Aloe antandroi subsp. toliarana

Overview

Aloe antandroi subsp. toliarana is an accepted subspecies of Aloe antandroi, recorded by WCVP from southern Madagascar. The focal morphology used here is restricted to characters directly reported for the Toliara plants by Jean-Bernard Castillon & Jean-Philippe Castillon (2010). [1]

Key characteristics

Growth form

Plants are reported to produce only 1–5 suckers. [2]

Leaves

The blue-brown leaves form a terminal rosette at the top of the stem. [2]

Distribution

Southern Madagascar [1]

Diagnostic features

Carter et al. (2011) report basal-only branching, thinner leaves concentrated at the stem apex, shorter few-flowered racemes and violet-tinged flowers as proposed differences, but immediately state that all of these features occur throughout the widespread species. They are therefore not merged here into the confirmed focal morphology of this subspecies. [3]

Classification and nomenclature

Accepted name: Aloe antandroi subsp. toliarana J.-B.Castillon [1]
Publication: Int. Cact. Advent. 83: 31 (2009) [1]

Parent taxon: Aloe antandroi
Sibling subspecies: Aloe antandroi subsp. antandroi

Etymology

The epithet toliarana refers to its occurrence near Toliara in Madagascar. The species epithet antandroi refers to occurrence at Antandroi or in the territory of the Antandroi tribe. [4]

References

World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP).
Castillon, J.-B. & Castillon, J.-P. (2010). Les Aloe de Madagascar / The Aloe of Madagascar. J.-P. Castillon. 400 pp.
Carter, S., Lavranos, J.J., Newton, L.E. & Walker, C.C. (2011). Aloes: The Definitive Guide. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. p. 705.
Grace, O.M., Klopper, R.R., Figueiredo, E. & Smith, G.F. (2011). The Aloe Names Book. Strelitzia 28. South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria. p. 13.