Further insights into the Stellaria media aggregate (Caryophyllaceae, Alsinoideae, Alsineae) in Africa: first reports of S. ruderalis in North Africa and S. cupaniana in Tunisia, with nomenclatural notes on the name Alsine cupaniana Author Mokni, Ridha El 0000-0003-3849-1039 Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences ‘ A’, Laboratory of Botany, Cryptogamy and Plant Biology, Faculty of Pharmacy of Monastir, Avenue Avicenna, University of Monastir, Monastir- 5000, Tunisia & Department of Forestry, Laboratory of Forest Ecology, National Research Institute of Rural Engineering, Water and Forests, IRESA, University of Carthage, Ariana- 2080, Tunisia & ridhaelmokni @ yahoo. fr; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0003 - 3849 - 1039 ridhaelmokni@yahoo.fr Author Guacchio, Emanuele Del 0000-0001-9349-1328 Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II, Botanical Garden, via Foria 223, 80139 - Naples, Italy & emanuele. delguacchio @ unina. it; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0001 - 9349 - 1328 emanuele.delguacchio@unina.it Author Iamonico, Duilio 0000-0001-5491-7568 Department of Environmental Biology, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185 - Rome, Italy & duilio. iamonico @ uniroma 1. it; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0001 - 5491 - 7568 text Phytotaxa 2023 2023-02-21 584 4 264 274 http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/phytotaxa.584.4.3 journal article 56515 10.11646/phytotaxa.584.4.3 a21ea1a3-f17e-4314-a66c-0065675e142a 1179-3163 7663397 Stellaria ruderalis M.Lepší, P.Lepší, Z.Kaplan & P.Koutecký in Lepši et al. (2019: 405) Type: ― CZECH REPUBLIC . Southern Bohemia , Veselí nad Lužnicí (distr. Tábor): Alešovo nábřeží street, slope above Nežárka river , ruderal grassland, 400 m a.s.l. , abundant, 3 May 2017 , Lepší 88 ( holotype CB85744 ; isotype PR929401 ) . Description ( Fig. 2 ):—Annual or winter annual herb; stems branched, up to 90 cm tall, creeping-ascending with long internodes and with one line of hairs along each internode ( Fig. 2A ); lower leaves petiolate (petiole pubescent), ovate to elliptical; middle and upper leaves and bracts sessile, ovate to elliptical, acute to acuminate, mucronate, usually rounded at the base, entire, not fleshy; flowers grouped in dense inflorescences in terminal dichasia, initially condensed, later laxer with long erect pedicels; sepals 5, free, lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate; petals 5, deeply bifid, shorter than or as long as sepals; stamens 3–5(–10) with purple violet anthers ( Figs 2B–C ); styles 3, ascending, rarely erect, with revolute apex; capsules opening with 6 teeth, somewhat longer than sepals; seeds longer than 1 mm , flattened, almost circular, light-brown to brown with conical and longer than wide tubercles, ca. 0.14 mm long ( Fig. 2D ). TABLE 1. Localities, distribution, and coordinates of the different reported taxa within the Stellaria media aggregate in Tunisia. In bold, the most interesting findings. Distribution according to Cuénod et al. (1954) : CB (Cap-Bon), NE (North- East Tunisia), TC (Central Tunisia).

Governorate	District / Locality	Phytogeographic area	Taxon	Coordinates	Altitude (m)
Stellaria ruderalis
Bizerta-city	NE	S. media subsp. media	37°16’18”N 09°52’30”E	2
S. pallida
Bizerta-city	NE	S. cupaniana S. pallida	37°16’12”N 09°51’56”E	10
S. ruderalis
Bizerta-city	NE	S. media subsp. media	37°16’14”N 09°52’20”E	2
S. pallida
Bizerta-city	NE	S. cupaniana S. pallida	37°16’13”N 09°51’57”E	11
S. ruderalis
Bizerta	Bizerta-city	NE	S. media subsp. media S. pallida	37°16’19”N 09°52’24”E	2
Bizerta North	NE	S. media subsp. media	37°17’07”N 09°51’48”E	17
Bizerta South	NE	S. neglecta S. pallida	37°16’17”N 09°52’42”E	1
Jarzouna	NE	S. pallida	37°15’54”N 09°51’43”E	4
Menzel-Jemil	NE	S. media subsp. media S. pallida	37°13’49”N 09°55’12”E	4
Menzel-Abderrahman	NE	S. media subsp. media	37°15’06”N 09°52’05”E	10
Nadhour	NE	S. media subsp. media S. pallida	37°19’31”N 09°50’33”E	102
Mahdia	Mahdia-city	TC	S. media subsp. media S. neglecta	35°30’10”N 11°04’05”E	5
Mahdia-city	TC	S. media subsp. media	35°30’24”N 11°03’40”E	3
Sousse	Sousse-city	TC	S. media subsp. media	35°49’46”N 10°38’08”E	14

......continued on the next page TABLE 1 ( Continued)

Governorate	District / Locality	Phytogeographic area	Taxon	Coordinates	Altitude (m)
Jemmal	TC	S. ruderalis	35°37’08”N 10°45’31”E	29
Kasr Hellal	TC	S. media subsp. media S. pallida	35°38’35”N 10°53’28”E	26
Moknine	TC	S. ruderalis S. media subsp. media	35°37’40”N 10°53’03”E	2
S. ruderalis
Monastir-city	TC	S. media subsp. media S. neglecta	35°46’23”N 10°49’19”E	16
S. pallida
Monastir	Monastir-city	TC	S. cupaniana	35°46’22”N 10°49’54”E	12
S. ruderalis
Monastir-city	TC	S. media subsp. media	35°46’49”N 10°48’54”E	18
S. pallida
Monastir-city	TC	S. neglecta	35°46’02”N 10°49’55”E	12
Teboulba	TC	S. media subsp. media	35°38’44”N 10°58’24”E	13
Zeramdine	TC	S. media subsp. media	35°34’26”N 10°43’59”E	82
S. ruderalis
Hammamet-South	CB	S. media subsp. media	36°24’21”N 10°34’54”E	9
S. pallida
S. media subsp. media
Hammam El Ghezaz	CB	S. pallida	36°53’21”N 11°05’56”E	27
S. neglecta
Nabeul	Korba	CB	S. media subsp. media S. neglecta	36°34’47”N 10°51’39”E	15
Nabeul-city	CB	S. ruderalis	36°26’35”N 10°42’44”E	10
S. ruderalis
S. pallida
Rtiba	CB	S. cupaniana S. media subsp. media	36°53’27”N 10°46’48”E	39
S. neglecta
S. pallida

FIGURE 1. Map of the known distribution of Stellaria ruderalis (green triangles) and S. cupaniana (golden triangles) in Tunisia. Phenology :—Flowering and fruiting times February–April. Chromosome number :—2n = 2x = 44 ( Lepší et al . 2019 ; S. ruderalis is suggested to be an allopolyploid originated from S. pallida and S. neglecta ). Habitat and distribution in Tunisia :— Stellaria ruderalis occurs in several governorates and it grows on clayey or sandy soils and along roadsides at 2–40 m a.s.l.: ¢ Bizerta-city ( Bizerta governorate ): Three populations growing along roadsides together with S. media subsp. media , S. pallida , Cymbalaria muralis P.Gaertn., B.Mey. & Scherb. , Lepidium didymum L., Oxalis corniculata L., Parietaria judaica L., Poa infirma Kunth , Polycarpon tetraphyllum (L.) L. subsp. tetraphyllum , Symphyotrichum squamatum (Spreng.) G.L.Nesom , Dysphania ambrosioides (L.) Mosyakin & Clemants, Sisymbrium irio L., and Lysimachia arvensis (L.) U.Manns & Anderb.; ¢ Monastir-city ( Monastir governorate ): Two populations growing along roadsides together with S. media subsp. media , S. neglecta , S. pallida , Amaranthus viridis L., Lysimachia arvensis , Malva parviflora L., and Oxalis corniculata ; ¢ Jemmal ( Monastir ): Along roadsides together with Lepidium didymum , Mirabilis jalapa L., Poa infirma , Scolymus maculatus L., Sonchus oleraceus L., and Urtica urens L.; ¢ Moknine ( Monastir ): Along roadsides together with Chenopodiastrum murale (L.) S.Fuentes, Uotila & Borsch, Emex spinosa (L.) Campd., Fumaria parviflora Lam. , and Urtica urens ; ¢ Nabeul-city ( Nabeul governorate ): Along the edge of a river together with Chenopodiastrum murale , Lysimachia arvensis , Melilotus sulcatus Desf. , Oxalis pes-caprae L., and Poa infirma ; ¢ Rtiba ( Nabeul ): At the edge of olive groves together with S. media subsp. media , S. cupaniana , S. pallida , Bellis annua L., Cerastium glomeratum Thuill. , Emex spinosa , Fumaria parviflora , Linaria heterophylla Desf. , L. triphylla (L.) Mill., Malva parviflora , Oxalis pes-caprae , Poa infirma , and Senecio leucanthemifolius Poir. subsp. leucanthemifolius ; ¢ Hammamet-South ( Nabeul ): Along roadsides together with S. media subsp. media and S. pallida . Representative specimens examined :— TUNISIA . Bizerta : Bizerta-city , 2 m a.s.l. , 11 April 2021 , El Mokni s.n. ( Herb. El Mokni !) ; Monastir : Monastir-city , 16 m a.s.l. , 02 April 2021 , El Mokni s.n. ( Herb. El Mokni !); Jemmal, 29 m a.s.l. , 03 April 2021 , El Mokni s.n. ( Herb. El Mokni !); Moknine, 2 m a.s.l. , 04 April 2021 , El Mokni s.n. ( Herb. El Mokni !) ; Nabeul : Hammamet-South , about 9 m a.s.l. , 22 March 2021 , El Mokni s.n. ( Herb. El Mokni !); Nabeul-city, 10 m a.s.l. , 22 March 2021 , El Mokni s.n. ( Herb. El Mokni !); Rtiba, 39 m a.s.l. , 22 March 2021 , El Mokni s.n. ( Herb. El Mokni !) .