Neocinnamomum macrocarpum Bing Liu, Wei L. Lin & Wen B. Xu 2026, comb. et stat. nov.

Neocinnamomum macrocarpum (Wen B. Xu & B. S. Xia) Bing Liu, Wei L. Lin & Wen B. Xu, comb. et stat. nov. Fig. 1 Basionym. Neocinnamomum caudatum var. macrocarpum Wen B. Xu & B. S. Xia, Guihaia, 37: 856. 2017. Type. China. Guangxi Province • Debao County, Dongling; 25 Nov 2014; fruit; Shou-Jun Zhang & Wen-Bin Xu 140607 (holotype: HIB!). Additional specimens examined. China. Guangxi Province • Debao County, Dongling; 1 Aug 2016; flower; Wen-Bin Xu & Bo-Shun Xia 160801 (paratype, HIB!), Wen-Bin Xu & Bo-Shun Xia 160802 (paratype: HIB!); • Long’an County, Dujie, Sanle, Zhusha; 8 Dec 2024; fruit; Bing Liu, Wei-Lan Lin, Zhi Yang 17840, 17842, 17843 (PE); • Long’an County, Dujie, Sanle, Zhusha; 14 May 2025; flower; Bing Liu, Wei-Lan Lin, Zhi-Yong Tang 18478 (PE); • Debao County, Dongling, Duomo, Duoli; 9 Dec 2024; fruit; Bing Liu, Wei-Lan Lin, Zhi Yang 17850, 17855 (PE); • Debao County, Dongling, Duole; 9 Dec 2024; fruit; Bing Liu, Wei-Lan Lin, Zhi Yang 17856, 17857 (PE); • Pingguo City, Haicheng, Yongliang, Longhe; 21 Jan 2025; Bing Liu, Wei-Lan Lin 18132 (PE); • Jingxi City, Ande, Xincun; 10 Nov 1956; Yin-Kun Li P 00834 (PE); • Jingxi City, Yuexu, Xiamin; 20 Aug 2021; Xi-Tao Li, Huan Xiao ZYA 01534 (PE); • Jingxi City, Huadong, Lixing; 1 Jun 2021; Shi-Yue Nong, Qiu-Yan Lu ZYB 00171 (PE); • Jingxi City, Huadong, Wuquan, Quantun; 10 Dec 2024; fruit; Bing Liu, Wei-Lan Lin, Zhi Yang 17877, 17878, 17879 (PE); • Jingxi City, Huadong, Wuquan, Quantun; 15 May 2025; flower; Bing Liu, Wei-Lan Lin, Zhi-Yong Tang 18517, 18519 (PE). Notes. Neocinnamomum caudatum var. macrocarpum was published as a variety of N. caudatum. The two taxa share several characters, such as puberulent branchlets, glabrous leaf blades with numerous transverse veins, and dark purple fruits when mature. However, morphological differences indicate that N. caudatum var. macrocarpum should be elevated to species rank, namely N. macrocarpum. The main differences between the two species lie in leaf blade venation, inflorescence structure, flower size, and fruit shape. N. macrocarpum differs from N. caudatum by its triplinerved leaves (vs. trinerved leaves), axillary cymules or cymules rarely arranged in terminal panicles (vs. numerous cymules arranged in both axillary and terminal panicles), small flowers (3–4 mm in diameter vs. 6–8 mm in diameter), and widely ovoid fruits (2–3 × 1.6–2.8 cm vs. narrowly ellipsoid fruits, 1.5–2 × 0.8–1 cm) (Table 1). The native range of N. macrocarpum is considerably larger than its type locality. Based on our field investigations, this species is widely distributed in southwestern Guangxi (Fig. 5, red triangles). Moreover, N. macrocarpum grows on limestone mountains, whereas N. caudatum occurs on granite or other non-limestone mountains.