The Correct Name for the Southern Indian and Sri Lankan Species of Sarcandra Gardner (Chloranthaceae)

Abstract

In 1846, Gardner in a most adequate paper described from Sri Lanka what he considered to be a new genus and species of Chloranthaceae, Sarcandra chloranthoides. Almost all later authors included it in Chloranthus brachystachys Bl., now correctly known as Sarcandra glabra (Thunb.) Nakai, a species widely distributed in Malesia, China, Indo-China and Japan. This course was still followed by Swamy & Bailey in an exhaustive study of the family, from which they decided that Gardner's genus was indeed quite distinct for a number of reasons, not the least being the absence of vessels in the xylem. They recognised two species in their paper, namely S. glabra and S. hainanensis (P'ei) Swamy and Bailey (from China, Hainan Is.), but Swamy also annotated some material at Kew as a new species. Included in this material is a specimen Walker 207 from Sri Lanka which is certainly authentic material, if not an isotype, of Gardner's species. Later Swamy described this third species apparently not realising that it could be nothing but S. chloranthoides of Gardner which presumably he thought was to be treated as a synonym of S. glabra (Thunb.) Nakai as in fact had been the custom for over a century. Subramanyam & Henry have perpetuated the error by taking up a Miquel name which is, however, still much later than Gardner's. The correct name for the species is of course that originally given to it by Gardner.