Lychnis davidii Franchet, Nouv. Arch. Mus. Paris, sér. 2, 8: 204. 1885; Hedona davidii (Franchet) F. N. Williams; Melandrium caespitosum F. N. Williams; Silene caespitosa Bureau & Franchet (1891), not Salisbury (1796, nom. illeg., included S. acaulis Linnaeus), nor S. caespitosa Steven (1812); S. kantzeensis C. L. Tang.

Herbs perennial, 4--8 cm tall. Roots brown, cylindric, slightly robust, multibranched, multicrowned. Stems densely clustered, very short, simple. Basal leaves oblanceolate-linear, 1--2.5 cm × 2--3 mm, glabrous, coarsely and shortly ciliate, base attenuate, apex acuminate or acute; cauline leaves 1 or 2 pairs or absent, homomorphic with basal leaves. Flower solitary, erect, 1.5--2 cm in diam. Pedicel shorter than leaves, densely pubescent. Calyx dark violet, narrowly campanulate or cylindric-campanulate, 1.3--1.8 cm × 3--5 mm, base truncate, violet glandular hairy, longitudinal veins violet; calyx teeth triangular-ovate, margin membranous, ciliate, apex obtuse. Androgynophore ca. 1 mm, glabrous. Petals lilac or pale red, ca. 2 cm; claws narrowly cuneate, glabrous, auricles ovoid; limbs exserted beyond calyx, obovate, bifid deeply to middle; lobes narrowly orbicular, margin entire, sometimes laterally obscurely 1-toothed; coronal scales obovoid, margin entire or laciniate. Stamens included; filaments glabrous. Styles included. Capsule cylindric or conical, ca. 15 × 3.5 mm, slightly longer than calyx. Seeds dark brown, globose-reniform, slightly flattened, ca. 1 mm, subsmooth, keeled. Fl. Jul--Aug, fr. Sep--Oct.

* Alpine meadows; (3500--)4100--4700 m. SE Qinghai, W Sichuan, Xizang, NW Yunnan.