410706 Rumex arcticus Trautv.
Distribution
Northern Fennoscandia: Rare
Kanin - Pechora: Rare
Polar Ural - Novaya Zemlya: Scattered
Yamal - Gydan: Scattered
Taimyr - Severnaya Zemlya: Frequent
Anabar - Onenyo: Scattered
Kharaulakh: Frequent
Yana - Kolyma: Scattered
West Chukotka: Frequent
Wrangel Island: Frequent
South Chukotka: Presence uncertain
East Chukotka: Scattered
Western Alaska: Frequent
Northern Alaska - Yukon: Frequent
Central Canada: Scattered
Mid Arctic Tundra: Rare
Southern Arcti Tundra: Frequent
Shrub Tundra: Frequent
Bordering boreal or alpine areas: Frequent
- Trautv., Phaenog. Pfl. Hochnord.: 29 (1847). Described from "Taimyr R. 74 1/4 und 75N" (Siberia).
- Rumex kamtschadalus Kom., Repert. Spec. Nov. Regni Veg. 13: 166 (1914). Described from "circa paga Kirganik, Nikolaievska et ad ostium fl. Bolshaja-rjeka" in Kamtchatka (the Russian Far East). Syntypes (LE): Kirganik, 1909, leg. Komarov; Nikolaievsk, 1908, leg. Ramensky; Mashura, 1909, leg. Komarov; and Bolshaja R., 1908, leg. Komarov. - Rumex arcticus var. kamtschadalus (Kom.) Rech. f. ex Tolm., Fl. Arct. URSS 5: 155 (1966).
2n=
(1) 40 (4x). - Far East (N), Alaska, Canada (NW). - Several reports, some for "kamtschadalus".
(2) 80 (8x). - Far East (N), Alaska. - Packer and McPherson (1974); Dawe and Murray (1981c, three counts); Zhukova (1982).
(3) 120 (12x). - Russia (N), Siberia (N), Far East (N), Alaska, Canada (N)? - Several reports.
(4) 150 (15x). - Siberia (N). - Krogulevich (1976a).
(5) >150. - Far East (N). - Zhukova (1965a); Zhukova et al. (1973).
(6) 170 (17x). - Alaska. - Johnson and Packer (1968).
(7) 200 (20x). - Far East (N). - Sokolovskaya (1968, for R. kamtschadalus).
Not included: A report of 2n = ca. 200 (20x) from Finland (Löve and Löve 1948). The species is not accepted from Finland, neither from its current-day area nor from the parts lost to Russia during World War II. The report, if correct, may belong to R. aquaticus subsp. protractus as considered above.
Geography: European (NE) - Asian (N) - amphi-Beringian: RUS SIB RFE ALA CAN.
Notes: Tolmachev (1966b) tentatively recognized Rumex arcticus var. kamtschadalus but stated that "it is impossible to treat R. kamtschadalus as a separate species or even as a geographical race of R. arcticus". Löve and Löve (1975a and elsewhere) attempted to justify it as a species based on a ploidy difference: R. kamtschadalus as tetraploid, R. arcticus as dodecaploid. This conclusion is negated by the fact that all the tetraploid chromosome counts they listed for R. kamtschadalus, which they stated to be restricted to northeastern Asia, were made on North American plants. They also neglected the other chromosome numbers reported from R. arcticus, some of their own included, and Sokolovskaya's high polyploid count of what clearly was stated to be Komarov's R. kamtschadalus. Mulligan and Frankton (1972) discussed the ploidy variation in R. arcticus. We include R. kamtschadalus in the synonymy of R. arcticus. There seems to be a fairly good documentation for at least five ploidy levels in this species.
Higher Taxa
- Rumex [4107,genus]