兰屿马蓝 lan yu ma lan

Subshrubs to 1.5 m tall, anisophyllous. Stems 4-angled, retrorsely pubescent. Petiole 0.5-5 cm, appressed pubescent; leaf blade variable in shape and size, oblong-lanceolate, oblong-ovate, or ovate, 3-20 × 2-8 cm, abaxially glabrous or sometimes pubescent along veins, adaxially glabrous and with numerous cystoliths, secondary veins 3-5 on each side of midvein and abaxially prominent, base cuneate to narrowly cuneate and decurrent onto petiole, margin mucronate-serrate, apex acute to acuminate. Inflorescences terminal or from apical leaf axils, spikes, 5-10 cm; rachis 4-angled, glabrous or gland-tipped pubescent; bracts obovate, narrowly oblong, or linear-oblanceolate, 1-2.5 × 0.3-2 cm, abaxially glabrous or sparsely pubescent and with numerous cystoliths, apex obtuse; bracteoles linear, 10-20 × 3-4 mm, abaxially glabrous or sparsely pubescent. Calyx 1.3-2.4 cm, accrescent to ca. 4 cm in fruit, 2-lipped, lower lip 2-lobed almost to base, upper lip 3-lobed to 2/3 of length; lobes linear, glabrous, pubescent, or rarely gland-tipped pilose on margin, cystoliths numerous, apex acute. Corolla white, funnel-shaped, ca. 4 cm, bent near mouth, outside glabrous, inside glabrous except for trichomes retaining style; tube basally cylindric and ca. 3 mm wide for ca. 8 mm then gradually widened to ca. 1.5 cm at mouth; lobes oblong, ca. 5 × 4 mm. Stamens 4, included; filaments densely pilose, shorter pairs ca. 2 mm, longer pair ca. 2.5 mm; anther thecae oblong, ca. 2 mm; pollen type 3. Ovary glabrous; style ca. 2.5 cm; stigma very unequally 2-lobed. Capsule cylindric-fusiform, ca. 1.7 cm, glabrous, 4-seeded. Seeds ovate in outline, ca. 3 × 3 mm, densely appressed pubescent. Fl. Sep-Nov, fr. Jan.

● Moist places in forests; 200-1000 m. Taiwan (Lan Yu).

Strobilanthes lanyuensis is close to S. flexicaulis, itself a variable species, differing only in the white, resupinate corolla and a few other minor characters. Further studies are needed to confirm its status.