1) P. mundi (from the Rio Mundo) has indeed many intermediate
characteristics of both P. longifolia subsp. 'Beteta' (similar to P. long.
subsp. dertosensis) and P. vallisneriifolia. Leaves, flowers and seed
capsules are a little closer to P. longifolia subsp. 'Beteta' than to P.
vallisneriifolia. Personally I also would classify it as a distinct
species.
2) P. mundi has no common characteristics at all with P. longif. subsp.
longifolia (which is very different from the other longifolia subspecies).
I have at time flowering specimens of both the N and S side of the
Pyrenees.
3) To give the specimens from the Tortosa region the rank of a distinct
species has some good reasons, but then it must be named P. dertosensis and
not P. submediterranea. This population is very different as well as from
P. longif. subsp. longifolia as well as subsp. reichenbachiana, somewhat
but less different from P. longif. subsp. caussensis and rather similar
(with exeption ot the spur and calyx) to the P. longif. 'Beteta'
specimens.
4) P. grandiflora is totally different from all other Pinguicula species.
However in the Pyrenees it forms hybrids with P. longif. subsp. longifolia
(as well as with P. vulgaris). These hybrids rather grow at the bottom of
rock cliffs together with P. grandiflora (and their back-crossings) and not
higher up on the rocks with P. longifolia. Uncritical botanists may
erroneously have identfied those large flowered hybrids - or even P.
longif. subsp. longif. itself whose flowers are larger than those of P.
grandiflora! - to be P. grandiflora.
Juerg
___________________________________________________
Juerg Steiger, Institut fuer Aus-, Weiter- und Fortbildung IAWF
University of Bern, Inselspital 37a, CH-3010 Bern, Switzerland
Office: ++41 31 632 98 87, Fax: ++41 31 632 98 71