厚叶雀舌木 hou ye que she mu

Andrachne pachyphylla (X. X. Chen) Govaerts.

Erect shrubs, up to 2 m tall, monoecious. Branchlets flattened, reddish. Stipules triangular, base not auriculate, apex acute, almost black; petiole 2-4 × 0.8-1 mm; leaf blade ovate to elliptic or orbicular, (1.7-)2-3.5(-4) × (1.2-)1.5-2.5(-2.7) cm, leathery, almost succulent, both surfaces drying reddish brown, glabrous, base acute to rounded, apex obtuse; secondary veins 4-6 pairs. Inflorescences unisexual, always fasciculate. Male flowers solitary, ca. 5 mm in diam.; pedicel ca. 17 mm; sepals ovate, 3-4 × 2.5-3 mm, apex acute to obtuse, eglandular; petals obovate, apex acute, 0.7-2 × 0.5-0.7 mm; disk bilobed for 1/3 of length. Female flowers solitary, 4-5 mm in diam., widely cupular; pedicel 20-28 mm; sepals ovate to elliptic, 3-5 × 2-2.5 mm, apex obtuse to acuminate, eglandular; petals linear, ca. 1.8 × 0.6 mm, apex acute; disk bilobed for 1/3-1/2 of length; ovary 3-locular, glabrous; styles 3, glabrous. Capsule glabrous.

● Guangxi.

Leptopus pachyphyllus is clearly distinct; its thick leathery leaves, almost succulent receptacle, and long female pedicels are unlike any other Leptopus. It is only known from two collections.