Typification of the name Lavatera triloba subsp. pallescens (Moris) Nyman and reassessment of L. minoricensis Cambess. (L. triloba subsp. minoricensis comb. nov.)

The taxonomic identity of two poorly known taxa of the Lavatera triloba aggregate (Malvaceae) is clarified. The name L. triloba subsp. pallescens (Moris) Nyman is reassessed, and a new combination, L. triloba subsp. minoricensis, is proposed. Both taxa were originally described as species, and later either regarded as synonymous or alternatively subsumed as mere formae within subsp. pallescens. The extreme rarity of the plants led to insufficient knowledge and subsequent misinterpretation of the basionyms, L. minoricensis Cambess. from Minorca (Balearic Islands, Spain) and L. pallescens Moris from southwestern Sardinia (Italy). The combination L. triloba subsp. pallescens (Moris) Nyman was used to refer the Minorcan plants despite their clear differences in morphology and ecology. The rediscovery of two Sardinian populations of L. triloba subsp. pallescens in nature, after more than 110 years without reports or collections, has allowed for re-evaluation and typification of the misused names.