Abstract
Lepidium caespitosum is an endemic species growing in semi-saline meadows, identified from Erzurum (Eastern Anatolia, Türkiye). Some specimens collected from saline marshes in Central and Western Anatolia have been identified as L. caespitosum for approximately 60 years. In this study, L. caespitosum specimens collected from Erzurum in 2025 -presumably the type locality- were morphologically compared with specimens from saline marshes in Central and Western Anatolia that had been previously identified as L. caespitosum. The comparison revealed that the Central and Western Anatolian specimens generally differed from the Erzurum specimens in terms of indumentum type and density, leaf dimensions and morphology, pedicel and flower part dimensions, fruit morphology, and habitat preference. The Central and Western Anatolian specimens, which shared similar morphological characteristics, were evaluated as a new species and named “Lepidium turcicum”. The new species is described, its distribution, a comparison with L. caespitosum, its brief ecological preferences, and some illustrative photographs are provided.
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