Cotoneaster horizontalis Decaisne var. adpressus (Bois) C. K. Schneider; C. taoensis G. Klotz.

Shrubs deciduous, prostrate, irregularly branched. Branchlets reddish brown or grayish brown to grayish black, terete, slender, initially strigose, glabrous when old. Petiole 1–2 mm, glabrous or pilose; stipules caducous, subulate, nearly as long as petioles; leaf blade broadly ovate or obovate, rarely elliptic, 5–15 × 4–10 mm, thinly papery, midvein raised abaxially and impressed adaxially, abaxially sparsely pubescent or glabrous, adaxially glabrous, base cuneate, margin entire and undulate, apex obtuse or ± acute. Inflorescences 1- or 2-flowered. Flowers subsessile, 7–8 mm in diam. Hypanthium campanulate, abaxially sparsely pubescent. Sepals ovate-triangular, apex acute, shorter than petals. Petals erect, pink, obovate, 4–5 mm and nearly as broad, apex emarginate or obtuse. Stamens ca. 10–15, shorter than petals. Ovary pubescent apically; styles 2, free, not exceeding stamens. Fruit bright red, subglobose, 7–9 mm in diam., glabrous, pyrenes 2, rarely 3. Fl. May–Jun, fr. Aug–Sep. 2n = 68.

Mixed forests on slopes, rocky places; 1900--4000 m. Gansu, Guizhou, Hubei, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Xizang, Yunnan [India, Myanmar, Nepal].