Ferdinand von Mueller

20/10/79

I would beg of you, dear Sir Joseph, to cause to be compared an original specimen of L. elongatus

1

Leptorhynchos elongatus

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of Cunningham from Bathurst, as authoritative for the species. You seem to have cautiously distinguished the desert-plant from the Tasmanian species in the fl. Tasm.,

2

J. Hooker (1860), vol. 1, p. 208.

as I originally had done (vide Linnaea 1852)

3

Sonder (1852), p. 502. Presumably the specimens were sent with M’s names and notes, which Sonder followed. See Lucas (1995).

altho' both were subsequently united in the flor. Austr.

4

Bentham (1863-78), vol. 3, p. 610.

I have worked out the two spec. with their geogr. range & synonymy for the fragmenta or "native plants",

5

B79.06.04 does not include the Compositae; no further volumes were published. M dealt with the distinction between L. elongatus and L. medius in B80.02.02, pp. 85-6.

but as both occur mixed on the Lachlan-River (as noticed by me last year)

6

See M to G. Bentham, 29 September 1878.

— I am not absolutely sure, whether your L. elongatus is that of D.C., though I think so. Sonder made yours L. elongatus var Tasmanicus, so if distinct from D.C.'s it would take the name L. Tasmanicus.

The differences are between both well-marked. L. medius (L. elongatus, flor. Austr partim), has no gradual but a sudden transit from leaves to bracteal scales, an annual root, yellow not whitish florets, short turgid almost smooth achenes with a long very thin beak & very fine pappus hair — (not elongated gradually attenuated rough achenes with more serrulated and at the apex thickened hairs of the pappus. I send two specimens to facilitate recognition. L. medius does not extend to Tasmania, while L. elongatus (or L. Tasmanicus) seemingly does not reach West. Austr. I feel sure you like to clear this up also for future correct reference in the Kew Herbarium.

7

MS annotation by Hooker: 'And Dec 26/79 Mueller is right'. Letter not found. Despite Hooker's opinion, neither M nor Hooker seems to have published Hooker's form as L. tasmanicus: there is no entry in APNI or IPNI (accessed 24 December 2019).