Rubus dorcheae M. B. Rokaya & S. Subedi, sp. nov. (Figs. 2A–L, Figs. 3A–I)

Type:— NEPAL. Shivapuri, Shivapuri-Nagarjun National Park. It is locally not so common in the type locality, Shivapuri, 27°49’15.0’’N; 085°22’11.4’E, 1930 m (Fig. 1); Aspect: NW, Slope 45°. Soil pH 5.8; 20 October 2020, M. B. Rokaya, S. Subedi, L. D. Sherpa 506b (holotype KATH, isotype TUCH).

Diagnosis:—Perennial prickly scandent shrub, up to 10 (–15) m tall; stem terete; leaves alternate, petiolate, stipulate, stipules caducous; leaves alternate, blade thin, both surface green, upper surface more hairy than lower surface, leaf palmatifed, 5–7 lobes, blade margins biserrate; inflorescence terminal and axillary corymbose panicles; flowers bisexual, white, 7–9 mm diameter, inflated; stamens many, carpel and style many; fruit globose.

Description:—Shrub, perennial, scandent, sometimes reclining, more than 10m tall (Fig. 2A). Stem terete, green tomentose, armed, prickles minute (Fig. 2B; 3A), recurved. Branchlets terete, green tomentose, grey hairs, hairs simple, armed with sparse minute prickles, prickles slightly recurved. Leaves simple, alternate (Fig. 3A), stipulate; stipules caducous, free, subflabellate, pectinately lobed (Fig. 2C; 3B), lobes 7–10, 1–1.5 × 0.8–1.1 cm, puberulous, apex acuminate; petioles 5–7 cm, prickles on petioles denser than on branchlets, tomentose; minute prickles; blade thin, both surface green, palmatifed, 5–7 lobes (3 major and 4 minor lobes) (Fig. 2D, E; 3A), 10–12.5 × 12–14.5 cm, both surfaces with minute hairs, abaxially more hairy than adaxial surface, plamate venation, veins 3 major and 4 minor, prominent below, veins in adaxial surface sericeous, veins towards base are more tomentose than leaf surfaces, abaxial veins with prickles, major veins strigose in and minor veins sparsely strigose; hairs white; base cordate, margins thinly biserrate, central lobe apex acuminate and other lobes tip acute or obtuse. Inflorescence both axillary and terminal racemes (Fig. 2F; Fig. 3A), rachis armed, small prickles, hairy; 7–30 flowers; bracts minute up to 2.5 mm, brown, caducous; bracteoles small, brown, persistent, 1–2 mm; pedicel hairy, 5–7 mm. Flowers white (Fig. 2G), flower 7–9 mm in diameter (Fig. 3C, D), half open, inflated. Sepals 5, imbricate, green, tomentose on both sides, 0.6–1 × 0.4– 0.6cm, sepal deltoid (Fig. 2H; 3F), margin with 7–10 appendages (Fig. 2I), appendages 2–3 mm, terminal appendages up to 5mm, terminally bifurcate or trifurcate. Petals 5. white, imbricate, 6–6.5 × 4.5–5 mm, petal spathulate (Fig. 1J; 3G), opposite to sepal. Stamen many, shorter than petals; filaments linear, 4–5.5 mm long, base of filaments hairy, hairs pilose, white, arranged in a single whorl, anthers bi-celled, versatile, filaments free (Fig. 3H). Pistil many, shorter than stamens, stigma white, style bifurcate, 5–6 mm long (Fig. 3I), ovary hypgynous (Fig. 2K, 3D). Fruit etaerio of berries, red, ca 8 × 12mm (Fig. 2L), glabrous, calyx, corolla and stamens persistent on fruit.

Phenology:—Flowering during August–November. Fruiting during October–November.

Habitat:—Under forest canopy with the cover of 70–80%. Associated species: Alnus nepalensis D. Don, Eurya acuminata DC., Rubus acuminatus Sm., Rubus paniculatus Sm., Ligustrum indicum (Lour.) Merr., Dichroa febrifuga Lour., Maesa chisia Buch. -Ham. ex D. Don, Eupatorium adenophorum Spreng., Sarcopyramis napalensis Wall. and Chirita urticifolia Buch. -Ham. ex D. Don.

Etymology:—The specific epithet dorcheae honors Mr. La dorchee Sherpa, who is a keen and hardworking citizen scientist contributing largely to the flora of Nepal by collecting specimens and taking photos of plant species in Nepal. Mr. Sherpa also accompanied with M.B. Rokaya when the species was first discovered and photographed.

Conservation status:— R. dorcheae is restricted to a few hundred square meters occurring along stream under forest canopy. It can be placed under Data Deficient (DD) or Not Evaluated (NE) based on the IUCN Red List categories and criteria version 3.1 (IUCN 2012).