Field exploration in western South Africa over the past 10 years has revealed the existence of an unnamed annual species of Wahlenbergia Schrad. ex Roth that we describe here as W. melanops Goldblatt and J. C. Manning for the dark grey center of the flower. Plants have alternate leaves scattered along the stem and are otherwise distinguished in part by narrow calyx lobes and the presence of stylar glands at the base of the stigma lobes. Flowers of W. androsacea, W. capensis, and W. melanops conform to a specialized hopliine pollination system and we present observations documenting hopliine pollination for these three species. This nowconfirms a third pollination system in western South African Wahlenbergia species that includes one other specialized pollination system utilizing masarine (pollen) wasps and another possiblymore generalist systemusing melittid bees. W. annuliformis Brehmer is treated as a synonym of W. androsacea A. DC.
Hopliine beetle pollination in annual Wahlenbergia species from western south Africa, and the new species W. Melanops
Year: 2015
