Larix himalaica
| Larix himalaica | |
|---|---|
| With autumn colour in the Manaslu Conservation Area, Nepal | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Gymnospermae |
| Division: | Pinophyta |
| Class: | Pinopsida |
| Order: | Pinales |
| Family: | Pinaceae |
| Genus: | Larix |
| Species: | L. himalaica
|
| Binomial name | |
| Larix himalaica W.C.Cheng & L.K.Fu
| |
| Synonyms[1] | |
|
Larix potaninii var. himalaica (W.C.Cheng & L.K.Fu) Farjon & Silba | |
Larix himalaica, the Langtang larch, is a species of conifer in the genus Larix. As of June 2025, it is treated as Larix potaninii var. himalaica by Plants of the World Online, World Flora Online and other sources.[1][2][3] It is native to the Himalayas in Gyirong (Jilong) in southern Tibet, from where it was described by the Chinese botanists Wan-Chun Cheng and Li-kuo Fu in 1975, and the adjacent Langtang and Manaslu areas of north-central Nepal; it occurs at altitudes of 3,000–3,500 m.
It is a deciduous tree growing to 40 m tall. The foliage is similar to other larches, with single needles on long shoots and dense clusters on short shoots; they are 1–2.5 cm long, green in summer, and colour up yellow in autumn. The cones are erect, 2–6.5 cm long, purple when immature, ripening dark brown, with typically 30–40 scales; the scales have long, exserted bracts.[4][5]
Taxonomy
It is closely related to Larix griffithii from a short distance further east along the Himalaya in eastern Nepal eastwards. A genetic study in 2024 has shown that it should probably be treated as a variety or subspecies of L. griffithii,[6] but the necessary formal new combination has yet to be made.
It has otherwise often been treated as a variety of Larix potaninii,[7][1] but this species from over 1,000 km further east in Sichuan and Yunnan in China proved significantly more distantly related in the 2024 study, so is not a parsomonious treatment.[6]
References
- ^ a b c "Larix potaninii var. himalaica (W.C.Cheng & L.K.Fu) Farjon & Silba". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 2025-06-07.
- ^ "Larix potaninii var. himalaica (W.C.Cheng & L.K.Fu) Farjon & Silba". World Flora Online. Retrieved 2025-06-08.
- ^ "Larix potaninii var. himalaica (W.C.Cheng & L.K.Fu) Farjon & Silba". Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Retrieved 2025-06-08.
- ^ "Larix himalaica in the Flora of China". eFloras.org Home. Retrieved 2025-06-07.
- ^ Grimshaw, John; Bayton, Ross (2009). New Trees. Richmond (Surrey): Royal Botanic Gardens Kew. p. 438. ISBN 978-1-84246-173-0.
- ^ a b Qiu, Xiu-Fei; Liu, Yan-Yan; Wu, Ge; Xu, Cong-Hui; Liu, Xin-Quan; Xiang, Xiao-Yan; Wei, Xiao-Xin; Wang, Xiao-Quan (2025). "Phylogenomic analyses shed new light on the spatiotemporal evolution of global larches: Implications for the dynamics of boreal forests". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 202: 108240. Bibcode:2025MolPE.20208240Q. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2024.108240. PMID 39549977. Retrieved 2025-06-05.
- ^ Farjon, Aljos (1990). Pinaceae. Königstein Champaign: Koeltz scientific books. p. 213. ISBN 3-87429-298-3.