Litsea honbaensis

DESCRIPTION Tree 8 - 10 m tall; dbh c. 20 cm. Twigs slender, 1 - 1.6 mm thick, rounded in cross-section, densely hairy when young, glabrescent; hairs yellowish, appressed; terminal leaf bud lanceolate, c. 2.5 mm long, apex acute, velutinous. Leaves alternate; blade elliptic to lanceolate, 3.3 - 6.5 × 1 - 3 cm, apex acuminate, base cuneate, membranous, secondary nerves 4 - 5 pairs, curving near margin, tertiary nerves reticulate; upper surface glabrous, midrib and secondary nerves sunken, tertiary nerves indistinct; lower surface glaucous, glabrous, midrib and secondary nerves raised, tertiary nerves distinct; petiole half-terete, 8 - 14 mm long, glabrous, slightly swollen. Inflorescences in axils of leaves, 7.5 - 10 mm long, in clusters of umbels, densely hairy. Flowers white; male flowers: perianth lobes linear, 1 - 1.4 × 0.5 - 0.6 mm, apex rounded, inside glabrous, outside velutinous; stamens 1 - 1.5 mm long; female flowers: perianth lobes linear, 1 - 1.5 × 0.5 - 0.6 mm, apex rounded, inside glabrous, outside velutinous; ovary c. 0.9 mm diameter, glabrous. Fruits 1 - 3 per infructescence, ellipsoid, 14 - 16 × 7 - 8 mm, apex acute, smooth, glabrous; cupule shallow, c. 5.4 × 2.3 mm, margin entire, patent, smooth, sparsely hairy; stalk swollen up to 1.9 mm thick, slightly hairy (see Fig. 9).

CONSERVATION ASSESSMENT. — Endangered (EN B 1 ab (i, iii), B 2 ab (ii, iii )). This species is only known from eight collections representing five localities in Vietnam (plus one locality that could not be found). An analysis of the Extent of Occurrence (EOO) and Area of Occupancy (AOO) gives an IUCN Conservation Assessment of Endangered.