Melanoseris zhufengensis (Asteraceae, Cichorieae, Lactucinae), a new species from the Central Himalaya, Xizang, China

Melanoseris zhufengensis sp. nov ., a new species from the Central Himalaya, Xizang, China, is described and illustrated. Similar to M. violifolia and M. rapunculoides in having five florets per capitulum, it can be distinguished by its caespitose habit, basally profusely branched stems, sessile middle cauline leaves with broad, unconstricted basal wings, phyllaries abaxially moderately white-pilose on the midvein, and achenes with three markedly broadened lateral ribs per surface and a 3.1–3.8 mm long beak. Integrative morphological comparisons and multi-locus phylogenetic analyses based on nuclear ITS and four plastid markers ( petD , trnL-F , rpl32-trnL , trnQ-rps16 ) strongly support the recognition of M. zhufengensis as a distinct species of Melanoseris .