Five new records and two new reports of Cotoneaster Medik. (Rosaceae) for the Flora of Iran Author Niaki, Nemat Allah Raei Central Herbarium of Tehran University, School of Biology, College of Science, University of Tehran (Iran) raeiniaki_n@yahoo.com Author Attar, Farideh Central Herbarium of Tehran University, School of Biology, College of Science, University of Tehran (Iran) Author Zamani, Asghar Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Guilan, Rasht (Iran) Author Maroofi, Hossein Research Center of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Kurdistan Province, PO Box 66169 - 36311 - 714 (Iran) Author Joharchi, Mohammad Reza Research Center for Plant Sciences, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad (Iran) text Adansonia 2022 3 2022-05-17 44 14 141 152 journal article 55446 10.5252/adansonia2022v44a14 21ba8a38-e941-4c3f-b9ce-c0e8b651b092 1639-4798 6573109 Cotoneaster insignis Pojark. ( Fig. 8 ) Flora URSS (Flora Unionis Rerumpublicarum Sovieticarum Socialisticarum) 9: 330 ( Pojarkova 1939 ) . TYPE . — Described after a cultivated specimen (probably from Kashmir ) (holo-, LE ) . SPECIMENS EXAMINED. — Iran . Province Kurdistan , west of Baneh to Sardasht , Namazgah village , 16.X.2006 , Maroofi & Mansoori 8757 ( HKS ); west of Baneh to Sardasht , Namazgah village , 36°04’N , 45°42’E , 1591 m , 18.VIII.2007 , Attar , Raei Niaki & Zamani 37454 ( TUH ) . REMARK Reviewing different plants collected from Kurdistan province , C. insignis is reported as a new record from Iran ( Fig. 8A ). The species belongs to subgenus Chaenopetalum ( Fryer & Hylmö 2009 ). As noted above, C. insignis and C. ellipticus are closest relatives. Other than morphological differences, these species are geographically distinct. So, C. insignis occurs in west of Iran , while C. ellipticus occurs in the northeast of Iran . Consequently, the morphological differences and the discontinuous distribution provide sufficient evidence for treating C. ellipticus and C. insignis as separate species. The geographical distribution of the C. insignis is Afghanistan , Kyrgyzstan , Azerbaijan, Tajikistan , India , northwestern Himalaya ( Riedl 1969 ; Pojarkova 1971 ; Fryer & Hylmö 2009 ) and west of Iran . FIG. 8. — Cotoneaster insignis Pojark. leaves and fruits outline ( A ) and close up ( B ). Collection number: Attar, Raei Niaki & Zamani 37454 (TUH);determined by Raei Niaki & Attar. NOTE This species has been reported from Iran without mention of the locality ( Riedl 1969 ). So, this species was not verified as a native species for Iran ( Khatamsaz 1992 ). However, this species was found from west Iran and is introduced as a new record based on the collected data.