Halothamnus iranicus
| Halothamnus iranicus | |
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| Halothamnus iranicus | |
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| Species: | H. iranicus
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| Binomial name | |
| Halothamnus iranicus | |
Halothamnus iranicus is a species of the plant genus Halothamnus, that belongs to the subfamily Salsoloideae of the family Amaranthaceae, (formerly Chenopodiaceae). It occurs in Southwest Asia.
Morphology
Halothamnus iranicus is a sub-shrub up to 45 cm high and 100 cm in diameter, with blueish-green branches. It smells unpleasantly like rancid butter. The leaves are linear to triangular-ovate, and up to 11 mm long. The flowers are at 1–6 mm distance from each other, 3,2-4,2 mm long, longer than their bract and bracteoles, with oblong-ovate tepals. The stigmas are tapering towards the apex. The winged fruit is 7–11 mm in diameter, their wings inserting at 1/3 of the fruit height. The fruit tube is nearly cylindrical, with narrow, sharp-edged peripheral rim and small, ovate pits.
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fruit (lateral view) -
fruit (bottom)
Distribution
Halothamnus iranicus is endemic in southern Iran and in southwest Pakistan (Baluchistan). It grows in habitats with a mild winter climate, on rocky, stony, partly salty soils, from 0–930 m above sea level.
Taxonomy
Halothamnus iranicus has been first described in 1981 by Victor Petrovič Botschantzev (in: Bot. Mater. Gerb. Bot. Inst. Komarova Akad. Nauk SSSR 18, p. 153). Within the genus, it belongs to the section Halothamnus.
References
- Gabriele Kothe-Heinrich: Revision der Gattung Halothamnus (Chenopodiaceae). Bibliotheca Botanica Bd. 143, Schweizerbart, Stuttgart 1993, ISBN 978-3-510-48014-2, p. 57-61
- Gabriele Kothe-Heinrich: Halothamnus. - In: Karl Heinz Rechinger et al. (Edit.): Flora Iranica Bd. 172, Chenopodiaceae - Akad. Druck, Graz 1997, ISBN 3-201-00728-5, p. 263-265, and fig.7-8, tab.148
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