岩梅虎耳草 yan mei hu er cao

Hirculus diapensia (Harry Smith) Losinskaja.

Herbs perennial, cespitose, 1-8(-12) cm tall. Stem brown glandular pilose. Basal leaves aggregated into a rosette; petiole sheathlike at base, 2.2-8 mm, brown crisped glandular villous; leaf blade subelliptic to narrowly ovate or lanceolate, 5-12 × 2-5 mm, glabrous, base cuneate, apex acute. Cauline leaves ca. 2, sometimes hidden in basal rosette, sublinear to linear-oblong; leaf blade 6-15 × 1-2 mm, subcarnose, base crisped glandular villous, margin glandular hairy. Flower solitary; pedicel 0.8-12 mm, brown glandular hairy. Sepals erect-spreading, ovate, gibbous, 3-7 × 2-4 mm, subcarnose, both surfaces glabrous, veins 3-7, confluent into a verruca at apex, margin ± brown glandular ciliate. Petals yellow, sometimes orange spotted, ovate or elliptic to suboblong, 6.2-11 × 3-7 mm, 2-callose near base, 3-5(-7)-veined, base contracted into a claw 0.5-1.2 mm, apex retuse. Stamens 3-5.6 mm. Ovary subsuperior, broadly subglobose, 2.5-5 mm; styles 0.9-1.8 mm. Fl. Jul-Aug.

* Alpine meadows, rocky grasslands, screes, cliff ledges, rock crevices; 3500-5300 m. W Sichuan, E Xizang, Yunnan.

This species is very closely related to Saxifraga caveana, which is a slightly smaller plant distributed to the S of the more robust S. diapensia.