Panarctic Flora

760401 Gentianopsis detonsa s. str. (Rottb.) Ma

• Ma, Acta Phytotax. Sin. 1: 15 (1951). - Gentiana detonsa Rottb., Skr. Kiøbenhavnske Selsk. Lærd. Elsk. 10: 435 (1770). Described from Iceland. - Gentianella detonsa (Rottb.) G. Don, Gen. Hist. 4: 179 (1837-1838).

2n= (1) 44 (4x, x = 11). - Europe (Iceland). - D. Löve (1953); Löve and Löve (1956b).
(2) 78 (6x, x = 13). - Europe (Iceland). - Löve (1983b); Löve and Löve (1986a).
The chromosomal information is ambiguous. Löve and Löve (1975a) stated the base number in Gentianopsis to be x = 11 and the number in this species to be 2n = 44 and tetraploid, based on two counts from Iceland. Subsequent works, also by the Löves, have rather indicated x = 13, and for northern material the hexaploid number of 2n = 78, in both G. detonsa and G. barbata (see below). The difference is rather large. None of the two reported numbers have been confirmed by any independent source we are aware of. We are tempted to reject the earlier reports of 2n = 44.
Not included: A report of 2n = 26 for a plant named in the publication (Vasudevan 1975) as G. detonsa from the western Himalayas. Gentianopsis detonsa should not occur in the Himalayas, whereas many other species of the genus do. The report, however, gives support to x = 13 as the base number of this genus.

Geography: Amphi-Atlantic: ICE NOR RUS GRL.

Notes: In a strict meaning, Gentianopsis detonsa has a fairly compact amphi-Atlantic range where it is rather common in salt marshes in northern Fennoscandia and Iceland (there also inland, partly on geothermal sites), occurs in three locality groups in eastern, southwestern, and western Greenland, there also partly in inland saline sites, and has a few reported localities in Polar Ural and surroundings (mainly inland).