KEW BULLETIN
DOI 10.1007/S12225-022-10034-3
ISSN: 0075-5974 (print)
ISSN: 1874-933X (electronic)
Hartliella txitongensis (Linderniaceae), a new species
from Mozambique
Jo Osborne1 , Castigo Datizua2, Papin Mucaleque3 & Eberhard Fischer4
Summary. Hartliella txitongensis Osborne & Eb.Fisch., a species new to science from Niassa Province in Northern
Mozambique, is described and illustrated. Hartliella txitongensis is the only species of Hartliella known from outside
the Upper Katanga region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the adjacent region of Zambia. The
species is provisionally assessed as Critically Endangered under IUCN criterion B and its potential to be a metallophyte is highlighted. A key to the five species of Hartliella is provided.
Key Words. Chitonga, metallophyte, Niassa, plant taxonomy, Txitonga.
Introduction
The genus Hartliella Eb.Fisch. (Fischer 1992: 204) was
erected to accommodate four suffruticose species formerly placed in a broadly defined Lindernia All. Species of
Hartliella are characterised by a capitate inflorescence,
almost coriaceous leaves, a woody rhizome, abaxial
stamens with a knob-like basal appendage (only weakly
pronounced in H. cupricola Eb.Fisch.), and
aulacospermous seeds. The seeds of Linderniaceae can
be divided into three different types: bothrospermous,
aulacospermous and non-alveolated. In bothrospermous
seeds the surface is sculptured due to the pit-like ingrowth
of the inner epidermis of the ovule integument, the
endothelium, into the endosperm. This endosperm
alveolation results in characteristic rounded pits on the
seed surface. By fusion of several endosperm pits,
longitudinal furrows are produced that are typical of the
aulacospermous seed type. In the non-alveolated seeds,
the surface of the endosperm shows 5 – 6 rib-like shallow
longitudinal furrows but no deeply impressed pits or ditchlike furrows (Fischer 1992). According to Fischer et al.
(2013), Lindernia s.str. has non-alveolated seeds while the
clades with bothrospermous seeds comprise e.g. the
genera Torenia L. (Linnaeus 1753: 619), and Craterostigma
Hochst. (Hochstetter 1841: 668) in a broad sense. The
clade with aulacospermous seeds consists e.g. of
Crepidorhopalon Eb.Fisch. (Fischer 1989: 443), Hartliella,
and Bampsia Lisowski & Mielcarek (1983: 377). Up to now,
four species of Hartliella are known, most of them endemic
to Upper Katanga in the Democratic Republic of the
Congo with one species, H. capitata (Eb.Fisch.) Eb.Fisch.
(1992: 211) also occurring in adjacent Zambia. Hartliella
suffruticosa (Lisowski & Mielcarek) Eb.Fisch. has an
elongated stem with 3 – 4 pairs of broadly obovate to
almost orbicular leaves and a small, basal pair of cataphylls,
the upper leaf pair surrounding a few-flowered, capitate
inflorescence. It is found in miombo woodland and
savanna on heavy metal-rich soil and is endemic to Upper
Katanga. The closely related H. cupricola differs from
H. suffruticosa in having 4 – 6 pairs of lanceolate leaves, a
longer calyx-tube and an undivided upper lip of the
corolla. The upper leaf pair is distant from the inflorescence. The species is only known from the type locality at
Kahumbwe in Upper Katanga (Fischer 1992; Malaisse et al.
2016) on copper-rich soil. The two further species have
dense capitate inflorescences with a much smaller pair of
surrounding leaves. Apart from the cataphylls, there are
usually only two pairs of large leaves. The main difference
between H. capitata and H. bampsii (Eb.Fisch.) Eb.Fisch.
(1992: 209) lies in the arrangement of these two leaf pairs:
in H. capitata, the internode is strongly condensed, thus
appearing as a rosette or a whorl of four leaves, while in
H. bampsii the internode is elongated with the upper pair
arranged in the middle of the stem. Hartliella capitata is
found in Upper Katanga with one locality in adjacent
Zambia, mainly in miombo woodland on probably
metalliferous soil while H. bampsii is endemic to Upper
Katanga in similar, open woodland habitats. For further
differences see Table 1.
During field work in northwest Mozambique in
May 2019, the first author, together with Aurélio
Banze and Papin Mucaleque, collected a specimen of
Hartliella, that, at first glance, seemed intermediate
between H. bampsii and H. capitata. Close study
revealed that it represents a new species that is
described below.
Accepted for publication 15 February 2022.
1
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Wakehurst, Ardingly, Haywards Heath, West SussexRH17 6TN, UK. e-mail: j.osborne@kew.org
2
Instituto de Investigação Agrária de Moçambique (IIAM), C.P. 3658, Mavalane, MaputoMozambique.
3
Instituto de Investigação Agrária de Moçambique (IIAM), C.P. 622, prolongamento Av. FPLM, Estrada de Corrane, km 7, NampulaMozambique.
4
Institut für Integrierte Naturwissenschaften – Biologie, Universität Koblenz-Landau, Universitätsstraße 1, 56070, KoblenzGermany.
© The Author(s), 2022
KEW BULLETIN
Fig. 1. Hartliella txitongensis. A, B habit; C corolla; D corolla dissected; E base of abaxial stamen showing the bilobed appendage; F
calyx opened showing ovary with style and stigma. All from Osborne JO 1711. DRAWN BY EBERHARD FISCHER.
© The Author(s), 2022
KEW BULLETIN
Fig. 2. A Hartliella txitongensis growing in the Txitonga Mountains, Niassa Province, Mozambique; B flower; C bilobed appendage
at base of abaxial filament (microscope image of dried and soaked corolla). PHOTOS: J. OSBORNE.
Materials and Methods
Plant material
Dried plant material, consisting of five individual
plants of Hartliella txitongensis, was studied and
imaged in the Herbarium at Kew. Of the five plants,
at the time of collection, only one was in flower and
the remaining plants were in varying stages of
developing fruit. To avoid excessive destructive
sampling from the flowering specimen, only two
flowers were soaked in water and dissected for
examination under a stereo microscope. Fruit and
seed measurements were taken from the single most
mature fruit found.
Table 1. Character table comparing the five species of Hartliella.
H. suffruticosa
H. cupricola
H. capitata
H. bampsii
H. txitongensis
Plant height (cm)
Stems
6 – 11
elongated
14 – 20
elongated
1–2
strongly
condensed
2–5
± elongated
Number of leaf pairs
Leaf shape
3–4
broadly obovate
4–6
lanceolate
2 (– 4)
broadly obovate
Capitulum
few-flowered
few-flowered
Upper lip of corolla
Corolla tube length (mm)
Appendage at base
of abaxial filaments
Distribution
bifid
6–8
simple globose
entire
6
simple globose
2 (– 4)
variable (broadly
obovate
to lanceolate)
dense and
multi-flowered
entire
12
simple globose
4 – 10
condensed with
elongated internode
beneath capitulum
2 (– 4)
obovate to elliptic
dense and
multi-flowered
bifid
5–7
simple globose
dense and
multi-flowered
entire
8–9
bilobed
DRC, Upper
Katanga
DRC, Upper
Katanga
DRC, Upper
Katanga
Mozambique, Niassa
DRC, Upper
Katanga;
NW Zambia
© The Author(s), 2022
KEW BULLETIN
Maps
The maps were constructed in ArcMap version 10.3 to
show the single locality where Hartliella is known to
occur, and the locations of the Txitonga Mountains
and Niassa province in Mozambique. The Txitonga
mountains polygon was drawn manually using Google
EarthTM imagery of the mountains and based on
advice from a local guide and Government
Environmental Officer (Fiscal) for the Lupilichi area
(R.O. Saide pers. comm. 2019). The Basemap imagery
was added from ArcGIS online.
Conservation status
The conservation status of Hartliella txitongensis was
provisionally assessed using the IUCN categories and
criteria (IUCN 2012).
Taxonomic Treatment
Hartliella txitongensis Osborne & Eb.Fisch. sp. nov.
Type: Mozambique: Niassa Province, Txitonga
(Chitonga) Mountains, Osborne JO 1711 (holotype
LMA!; isotypes K! K001346951, LMU!).
http://www.ipni.org/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:77297515-1
Perennial herb 4 – 10 cm tall, erect, growing from a
woody rhizome. Stems glabrous, 4-angular and winged
along the angles. Leaf pairs 2 (– 4). Leaves closely spaced
at base, forming a rosette, sometimes with a more widely
spaced internode above providing a pair of cauline leaves.
Internodes 0 – 0.2 cm at base, 1.2 – 4 cm above. Leaves
opposite, sessile, obovate to elliptic, 2 – 7.5 × 1 – 3.5 cm,
base attenuate, margin entire or sometimes shallowly
toothed towards apex, apex rounded to obtuse, venation
palmate with mostly 3 or 5 main veins from the base, both
leaf surfaces glabrous and minutely gland-dotted (visible
at ×10 in dried material). Inflorescence terminal, capitate
and many-flowered; bracts subtending the inflorescence
lanceolate, up to 16 × 8 mm; bracts subtending individual
flowers ranging from foliaceous lanceolate bracts similar
to those that subtend the inflorescence to minute linear
bracts 2 mm long; all bracts green, becoming dark red in
fruit. Flowers sessile or shortly pedicellate, pedicels to
1.5 mm long. Calyx 10 – 14 mm long, glabrous, funnelshaped, split to the base abaxially, 5 or 6 lobed, lobes
unequal, 5 – 10 × 0.5 – 2 mm, lanceolate, margins entire or
minutely serrulate. Corolla purple-blue with irregular dark
and light markings at base of lower lip, glandularpuberulous, 17 – 18 mm long, tube 8 – 9 mm long, upper
lip 5 × 3 mm, rounded at apex, undivided, lower lip 8 –
10 mm long, 3-lobed, lobes 3 mm long, central lobe
broadly obovate, 4 mm wide, lateral lobes obovate 2 –
3 mm wide. Stamens 4, glabrous, filaments of upper pair
3 mm long, filaments of lower pair 5 mm long with a
minute, bilobed appendage at base; anther thecae
0.5 mm long. Ovary globose, 1.5 mm, glabrous; style
© The Author(s), 2022
10 mm long, glabrous; stigma two-lobed, lobes flattened,
obtuse and minutely penicillate. Fruit a capsule, ovoid, 3 ×
5 mm, shortly beaked at apex, beak c. 1 mm long, style
persistent. Seeds (immature) 0.8 – 1 mm long, flat and oval
or irregularly folded. Figs 1 & 2.
RECOGNITION . Hartliella txitongensis is similar to
H. bampsii, but differs in the pairs of stem leaves being
closely spaced with a short and condensed internode,
thus forming a rosette at base (stem leaves are usually
more distant in H. bampsii on a ± elongated stem), the
leaves being obovate to elliptic, 2 – 7.5 × 1 – 3.5 cm (vs
broadly obovate, 4 – 8 × 2.4 – 2.9 cm in H. bampsii), the
slightly longer corolla tube, 8 – 9 mm long (vs 5 –
7 mm in H. bampsii), the undivided upper lip of the
corolla (upper lip of corolla bifid in H. bampsii) and
the bilobed appendage at the base of the abaxial
filaments (simple globose in all other Hartliella species). It differs from Hartliella capitata in the elongated
stem below the inflorescence and the shape of the
leaves (these being broadly obovate to lanceolate, (3
–) 5 – 7.5 × (1.5 –) 3 – 6 cm in H. capitata) and the
shorter corolla tube (12 mm long in H. capitata). A key
to species of Hartliella is given below and differences
are summarised in Table 1.
DISTRIBUTION. Africa: Mozambique. Known only from
the type locality, probably endemic to the Txitonga
Mountains. Map 1.
SPECIMENS EXAMINED. MOZAMBIQUE. Niassa Province,
Txitonga (Chitonga) Mts, -11.82549, 35.05226, 19
May 2019, Osborne JO 1711 (holotype LMA!; isotypes
K! K001346951, LMU!).
HABITAT. The vegetation on the foothills and slopes of the
Txitonga Mountains is predominantly miombo woodland
with narrow strips of moist gallery forest growing along
deep stream gullies. At higher elevations, a more open
montane savanna and montane grassland occurs.
At the type locality of Hartliella txitongensis, at 1515 m
elevation, the woodland is open in places, grading into
montane savanna grassland with rocky outcrops. The
canopy is sparse and low at 3 m high. Woody species
include Uapaca kirkiana Müll.Arg., Brachystegia spiciformis
Benth., Parinari curatellifolia Planch. ex Benth., Protea
spp., Erica mannii (Hook.f.) Beentje subsp. pallidiflora
(Engl.) E.G.H.Oliv., Psorospermum febrifugum Spach and
Morella pilulifera (Rendle) Killick. At higher elevations
along the mountain ridge the low-growing shrubs
Kotschya strigosa (Benth.) Dewit & P.A.Duvign and
Cryptosepalum maraviense Oliv. are common. The montane grassland is mostly short, to c. 50 cm in height and
rich in dwarf shrubs, herbs and geophytes. Dry-season
fires occur regularly in the montane savannah grassland
and the fire frequency is increased by the presence of
gold miners (Osborne et al. 2019).
Hartliella txitongensis grows in full sun in a red loam
soil at the type locality, occurring as scattered individ-
KEW BULLETIN
uals in bare areas of leaf litter between grass clumps
and also forming fairly dense patches in places. It
appears to be highly localised.
CONSERVATION STATUS. Hartliella txitongensis is highly
range-restricted, currently known only from the type
locality and probably endemic to the Txitonga Mountains of northern Mozambique. This locality is nominally a protected area (Lake Niassa Reserve) but the
vegetation of miombo woodland, moist gallery forest,
montane savanna and grassland is not effectively
protected. The locality is particularly threatened by
gold mining, which causes habitat loss locally, broad
disruption to the hydrology and environmental damage such as areas with broken rocks, extremely eroded
ruptures, sedimented rivers and mercury contamination. The frequency of uncontrolled wildfires is
intensified due to the expansion and presence of gold
miners which constitute both a current and future
threat to the vegetation. However, fire may not be a
threat to this species as it grows from a woody rhizome
and these resprout after fires, and colonise vegetatively, providing some resilience to recurrent fires (Pausas
et al. 2018). Since two of the four other species of
Hartliella are known to occur on metal-rich soils, there
is a possibility that H. txitongensis is a metallophyte
occupying a restricted ecological niche. Using a
precautionary approach based on the single known
site for this species, the area of occupancy (AOO) is
estimated to be less than 10 km2. With an extent of
occurrence (EOO) of less than 100 km2, an area of
occupancy (AOO) estimated to be less than 10 km2, a
single known location and little-known ecological
niche, in addition to current threats to the vegetation
and an inferred continuing decline in its habitat, this
species is provisionally assessed as Critically Endangered under IUCN criterion B: CR B1ab(iii) + 2ab(iii).
The Txitonga mountains have a unique biogeography for Mozambique and therefore a high biodiversity
value. The site is to be recognised as an Important
Plant Area for Mozambique (Osborne et al. in prep).
In light of the biodiversity value of this area, conservation measures are urgently needed to protect the
flora. Since there is already local management in the
area through the Mining Associations, there is potential to put a conservation management plan in place.
PHENOLOGY. The type was collected in mid-May when
most of the population was in fruit (seeds immature).
Phenology is estimated as: flowering in April – May,
fruiting in May – June. The phenology is similar to that
of many other herb taxa recorded during the fieldwork in the Txitonga mountains, flowering and
fruiting during the period following the summer rains
that occur between November and April (MAE 2005).
Hartliella txitongensis appears to flower during the early
part of the period following the rains.
ETYMOLOGY. Named after the Txitonga (= Chitonga)
Mountains in order to highlight the conservation
value of the area.
Key to the species of Hartliella
1. Stems elongated, plants 6 – 20 cm tall, with 3 – 6 decussate pairs of leaves (excluding cataphylls), inflorescence a fewflowered capitulum …………………………………………………….....................................................................…….2
1.' Stems condensed, plants 1 – 10 cm tall, with 2 (– 4) decussate pairs of leaves (excluding cataphylls),
inflorescence a dense, multi-flowered capitulum ……………………………………………………………………3
2. Leaves broadly obovate, 1.5 – 2.5 × 1.2 – 1.6 cm, stem up to 6 – 11 cm tall, with 3 – 4 pairs of leaves, upper
leaves surrounding the capitulum usually not considerably smaller than mid-stem leaves, calyx tube 1 mm long,
upper lip of corolla bifid, Upper Katanga……… ……………………………………………………H. suffruticosa
2.' Leaves lanceolate, 3.5 – 4.2 × 0.7 – 0.95 cm, stem 14 – 20 cm tall, with 4 – 6 pairs of leaves, upper leaves
surrounding the capitulum much smaller than mid-stem leaves, calyx tube 8 mm long, upper lip of corolla
entire, Upper Katanga …………………………………………………………………………………....H. cupricola
3. Stem with strongly condensed internodes, plants 1 – 2 cm tall, with the leaves surrounding the dense capitulum
like an involucrum, corolla tube 12 mm long, upper lip of corolla entire, Upper Katanga, NW
Zambia………………………………………………………………………………………………………...H. capitata
3.' Stem less condensed, plants 2 – 10 cm tall, with at least one elongated internode below the dense capitulum,
corolla tube either 8 – 9 or 5 – 7 mm long, upper lip entire or bifid…. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
4. Stem leaves forming a rosette at base, corolla tube 8 – 9 mm, upper lip of corolla undivided, appendage at the
base of the abaxial filaments bilobed, Mozambique, Niassa ……………………………………….H. txitongensis
4.' Stem leaves not forming a rosette at base, usually more distant on a ± elongated stem, corolla tube 5 – 7 mm
long, upper lip of corolla bifid, appendage at the base of the abaxial filaments simple-globose, Upper Katanga
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...H. bampsii
© The Author(s), 2022
KEW BULLETIN
Map 1. Distribution of Hartliella txitongensis (currently known only from the type locality).
Discussion
The study area
Niassa Province in north-west Mozambique is the most
sparsely populated province in the country. It borders
Tanzania to the north and Malawi and Lake Niassa to
the west. Nineteen of Mozambique’s endemic plant
taxa occur in Niassa Province (10 of these occur only
in Niassa) in addition to 21 regional near-endemic
taxa (Darbyshire et al. 2019) (Table 2). The discovery
of additional endemics and near-endemics is highly
likely as Niassa Province is under-explored botanically.
The province has two protected areas, the huge Niassa
National Reserve, also covering part of Cabo Delgado
Province, and the Lake Niassa Reserve, a Ramsar site
including both Lake Niassa and the adjacent coastal
zone (Ramsar 2011). The Hartliella species described
here was collected during botanical fieldwork to
explore the mountains of the Lupilichi area of Lago
district (Map 1), within the Lake Niassa Reserve. These
mountains, in the northwest of Lago district, extend
south from the southern end of the Kipengere Range
© The Author(s), 2022
MAP BY C. DATIZUA.
in Tanzania and form part of the eastern escarpment
of the East African rift. They are isolated from the
other highland areas in Niassa province — the broad
Lichinga plateau area and outlying Mt Mecula and Mt
Yao. Mt Txitonga (Chitonga) is the highest peak in the
range at c. 1848 m elevation. The mountain range is
referred to here as the Txitonga Mountains.
Fieldwork
Fieldwork in the Txitonga Mountains was undertaken as part of the Mozambique Tropical Important Plant Areas (TIPAs) project, a collaboration
between the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew,
Mozambique’s Agricultural Research Institute
(IIAM) and Eduardo Mondlane University, with
the aim of identifying and promoting the longterm conservation and sustainable management of
Mozambique’s most important sites for plant diversity (Darbyshire et al. 2019). The Txitonga Mountains were selected as a target site for fieldwork
because they are little-known botanically and likely
KEW BULLETIN
Table 2. Summary checklist of Mozambique’s endemic and near-endemic vascular plant taxa in Niassa Province. Taxa occurring
only in Niassa Province are listed in bold. Endemism categories are abbreviated as follows: E = strict-endemic; NE1 = majority of
range in Mozambique; NE2 = global range < 10,000 km2, NE3 = taxon known from five sites or fewer. Under Life form, (a) =
annual; (geo) = geophyte; (gram-a) = annual graminoid; (gram-p) = perennial graminoid; (p) = perennial (terrestrial, non-succulent);
(s) = succulent. Provinces of Mozambique are abbreviated as follows CD = Cabo Delgado; In = Inhambane; Mc = Manica; Na =
Nampula; Ni = Niassa; S = Sofala; Z = Zambezia. (Adapted from Darbyshire et al. 2019).
Family
Taxon
Endemism
Life form
Provinces
Other countries
Acanthaceae
Barleria fulvostellata
C.B.Clarke subsp.
mangochiensis I.Darbysh.
Barleria torrei I.Darbysh.
Barleria vollesenii I.Darbysh.
Blepharis torrei Vollesen
Justicia attenuifolia Vollesen
Ceropegia cyperifolia Bruyns
Aloe mawii Christian
Cordia mandimbana E.S.Martins
Combretum andradae Exell & J.G.García
Kalanchoe elizae A.Berger
Tetracera bussei Gilg
Euphorbia contorta L.C.Leach
Euphorbia corniculata R.A.Dyer
Euphorbia marrupana Bruyns
Euphorbia mlanjeana L.C.Leach
Euphorbia ramulosa L.C.Leach
Aeschynomene pawekiae Verdc.
Baphia massaiensis Taub. subsp.
gomesii (Baker f.) Brummitt
Crotalaria assurgens Polhill
Indigofera emarginella A.Rich. var.
marrupaënsis Schrire
Indigofera nyassica Gilli var.
brevior (J.B.Gillett) J.B.Gillett
Indigofera pseudomoniliformis Schrire
Exacum zombense N.E.Br.
Streptocarpus erubescens Hilliard & B.L.Burtt
Moraea niassensis Goldblatt & J.C.Manning
Leucas nyassae Gürke var. velutina
(C.H.Wright ex Baker) Sebald
Rotheca luembensis (De Wild.) R.Fern.
subsp. niassensis (R.Fern.) R.Fern.
Utricularia podadena P.Taylor
Ammannia ramosissima
(A.Fern. & Diniz) S.A.Graham & Gandhi
Hibiscus torrei Baker f.
Syzygium niassense Byng & J.E.Burrows
NE2+3
herb (p), shrub
Ni
Malawi
E
NE2+3
NE2+3
NE1
E
NE1
E
NE1
NE1
NE3
E
E
E
NE1+3
E
NE2+3
E
Shrub
herb (p)
herb (p)
herb (p)
herb (geo)
tree (s)
tree
shrub, liana
herb (s)
shrub
shrub (s)
shrub (s)
shrub (s)
shrub (s)
shrub (s)
herb (p)
shrub, tree
Ni
Ni
Ni
Ni
Ni
CD, Na, Ni, Z
Ni
CD, Na, Ni
Na, Ni, Z
Ni
Na, Ni, Z
CD, Na, Ni
Ni
Na, Ni, Z
Na, Ni, Z
Ni
CD, In,Na, Ni
NE3
E
herb (p)
shrub
Ni
Ni
Tanzania
NE3
Ni
Tanzania
E
NE1
NE2
E
E
herb (a),herb
(p)
shrub
herb (a)
herb
herb (geo)
herb (p)
Na, Ni, Z
Mc, Na,Ni, Z
Ni
Ni
Ni
E
herb (p)
Ni
NE2+3
E
herb (p)
herb (a)
Ni
Ni
E
NE1
herb (p),shrub
tree
E
NE2+3
herb (geo)
herb (geo)
Ni
CD, Na,Ni, S,
Z
Na, Ni
Ni
E
NE1
NE1
E
herb (gram-p)
herb(gram-a)
shrub, tree
shrub, tree
Ni, Z
Na, Ni, Z
CD, Na,Ni, Z
Ni, Z
NE1
NE1
E
shrub, tree
Shrub
Cycad
Ni, Z
Na, Ni, Z
Na, Ni
Acanthaceae
Acanthaceae
Acanthaceae
Acanthaceae
Apocynaceae
Asphodeleaceae
Boraginaceae
Combretaceae
Crassulaceae
Dilleniaceae
Euphorbiaceae
Euphorbiaceae
Euphorbiaceae
Euphorbiaceae
Euphorbiaceae
Fabaceae
Fabaceae
Fabaceae
Fabaceae
Fabaceae
Fabaceae
Gentianaceae
Gesneriaceae
Iridaceae
Lamiaceae
Lamiaceae
Lentibulariaceae
Lythraceae
Malvaceae
Myrtaceae
Orchidaceae
Orchidaceae
Poaceae
Poaceae
Rubiaceae
Rubiaceae
Velloziaceae
Velloziaceae
Zamiaceae
Habenaria hirsutissima Summerh.
Habenaria stylites Rchb.f. & S.Moore
subsp. johnsonii (Rolfe) Summerh.
Digitaria megasthenes Goetgh.
Eriochloa rovumensis (Pilg.) Clayton
Catunaregam stenocarpa Bridson
Pavetta gardeniifolia A.Rich. var.
appendiculata (De Wild.) Bridson
Xerophyta kirkii (Hemsl.) L.B.Sm. & Ayensu
Xerophyta pseudopinifolia Behnke
Encephalartos turneri Lavranos & D.L.Goode
to support a distinct biodiversity for Mozambique,
closely allied to that of southwest Tanzania.
Fieldwork took place over eight days in May,
working from a field camp in the foothills above
Tulo Calanda village (Osborne et al. 2019). The
aims of the fieldwork were to (i) document the
Tanzania
Tanzania
Tanzania
Malawi, Tanzania
Tanzania
Malawi
Tanzania
Malawi
Malawi
Tanzania?
Malawi
Malawi
Malawi
?Malawi
Tanzania?
Tanzania
Tanzania
Tanzania
Malawi
Malawi
vegetation; (ii) record current levels of protection
and threats to the vegetation; (iii) document
populations of endemic and near endemic target
species; (iv) provide a preliminary species inventory.
Throughout the fieldwork, plant specimens, with
accompanying data and photographs, were collect© The Author(s), 2022
KEW BULLETIN
ed for identification and as a tangible record of
occurrence. The specimens were pressed in the
field and dried over gas in the field camp.
Additional tissue samples were collected into silica
gel to facilitate molecular analysis. During the
course of the fieldwork 149 plant specimens were
collected and specimen identification is ongoing in
the herbaria at Kew (K) and IIAM (LMA). In
addition to Hartliella txitongensis, two other potentially new taxa were collected, a Streptocarpus Lindl.
(Gesneriaceae) and a Bothriocline Oliv. ex Benth.
(Asteraceae / Compositae), and further study is
underway to confirm their status. It possible that
other new taxa may be identified.
Potential to be a metallophyte
Whilst two of the four other species of Hartliella are
known to occur on metal-rich soils, the soil composition at the type locality of H. txitongensis is not yet
known. Since there is frequent gold mining in the
Txitonga mountains, there is a high likelihood that
other metals are present in the soil. Soil analysis and
further ecological research at the type locality would
be of great interest. If H. txitongensis is found to be a
metallophyte, there is potential application of the
newly described taxon in soil remediation (Ali et al.
2013; Awa & Hadibarata 2020).
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank all those who supported
the fieldwork in the Txitonga Mountains that has led to
this publication. In particular, we would like to thank
Camila de Sousa and Tereza Alves at the Instituto de
Investigação Agrária de Moçambique (IIAM) and Iain
Darbyshire at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew for their
roles in leading the Mozambique Tropical Important
Plant Areas (TIPAs) project. In Lago district, we are
grateful to Sr Mbumba and Sr Nandja from WWF who
provided advice on access into the mountains and Sr
Amisse Arabe at the Secretaria do Posto Administrativo
de Cóbué who provided advice on local government
administration in the Lupilichi area. In Tulo Calanda
mining village, we thank the Presidente Geral of the
Mining Associations, Sr Calisto Pedro and the Chefe da
Localidade de Lupilichi, Sr Calunga Ali, who provided
permissions and advice. Especial thanks go to our IIAM
colleagues in our field team, Aurélio Banze, Aristides
Mamba and Tomé Rachide, to our local guides Sr Saide
Omade Maoji and Sr Ricardo Omar Saide, Government
Environmental Officers (Fiscais) for Lupilichi area, and
to our drivers, Luis de Sousa Guidione from IIAM
Centro Zonal Noroeste and Sansão Marcos Gribate from
IIAM Centro Zonal Nordeste.
We are very grateful to The Jonathan and Jennifer
Oppenheimer Foundation, and to Stephen and Mar-
© The Author(s), 2022
garet Lansdown for their generous support of the
Mozambique Tropical Important Areas project that
funded the fieldwork in Niassa Province.
The authors would also like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments and
suggestions.
Declarations
Conflict of interest. The authors declare that they
have no conflict of interest.
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