Additions to the Acanthaceae of the Flora of Tropical East Africa: two new species from northern Kenya.

Darbyshire, Iain; Luke, Quentin

Additions to the Acanthaceae of the Flora of Tropical East Africa: two new species from northern Kenya.

Name

Nordic_Journal_of_Botany_-_2026_-_Darbyshire_-_Additions_to_the_Acanthaceae_of_the_Flora_of_Tropical_East_Africa__two_new.pdf

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5.18 MB

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Adobe PDF

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Resource type

Journal article

Creator (person)

Darbyshire, Iain

ORCID

Luke, Quentin

ORCID

Date published

June 24, 2026

Abstract

The new species Barleria kulalensis I.Darbysh. & Q.Luke and Dicliptera huriensis I.Darbysh. & Q.Luke are described and illustrated and their extinction risk is assessed provisionally. The former is based on Barleria sp. G of the Flora of Tropical East Africa (FTEA), with recent field observation and collection of this species from the foothills of Mount Kulal confirming its status as distinct from the widespread East African species Barleria linearifolia. The latter is known only from the type collection made in 2010, after FTEA was completed; it is considered most likely to be related to Dicliptera minutifolia from southern Ethiopia and northern Kenya but clearly differs from that species in a number of vegetative and floral characters. Barleria kulalensis is assessed as ‘Vulnerable' whilst D. huriensis is currently considered to be ‘Data Deficient'. This paper highlights the high likelihood of continued discovery of new species of Acanthaceae to science in under-botanised areas of northern Kenya.