Two new species of Romulea (Iridaceae: Crocoideae) from the west­ ern Karoo, Northern Cape and notes on infrageneric classification and range extensions

Abstract

Two new species of Romulea are described from Northern Cape, raising the number of species in southern Africa to 76. R. collina J.C.Manning & Goldblatl is endemic to the Hantamsberg near Calvinia. It is distinguished in subgenus Spatalanthus by its clumped habit, yellow flowers with dark markings in the throat, and short papery bracts. A re-examination of rela­tionships within the subgenus suggests that section Cruciatae is not monophyletic and it is accordingly no longer recog­nized as separate from section  Spatalanthus. R. eburnea J.C.Manning & Goldblatt is a distinctive species of subgenus Spatalanthus from the Komsberg near Sutherland. It is distinguished by its golden yellow flowers with the apical third of the tepals coloured pale creamy apricot, bracts with broad, translucent margins and tips, and an unusually long perianth tube, 10-13 mm long.