海南蛇根草 hai nan she gen cao

Herbs, weak to erect, to 50 cm tall; stems viscous puberulent with unicellular trichomes, to glabrescent. Leaves in subequal pairs; petiole 1-2.5 cm, puberulent; blade drying thinly papery, green on both surfaces, elliptic to ovate, 6-13 × 2.5-5 cm, adaxially glabrous, abaxially pilosulous along principal veins, base obtuse to acute, margins entire, apex shortly acuminate; secondary veins 15-17 pairs; stipules deciduous, triangular, 3-5 mm, aristate-acuminate. Inflorescence congested-cymose, several flowered, viscous puberulent; peduncles 0.5-1 mm, stout; bracts elliptic-oblong, 5-6 mm, viscid ciliate. Flowers with biology unknown. Calyx in bud sparsely puberulent; hypanthium to 2 mm; lobes triangular, to ca. 1 mm. Corolla in bud tubular. Capsules turbinate, ca. 4 × 9 mm, sparsely puberulent. Fl. (bud) and fr. Dec.

● Dense forests, uncommon. Hainan (Baoting, Qiongzhong).

Ophiorrhiza hainanensis was synonymized with O. nutans by Duan and Lin (Acta Phytotax. Sin. 45: 877. 2007). However, this species is here recognized provisionally, based on the distinctions given in the key to species.