New critically endangered plant genus and species discovered in Vietnam's Quảng Trị limestone mountains
An international team of scientists has described a new endemic species, which also represents a new plant genus, from the limestone mountains of Quảng Trị province in central Vietnam.
The new species Chlorohiptage vietnamensis T.V.Do, T.A.Le & R.F.Almeida. (Photo: LÊ TUẤN ANH)
While surveying biodiversity in the Razorback (Lèn Con Rồng) and Rockpile (Núi Một) limestone ranges, located in the former Đakrông and Cam Lộ districts of Quảng Trị province (districts were abolished in 2025, and the province has since been merged with neighboring Quảng Bình), the researchers described a new plant genus, Chlorohiptage T.V.Do, T.A.Le & R.F.Almeida, represented by the new species Chlorohiptage vietnamensis T.V.Do, T.A.Le & R.F.Almeida in the Barbados cherry family (Malpighiaceae), as well as another new species from the same area, Glycosmis quangtriensis T.A.Le & Tagane in the citrus family (Rutaceae).
The team analyzed the flower structure of Chlorohiptage vietnamensis and examined it at the molecular level. These comparisons showed that it is a new species belonging to a genus entirely new to science. Its name refers to its green flowers and its close morphological resemblance to the genus Hiptage.
Chlorohiptage differs from Hiptage in several traits: its petals are pale green to yellowish-green (versus white to yellow in Hiptage), and it has 9 long stamens and 1 short one (versus 9 short and 1 long)…
The research team includes scientists from the Viện Nghiên cứu khoa học miền Trung (Institute of Scientific Research of Central Vietnam), the Bảo tàng Thiên nhiên Việt Nam (Vietnam National Museum of Nature), Bắc Giang Agriculture and Forestry University, Cần Thơ University in the Mekong Delta, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (UK), the State University of Goiás (Brazil) and the Kagoshima University Museum (Japan).
The new species Glycosmis quangtriensis T.A.Le & Tagane. (Photo: LÊ TUẤN ANH)
Glycosmis quangtriensis T.A.Le & Tagane was first collected in 2022. After more than a year spent gathering complete flowering and fruiting material and examining specimens held in museum collections, the team concluded that it is a species new to science.
The species is named after Quảng Trị province, the only place where it has been recorded to date. It is a shrub about 1.5 m tall with a slightly drooping habit and simple, stalkless leaves; the leaf blades are elongated-elliptic with wavy margins and heart-shaped bases.
The flower clusters appear at the tips of the branches, with stalks and sepals densely covered in reddish-brown hairs; the stalks are very short and held close to the stem. The flowers are bisexual and white, with oil glands on the petals. The fruits are spherical, green when young and pale pink when ripe, and covered in a layer of fine, soft hairs.
Both new species have been assessed as Critically Endangered (CR) under the criteria of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN 2012, 2022). As a result, the researchers are collaborating on conservation propagation and on studies of the chemical compounds and biological activity of the two species.
The discovery of a new plant genus and new species within the same Rockpile and Razorback (Lèn Con Rồng) limestone area is clear evidence of the region's rich biodiversity.
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