[2.9.1] Viola sect. Melanium subsect. Bracteolatae

Viola subsect. Bracteolatae Kupffer in Kusnezow et al., Fl. Caucas. Crit. 3(9): 228. 1909

Lectotype (designated here): Viola tricolor L.

≡Viola subsect. Melanium (Ging.) Vl. V. Nikitin in Bot. Zhurn. (Moscow & Leningrad) 83(3): 135. 1998—Type: Viola tricolor L.

=Viola sect. Pseudonovercula Kupffer in Kusnezow et al., Fl. Caucas. Crit. 3: 222. 1909—Type: Viola cornuta L.

Description.—Annual to perennial. Lamina of basal leaves entire or crenate, but if plants annual then lamina crenate. Calycine appendages 0.9–4.7 mm. Corolla with bright yellow, rarely pale yellow throat. Bottom petal (spur included) 5.5–34 mm. Spur 1.8–16 mm. Cleistogamous flowers not produced. Pollen apertures 4 or 5 heteromorphic. Ploidy 8x, 12x, 16x, 20x, >20x.

Diagnostic characters.—See Marcussen T. et al.  2022, pp. 56Table 3 and key.

Ploidy and accepted chromosome counts.—8x, 12x, 16x, 20x, >20x; 2n = 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 34, 36, 40, 48, 52, c. 64, c. 96, 120, c. 128.

Age.—Crown node c. 4 Ma (Marcussen T. et al.  2022 pp. 15 Figure 6), probably an underestimate; stem node age 9.8 (9.1–10.0) Ma [28].

Included species.—98 

(in addition the two ornamental hybrids Viola ×williamsii Wittr. and V. ×wittrockiana Gams).

Viola acrocerauniensis Erben, V. aethnensis (Ging.) Strobl, V. aetolica Boiss. & Heldr., V. albanica Halácsy, V. allchariensis Beck, V. alpina Jacq., V. altaica Ker Gawl., V. arsenica Beck, V. arvensis Murray, V. athois W. Becker, V. babunensis Erben, V. beckiana Fiala ex Beck, V. bertolonii Pio, V. bornmuelleri Erben, V. brachyphylla W. Becker, V. bubanii Timb.-Lagr., V. calcarata L., V. cenisia L., V. cephalonica Bornm., V. cheiranthifolia Bonpl., V. comollia Massara, V. cornuta L., V. corsica Nyman, V. crassifolia Fenzl, V. crassiuscula Bory, V. cryana Gillot, V. culminis F. Fen. & Moraldo, V. dacica Borbás, V. declinata Waldst. & Kit., V. dichroa Boiss., V. diversifolia (Ging.) W. Becker, V. doerfleri Degen, V. dubyana Burnat ex Gremli, V. dukadjinica W. Becker & Košanin, V. elegantula Schott, V. epirota (Halácsy) Raus, V. etrusca Erben, V. euboea Halácsy, V. eugeniae Parl., V. eximia Formánek, V. ferrarinii Moraldo & Ricceri, V. fragrans Sieber, V. frondosa (Velen.) Velen., V. ganiatsasii Erben, V. gostivariensis Bornm., V. gracilis Sm., V. graeca (W. Becker) Halácsy, V. grisebachiana Vis., V. guaxarensis M. Marrero, Docoito Díaz & Martín Esquivel, V. heldreichiana Boiss., V. henriquesii (Willk. ex Cout.) W. Becker, V. herzogii (W. Becker) Bornm., V. hispida Lam., V. hymettia Boiss. & Heldr., V. ivonis Erben, V. kitaibeliana Schult., V. kopaonikensis Pančić ex Tomović & Niketić, V. langeana Valentine, V. lutea Huds., V. magellensis Porta & Rigo ex Strobl, V. merxmuelleri Erben, V. minuta M. Bieb., V. montcaunica Pau, V. munbyana Boiss. & Reut., V. nana (DC. ex Ging.) Le Jol., V. nebrodensis C. Presl, V. odontocalycina Boiss., V. orbelica Pančić, V. oreades M. Bieb., V. orphanidis Boiss., V. orthoceras Ledeb., V. palmensis (Webb & Berthel.) Sauer, V. paradoxa Lowe, V. parnonia Kit Tan, Sfikas & Vold, V. perinensis W. Becker, V. phitosiana Erben, V. pseudaetolica Tomović, Melovski & Niketić, V. pseudogracilis (A. Terracc.) Strobl ex Degen & Dörfl., V. pseudograeca Erben, V. raunsiensis W. Becker & Košanin, V. rausii Erben, V. rhodopeia W. Becker, V. roccabrunensis Espeut, V. samothracica (Degen) Raus, V. schariensis Erben, V. serresiana Erben, V. sfikasiana Erben, V. slavikii Formánek, V. stojanowii W. Becker, V. striis-notata (J. Wagner) Merxm. & W. Lippert, V. subatlantica (Maire) Ibn Tattou, V. tineorum Erben & Raimondo, V. tricolor L., V. ucriana Erben & Raimondo, V. valderia All., V. velutina Formánek, V. voliotisii Erben, V. vourinensis Erben 

Distribution.—Western Eurasia.

Discussion.— see Marcussen T. et al.  2022 p. 57

Photogallery