Castanopsis kawakamii Hayata

Reports of Castanopsis borneensis King from Taiwan are referable to C. kawakamii. Castanopsis concinna, C. fordii, C. globigemmata, C. hainanensis, C. hystrix, C. indica, C. kawakamii, C. mekongensis, and C. tibetana form a group of related species with cupules splitting regularly into 4 parts, bract with varying length that are basally connate into fascicles, and a scar that occupies the basal 1/4 to 1/3 of the nut.

Trees. Branches glabrous; young shoots dark reddish brown, glabrous, sparsely lenticellate; lenticels dark gray. Petiole 1-2.5 cm; leaf blade ovate to lanceolate, 6-12 × 2-5 cm, dark reddish brown when young and remaining so abaxially, leathery with age, base broadly cuneate to rounded and inaequilateral, margin entire or rarely 1-3-toothed near apex, apex caudate; midvein adaxially slightly raised from base to middle but flat to slightly impressed from middle to apex; secondary veins 9-12 on each side of midvein; tertiary veins reticulate, conspicuous. Female inflorescences 5-10 cm; rachis glabrous. Cupule globose, 6-8 cm in diam., splitting into 4(or 5) segments when mature, inside densely dusky tomentulose, wall ca. 3 mm thick; bracts spinelike, connected to radial branched bundles in middle part of cupule or slightly basally, 2-3 cm, sparsely pubescent to nearly glabrous. Nut 1 per cupule, oblate, 1.2-1.5 × 1.7-2 cm, densely orangish brown puberulent; scar covering ca. 1/3(-1/2) of nut. Fl. Mar-Apr, fr. Aug-Oct of following year.

S Fujian, Guangdong, SE Guangxi, S Jiangxi, C Taiwan [Vietnam]

Broad-leaved evergreen forests; below 1000 m.

Castanopsis greenii Chun; C. oerstedii Hickel & A. Camus.