Hippocrepis conradiae Gamisans & Hugot (Fabaceae), a new species from Corsica, in relation to an endemic butterfly

Hippocrepis conradiae Gamisans & Hugot (Fabaceae) is a new endemic species described from the Corsican Mountains (massif of Mount Cintu) which can be distinguished easily from some closely related species, in particular from Hippocrepis comosa L. A comparative table and some photographs are provided to demonstrate the morphological differences. This rare plant species, discovered in 2009, is most likely to be the host-plant of the Corsican form of the Blue butterfly Polyommatus coridon Poda, 1761, subsp. nufrellensis Schurian, 1977 (Lycaenidae), which is endemic to Corsica and whose known distribution results exclusively from the observation of individuals appearing on suitable nectariferous flowers at humid sites. The investigation of Hippocrepis conradiae was inspired by the rediscovery of subsp. nufrellensis in 2001, which had not been observed since its discovery west of Mount La Mufrella in 1975. The breeding areas remained completely unknown prior to the discovery of this plant, which is found only at some distance from the butterflies' nectaring areas. The co-evolution of these two rare Corsican endemics, where one is living in a close relationship with the other and both occupying an extremely limited geographical range is an extraordinary phenomenon, and consequently merits all our efforts to be protected.