''Cyananthus macrocalyx'' is a flowering plant in the family Campanulaceae. The species is native to central and western China, Nepal, Myanmar, and the Assam region of India. It is found in Alpine meadows and grassy slopes at elevations of 2,500–5,300 meters.

Description

The main root of the plant (

caudex A caudex (plural: caudices) of a plant is a stem, but the term is also used to mean a rootstock and particularly a basal stem structure from which new growth arises.pages 456 and 695 In the strict sense of the term, meaning a stem, "caudex" is m ...

) is large and woody, with high concentrations of

lignin Lignin is a class of complex organic polymers that form key structural materials in the support tissues of most plants. Lignins are particularly important in the formation of cell walls, especially in wood and bark, because they lend rigidity ...

. Towards its top, it is covered in lance-shaped scales that are 2–6 millimeters long. The stems grow upright from the underground caudex in dense clumps. The leaves grow from the stem in an ascending spiral, becoming larger in area the closer they are to the end of the stem. The leaf blades are nearly circular, or are rounded at the end and tapering to the base. They measure 5–10 by 1–6 mm and are covered in dense white hairs on their underside. Each leaf is attached to the stem by a petiole 1–4 mm long. The flowers grow individually on the ends of each stem. The protective

sepals A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined b ...

are yellow-green or purplish in color, and are sometimes covered in dense brown hairs. The flower petals are yellow, but can sometimes have purple or red veins. Towards their ends they are hairless, but there are many threadlike hairs towards the center of the flower where the petals meet. The

ovary The ovary is an organ in the female reproductive system that produces an ovum. When released, this travels down the fallopian tube into the uterus, where it may become fertilized by a sperm. There is an ovary () found on each side of the body. ...

extends up to this point, while the seed capsules extend above it. The seeds are oval-shaped, smooth, and roughly 1.3 mm long. The species flowers from July to August.

Taxonomy

''Cyananthus macrocalyx'' was described in 1887 by Adrien René Franchet. The species ''Cyananthus spathulifolius'' was described by

John Axel Nannfeldt John-Axel Nannfeldt (baptized ''Johan Axel Frithiof Nannfeldt''), born 18 January 1904 in Trelleborg and deceased 4 November 1985 in Uppsala, was a Swedish botanist and mycologist. Nannfeldt studied natural history at the University of Uppsal ...

in 1930. However, its close similarities to ''C. macrocalyx'' were noted, and in 1997 it was demoted to a

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

under the new name ''C. macrocalyx'' subsp. ''spathulifolius'' (Nannf.) K.K.Shrestha. It differs in the shape of the leaf blade, its longer flower stalks, and its smaller

calyx Calyx or calyce (plural "calyces"), from the Latin ''calix'' which itself comes from the Ancient Greek ''κάλυξ'' (''kálux'') meaning "husk" or "pod", may refer to: Biology * Calyx (anatomy), collective name for several cup-like structures ...

tube.

Reproduction

''Cyananthus macrocalyx'' is gynodioecious: plants have either only female organs or both male and female organs (known as a

hermaphrodite In reproductive biology, a hermaphrodite () is an organism that has both kinds of reproductive organs and can produce both gametes associated with male and female sexes. Many Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic groups of animals (mostly invertebrate ...

). The mass of the hermaphroditic flowers is much higher than that of the female flowers. However, the female plants have larger female organs than the hermaphrodites; in other words, the

pistil Gynoecium (; ) is most commonly used as a collective term for the parts of a flower that produce ovules and ultimately develop into the fruit and seeds. The gynoecium is the innermost whorl of a flower; it consists of (one or more) ''pistils'' ...

is larger in the female plants.

References

{{Cyananthus Navbox Campanuloideae Flora of China Flora of Assam (region) Flora of Nepal Flora of Myanmar Plants described in 1887