(and you have to laugh at "Thot tea" being the name of a BEAUTIFUL flower and not an Only Fans alias)
Thottea beungongtanoeh: (A) living plant; (B) leaf, adaxial side; (C) leaf, abaxial side; (D) inflorescences; (E) flower, lateral view; (F) flower, top view; (G) perianth, outer surface; (H) perianth, inner surface; (I) stamens; (J) style and stigma; (K) immature capsule. Scale bars – 1 cm in (B-E), 5 mm in (G), 1 mm in (H-J), 5 mm in (K). Image credit: Wendy A. Mustaqim.
Thottea is a relatively large genus of subshrubs and shrubs in the pipevine family Aristolochiaceae. Usually less than 1 m (3.3 feet) tall, members of the genus are widely distributed in Asia, from India in the west to Sulawesi and Philippines in the east. Thottea includes over 50 scientifically recognized species, some of which are important in traditional and Ayurvedic medicine. “One of its centers of distribution is in Sumatra represented by 10 species,” said Universitas Samudra botanists Wendy Mustaqim and Zulfan Arico. “On this island, the taxonomic study of the genus is not yet complete. A few species are poorly known due to its limited number of specimens like Thottea beccarii and Thottea tapanuliensis or described based on incomplete materials like Thottea straatmanii. The newly-identified Thottea species is a perennial subshrub up to 1.5 m (4.9 feet) tall. Named Thottea beungongtanoeh, it is endemic to the eastern part of Aceh, the northernmost province in Sumatra. It flowers and fruits in June, and differs from all previously described species in having 33-lobed style, the highest count for the genus. Thottea beungongtanoeh can be recognized from other species in the genus by the 33-lobed style. It is similar to Thottea grandiflora, besides having more numerous style lobes (33 vs 20), this species differs in having inflorescence close to ground level (vs not from the ground level) and tubular perianth tube (vs campanulate). Thottea beungongtanoeh is only known from the type locality; all individuals (around 15) were found in lowland and unprotected forests threatened by conversion into agricultural fields and plantations. Although forests around the type locality, with very similar landscape and vegetation, are poorly explored, we considered that the species should be placed as being threatened.
Following IUCN (2012) and IUCN Standards and Petitions Committee (2022), this species is best tentatively assigned as Critically Endangered as having the area of occupancy less than 10 km2, known only from one location, and available habitat is declining and mature individuals less than 50.
Taiwania Journal published the study in November 2022 .
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