Senecio esperensis (Asteraceae: Senecioneae)—a new combination for the L'Esperance Rock groundsel, Kermadec Islands

摘要

A new combination, Senecio esperensis , is made for Senecio lautus subsp. esperensis , a narrow-range endemic confined to L'Esperance Rock, the southernmost of the Kermadec Islands group. Senecio esperensis is an ornithocoprophilous species wholly confined to the guano-enriched summit saddle of L'Esperance Rock. It is distinguished from S.?lautus s.s. by its taller sparingly branched, strictly erect annual growth habit, succulent stems and foliage, and oblong-spathulate, irregularly serrate or lobulate, deeply toothed leaves. It has fewer involucral bracts, disc and ray-florets, shorter often twisted ray-florets, and smaller, sparingly hairy cypsela.