Prunus serotina Ehrhart var. eximia (Little) Small. Subgenus: Padus. Plateau Wild Black Cherry, Escarpment Black Cherry. Phen: Mar-Apr. Hab: Woodlands, floodplains. Dist: Nearly endemic to the Edwards Plateau, TX.
Origin/Endemic status: Native
Taxonomy Comments: The taxonomy of the Prunus serotina complex has been "recursively debated", with diverse resulting classifications. Rohrer (2014) dismissed the eximia entity: "If it were not for their geographic isolation from the rest of var. serotina by 200 km, it is doubtful that taxonomists would even think about segregating these outliers from the plants of eastern North America." Yet, Guzmán et al. (2018) and Guzmán, Segura, & Fresnedo-Ramírez (2018) found "eximia" to be molecularly more distinctive than other subspecies. We retain it as a variety.
Synonymy: = K3, K4, NcTx; = Prunus serotina Ehrh. ssp. eximia (Small) McVaugh – Tx; < Prunus serotina Ehrh. var. serotina – FNA9
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