality is near Ghazni. [3] [1] : 104 An isotype is held by the University of Graz's Institute of Plant Sciences. [4]
In the descriptions provided by Flora Iranica, A. gracillima was one of three species of Aquilegia described as "species nova ex affinitate remota Aquilegia moorcroftiana ", [1] : 103 with the other two being Aquilegia maimanica and Aquilegia microcentra . American botanist Robert Nold wrote in 2003 that political circumstances meant that the species were likely relegated to being "nothing but names for years to come" and felt that further specimens were necessary to thoroughly confirm if the plants are distinct species related to, or variants of, A. moorcroftiana. When describing the species, Nold listed them under his listing of A. moorcroftiana, "hoping, somehow, that A. moorcroftiana is even more polymorphic than anyone suspects" and that A. gracillima was a localized variant. [1] : 103–104
According to Nold, the species Aquilegia helmandica (described in 1974 by Christopher Grey-Wilson) has been considered a synonym of A. gracillima. [1] : 104 The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew's Plants of the World Online instead considers A. helmandica a synonym for A moorcroftiana var. afghanica. The Flora Iranica considered A. helmandica a synonym for Aquilegia euchroma . [5]
The word columbine derives from the Latin word columbinus , meaning "dove", a reference to the flowers' appearance of a group of doves. The genus name Aquilegia may come from the Latin word for "eagle", aquila , in reference to the pedals' resemblance to eagle talons. [6] Aquilegia may also derive from aquam legere, which is Latin for "to collect water", or aquilegium , a Latin word for a container of water. [7] Gracillima , from Latin, can mean "very slender" or "insignificant". [1] : 103
A. gracillima is native to the area near Ghazni in eastern Afghanistan. [2] [1] : 104
Plants of the World Online predicted the extinction risk level for A. gracillima as "threatened" with a low confidence level. [2]
Aquilegia is a genus of about 130 species of perennial plants that are found in meadows, woodlands, and at higher elevations throughout the Northern Hemisphere, known for the spurred petals of their flowers.
Aquilegia coerulea, the Colorado columbine, Rocky Mountain columbine, or blue columbine, is a species of flowering plant in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae, native to the Rocky Mountains and some of the surrounding states of the western United States. It is the state flower of Colorado. The Latin specific name coerulea means "sky blue".
Aquilegia chrysantha, the golden columbine, is a perennial herbaceous flowering plant native to the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico. The plant, with a height of between 40 centimetres (16 in) and 120 centimetres (47 in), has yellow flowers. A. chrysantha. as with other members of the Aquilegia coerulea species complex, is evolved for pollination by hawkmoth. It favors moist environments in its mountainous range.
Aquilegia longissima, the long-spur columbine or long-spurred columbine, is a rare perennial flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae that is native to northern Mexico, Texas, and Arizona.
Aquilegia nigricans, the Bulgarian columbine, is a perennial species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae, native to central and southeastern Europe.
Ian Charleson Hedge was a Scottish botanist at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh. Hedge made important contributions to the flora of Iran and Iraq, and was a recognised authority on the flora of south-west Asia. He named more than 300 new plant species.
Aquilegia hinckleyana, or Hinckley's golden columbine, is a partially recognized species of flowering plant of the genus Aquilegia (columbines) in the family Ranunculaceae endemic to Capote Falls in northwestern Presidio County, Texas. The plant is found within a small region of the county and only grows in moister areas of its generally dry range. Considered a smaller version of Aquilegia chrysantha, A. hinckleyana has a height of around 60 centimetres (24 in) and possesses yellow flowers. It has seen modern cultivation, particularly in Texas. The species is named for L. C. Hinckley, who first collected the species in 1943.
Aquilegia alpina, often called the alpine columbine or breath of God, is a perennial species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae, native to the western and central Alps. Though rare in its Swiss, Austrian, and Italian range, it is commonly found in the French Maritime Alps. A. alpina is appreciated for its light blue to blue-purple flowers.
Aquilegia gegica is a species of flowering plant in the genus Aquilegia (columbine) in the family Ranunculaceae endemic to the western South Caucasus region in Abkhazia and Georgia. The plant's flower petals are light blue.
Aquilegia ecalcarata, the spurless columbine or false columbine, is a perennial species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae, native to central China.
Aquilegia parviflora is a species of flowering plant of the Aquilegia (columbine) genus in the family Ranunculaceae native to the Asian regions of Siberia, northern Mongolia, northern China, and Sakhalin.
Aquilegia moorcroftiana is a species of flowering plant in the genus Aquilegia (columbines) in the family Ranunculaceae. It is native to central Asia, with a range spanning Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Pakistan, Kashmir, Nepal, and Tibet. A. moorcroftiana grows at the highest elevation of any species of columbine, with examples frequently found at over 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) of elevation.
Aquilegia confusa is a partially accepted species of flowering plant of the genus Aquilegia (columbines) in the family Ranunculaceae that is endemic to the eastern and southern European Alps in Switzerland and Italy. The entirety of the plant, particularly its seeds, are toxic to humans.
Aquilegia sibirica, the Siberian columbine, is a species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae native to the north-central Asian regions of Siberia, northern Mongolia, Kazakhstan, and Xinjiang. A hardy perennial plant, it prefers temperate environments. The Siberian columbine can be between 1 foot (0.30 m) and 2 feet (0.61 m) tall with flowers that are lilac-blue and white in color.
Aquilegia desertorum, the desert columbine, is a perennial species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae, native to the Southwestern United States.
Aquilegia baluchistanica is a perennial flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae, endemic to Pakistan. It has pink flowers.
Aquilegia amurensis is a partially accepted species of flowering plant in the genus Aquilegia (columbines) in the family Ranunculaceae that is native to northeast Asia. Its natural range is in the northern Greater Khingan mountain range and Amur River of China, as well as Siberian Russia, Mongolia, and possibly North Korea. Flowers of this plant have petal blades that are whitish or white-tipped, with blue-violet nectar spurs and sepals. The plant is rarely cultivated.
Aquilegia chaplinei, also known as Chaplin's columbine, is a species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae native to the arid Guadalupe and Sacramento Mountains of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico in the West South Central United States. A perennial plant with an average height of 40 centimeters (16 in), A. chaplinei is characterized as a dwarf version of its close relative Aquilegia chrysantha and is sometimes considered a variant of this species under the name Aquilegia chrysantha var. chaplinei.
Aquilegia microcentra is a species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae native to Uruzgan Province in central and southeastern Afghanistan. The plant is understood as related to Aquilegia moorcroftiana, which has a range spanning into Afghanistan. A. microcentra has small, white flowers. The species was first described by the Flora Iranica in 1992 from specimens collected by Karl Heinz Rechinger in 1967.
Aquilegia maimanica is a species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae native to the area of the former Meymaneh Province in northwestern Afghanistan. The plant is understood as related to Aquilegia moorcroftiana, which has a range spanning into Afghanistan. A. maimanica has pale-blue and white flowers. The species was first described by the Flora Iranica in 1992 from specimens collected by Karl Heinz Rechinger in 1959.