Silene armena, a new record from Iran

Abstract

During an exploration in boundary areas of Salmas (W Azarbayjan province, Iran) in 2016, an interesting plant from the genus <em>Silene</em> was collected. Determination of the plant material by using Flora Iranica was showed that, it is an unknown plant, but the specimen was determined as <em>Silene armena</em> Boiss. from the section <em>Sclerocalycinae</em> according to identification key of Flora of Turkey and Flora of the U.S.S.R. The name of species was confirmed by studying the type and other herbarium specimens. <em>Silene armena</em> is a caespitose, perennial plant with panicle inflorescence and leathery and glabrous calyx. Based on available data, the plants of this species grow naturally in Turkey and Armenia, but reported for the first time in Iran. The species was compared with <em>S. peduncularis</em> Boiss. and <em>S. bupleuroides </em>L., the closely related species of the section in aspect of vegetative and reproductive morphological features. In this paper, taxonomical description, photo, distribution and habitat features of the species are presented.