Vitis balansana is a species ofclimbing vine in thegrape family native to temperate and tropical Asia. Its native range encompassesVietnam and three southeastern provinces inChina (Guangdong,Guangxi and the island ofHainan)[1] The habitat ofV. balansana varies; it has adapted to living underforest cover, and in sun-soakedshrubland valleys, at between 200 and 800 meters.[2]
V. b. var.balansana, the type for this species, is the only variety known from Guangdong and Hainan provinces or from Vietnam, the other two are both native to Guangxi, and may not be known from elsewhere.[2][3][4]
Each variety is known by its own distinct name inChinese:
Vitis balansana var.balansana is known asxiao guo pu tao, orfruitlet grape;[2][5]
Vitis balansana var.tomentosa is known by the same name, but with an additional prefix, i.e.rong mao xiao guo pu tao, ordowny fruitlet grape;[4][6]
Vitis balansana var.ficifolioides is known aslong zhou pu tao, orLongzhou [Dragon state]grape, from theCounty of Longzhou in Guangxi, on the Sino-Vietnam border.[3][7]
^abcd Being the type from which any additional varieties are based, the description ofV. b. var.balansana is the same as that ofV. balansana"Vitis balansana var.balansana".Flora of China. eFloras. RetrievedApril 25, 2010.
^abcdV. b. var.ficifolioides In:Chin. J. Appl. Environ. Biol. 2: 240. 1996.; Vitis ficifolioides In:Acta Phytotax. Sin. 17(3): 75. 1979."Vitis balansana var.ficifolioides".Flora of China. eFloras. RetrievedApril 25, 2010.
