| English Name | Insular Swallow Wort |
|---|---|
| Status in China | Least Concern (LC) |
Description:
Herbaceous vines, glabrous except for pubescent on stem nodes, petioles, and leaf margin. Leaves opposite, oblong-hastate to triangular-lanceolate, 2-3.5 cm long and 0.5-1.5 cm wide, apex acute, base subcordate or truncate; petioles 1 cm. Inflorescences umbel-like, axillary, much shorter than leaves, 4- or 5-flowered. calyx with 5 basal glands adaxially; corolla greenish white, lobes oblong, ca. 3 mm long, acute; corona cupular, thin membranous, apex 10-lobed; pollinia oblong; anthers nearly square. Follicles solitary, lanceolate, 4.5-5 cm long, 7-8 mm wide, Seeds oblong; coma ca. 2 cm long.
Distribution:
Sai Kung (Tai Wan). Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan.
Habitat and Ecology:
On sandy beach. Flowering: May-Oct.; fruiting: Oct.-Dec.
Known only from Sai Kung, the species is rather rare in Hong Kong and is valuable for biodiversity research. The locality of its occurrences is within Tai Long Bay Site of Special Scientific Interests (SSSI) under protection. Ex-situ conservation measures could be explored.
References:
蔣英、李秉滔，1987：廣東植物誌1：507，圖575。廣東科技出版社，廣州。
