New distribution of Utricularia warburgii (Lentibulariaceae) from Taiwan

An Utricularia plant (Lentibulariaceae) was newly discovered in New Taipei, Taiwan. Characterized by the presence of horn-like processes corolla’s lower lip distinguishes, a unique characteristic within the genus Utricularia, the plant is identified as Utricularia warburgii K.I.Goebel. Utricularia warburgii was endemic to China and holds horticultural value. Compared to the U. warburgii plants available in the market, the Taiwanese plant can be distinguished by its shorter pedicels and distinctive traits of corolla’s lower lip, which include a semicircle and flat limb and spur nearly as long as the lower lip. Phylogenetic study, based on rps16 and trnK regions, confirms that the Taiwanese plant clusters with other U. warburgii plants but present different genetic characters. We here provide a detailed description of the Taiwanese Utricularia warburgii, including habitat information and photographs. We also discuss the morphological and molecular diversity of U. warburgii.