Table of Contents

The results of the investigations carried out on the mycological flora occurring in a beechwood of Madonie Mts (N. Sicily) are reported here. 216 taxa were recorded, 30 of which are new for Sicily. The presence of rare taxa such as Amanita ceciliae, Helvella solitaria and Macrotyphula fistulosa is noteworthy.

Twa weedy Datura species found in Solanum tuberosum field s in Algeria were identified as new for the Algerian flora. Bath produce tropanic alkaloids and are particularly rich in scopolamin.

The lectotype of Isopyrum talictroides L. var. insignis Gibelli et Pirotta is designated. The specimen, incorrectly identified by these authors, is to be referred to Aquilegia alpina L. The name Isopyrum thaliclroides var. insignis is consequently to be considered as a hcterotypic synonym of Aquilegia alpina.

This study deals with the first moss conspectus of the Federai Republic of Yugoslavia (Serbia & Montenegrol. After decades or small interest in bryological studies in the Balkans, the presented list outlines contemporary nomenclature, which is compatible with that applied throughout the world. Il is concluded, on the basis of literature data, that Yugoslavia hosts by 512 native moss species. In addition to the sources of records, the list also provides 37 Red Listed moss species, marked with an asterisk.

The status of the Linaria growing in southem Sicily and taxonomically near L. multieautis subsp. multicaulis is discussed. Despite this entity being very distinct from the subspecific type, there has been a tendency to overlook it in recent literature. Previous descriptions or this entity, originally named L. stricta (L.) Miller var. humilis Guss. (b. humilis in the protologue), do not sufficiently reflect its natural variability. We provide a new description better defining its characteristics in its natural populations, and present the new combination Linaria multicaulis subsp. humilis with the lectotypification by a specimen preserved in NAP from Gussone's originai materia. Wc also show that this taxon is distinct from similar ones not described at the ti me of fOlmulation of the basionym.

This article aims at underlining some principal characteristics of the endemie, rare and threatened flora of Moroçco. Il makes comments on the catalogue published by the authors in Bocconea n° 8 - 1998. These observations, conceming the very important part of the flora, show its pIace in the phytodiversity of the country by discussing the following aspects: composition, geographical distribution, bioclimatical value and biological spectrum. Biogeographical analysis would be subject of other forthcoming investigations.

Grimmia capillata was recently found in Enna (C. .Sicily) during a research project on the bryophytes and tracheophytes of urban ecosystems. In ltaly, Grimmia capillata has been prcviously discovered on old mortar of the walls around Cagliari in Sardinia (locus classicus). A description, the ecology and a drawing of the plant are given.

The phenotypic variability of Festuca indi[iesta Boiss. from the Sierras de Guadarrama, Somosierra and Ayllòn (Sistema Central, Spain) is analysed, and a new subespecies, Festuca indigesta Boiss. subsp. lagascae CeboIla & Rivas Ponce is proposed. Some new criteria are given in order to support the integrating taxonomic lreatment of the species that we consider divided into four subspecies: subsp. indigiesta, subsp. hackelii, subsp. aragonensis et subsp. lagascae.

Tbe pollen morphology of the Italian species of the genus Sanfolina was examined: S. corsica Jordan & Fourr., S. etrusca (Lacaita) Marchi & D'Amato, S. insularis (Genn. ex Fiori) Arrigoni, S. leucantha Berto!., S. tigustica Arrigoni and S. neapolitana Jordan & Fourr. S. marchii Arrigoni, a plant of unknown origin which has become widespread, and grows spontaneously throughout Italy was also examined. Despite a generai similarity among the different species, the pollen grains are individually distinguishable by the number and distribution of their spines. SEM observations can identify the differential morphological characteristics of the spines and of the appearance of the exine surface. Numerical analysis of the most significant characters showed that the S. etrusca pollen differs from the other species and that certain similarities exist between the S. leucantha pollen and S. neapo!itana pollen. Tbe morphology of S. marchii pollen is more similar to that of S. corsica than to that or the other species.

This article presents a summary of the available information on endemie plants in Tunisia. Its main objeetive is to emphasize the importance of the conservation of these species as an essential component of the biodiversity in the country. The study highlights that on the 2162 native speeies in Tunisia,. no more than 41 taxa are endemie. This group contains 15 different species, 13 subspecies, IO varieties and 3 fOffilS. The absenee or natural balTiers as high mountains may cxplain the low rate of endemism (2%) in Tunisia eomparatively to other north African countries.

Five different populations or Schouwia a DC. from Egypt and Saudi Arabia were studied . Samples of these populations were studied morphological1y, cytological1y and biochemical1y. The morphol ogical characters of tlowers, fruits and seeds were investigated by light microseope while seed eoat sculpture was investigated using Scanning Electron Microscope. The somatic chromosome number (2n ~ 36) with the mean length (1.76 11m) \Vere also measured. Storage seed proteins were studied electrophoreti cal1 y using SDS-PAGE u:cnnique. The presem rcsuhs revealed Ihal Schouwia DC. is a montypic genus Wlln oniy oll e polymorphic species Schouwia purpurea (Forssk.) Sehweinf.

The vascular flora of MI. Cetona, an isolated calcareous massif in SE Tuscany stili unexplored from the geobotanical viewpoint, is fully reported. The flora includes 650 native species distribùted in 422 genera and 91 families. New records for the flora of Tuscany are: Silene catholica, Sternbergia colchicijlora, Valeriana tuberosa, Ornithogalum divergens, Thymus pannonicus and, possibly, Linum austriacum subsp. tommasinii. Old records of rare plants are al so eonfimed for the regional flora. In respect of the close MI. Amiata, the flora of MI. Cetona is much richer, but, at the same time, it is not as rich as other eomparable Apenninic areas. The life-form speetrum highlights an Hemieryptophytes/Terophytes ratio of 2.2 that refleets a submontane, sllboceanie bioelimate. Chamaephytes are well represented , eonsistently with the roeky, barren nature of the massif. Aiso geophytes are somewhat abundant, possibly because of the coexistenee of xerie geophytes of stony pastures with mesie geophytes of nemoral habitats. From the ehorologieal viewpoint, the MI. Cetona flora is charaeterized by a relatively low proportion of boreal species and by a marked ineidence of the Oromediten'anean element. Owing to the presence of severa I apenninie endemie speeies it is to be included in the Apenninie sector of the oroipsophytie dominion of the European subregion. In partieular, this flora has phytogeographieallinkages with the centrai Apennines, of whieh it appears as a...

An analysis of the distribution paltems and endemism of the vascular flora of Mt Timfristos is presented here. 17 new fl oristic records are given , bringing the total number of the vascular taxa found on Timfristos up to 1156. The distribution of 22% of the taxa surveyed is limited to Italy, the Balkan Peninsula and Anatolia, or to a smaller area. From the study of those species, and in particular of biregional endemics, it appears that Timfristos exhibits a strong floristic affinity with both southem Pindos and Peloponnisos, and that the affinity with these two areas is of equal significance; this supports the view that Timfristos occupies an intermediate phytogeographical position between northem and southem mainland Greece. The f10ristic links with Anatolia originate primarily through N.E. Greece (Thraki), and secondarily via the southem Aegean island arco However, the influence of Anatolian species on the composition of the present flora of Timfristos is evidently of less significance than that from Balkan species.

This is a first-approximation checklist of lichens in the Valencian Community, compiled from a detailed literature survey based on more than 3700 citations, reporting 565 infrageneric taxa. The provinces of Castellon and Alicante have the highest number of species (355 and 297 taxa respectively), while the Valencia province has only 190 taxa.

Thymus bracleosus Vis. ex Bentham, endemie to the Mediterranean and submediterranean mountaino of Croatia, Herzegovina and Montenegro, has been analyzed as rcgards the anatomy or stem, leaves and bracts. Its structure shows xero-mesomorphic characteristics. Tbe quantity of essential oil extractable for commerciai purposes is comparatively low.

During a research project on bryophytes and tracheophytes of urban ecosysterns, Artemisia annua L. has been found in urban and suburban habitats of Enna. Previously identified in northem and centralltaly it is a new addition to the Sicilian vascular flora.

A taxonomic revision of Festuca fontqueri Saint-Yves, a species of Festuca Sect. Bovinae Fries [Subgenus Schedonorus (P. Beauv.) Peterm.] that has been repeatedly misnamed and misinterpreted in the literature, is provided here. Its taxonomic identity and nomenclatural status are established. A detai1ed description of the plant, based on updated morphoanatomical data from fresh and herbaria materials, is given. The species is distributed in the Rif and in the Atlas mountain ranges; its putative presence in Middle Asia could not be confirmed

Paraserianthes lophantha (Willd .) J. Nielsen, native to Australia, has been found naturalised in the neighbourhoods of Messina, Sicily. The linding or this species, recorded as subspontaneous from Corsica since the beginning of 20th century, is the first for Italy.

Onobrychis pindicola Hausskn. subsp. urumovii Deg. & Dren. is a Balkan endemie and a glacial relict, rare to Bulgaria. The plant was found self-ineompatible, obligately dependent UpOIl bumblebecs far pollen transport. The bumblebee pollinator aetivity inereased more or less parallelly to the size of population in the studied sites. Aceording to the results of the pollen analysis, O. pindicola subsp. urumovii was the only "major" [or ali bumblcbee speeies colleeted on its tlowers with few exceptions. The recorded high pollinator aetivity indieates that the possible reason for the restrieted number of O. pindicola subsp. urumovii populatiolls oceurring in Bulgaria is not to be conneeted to pollinator limitation.

On the basis of the revision or herbarium material, new collections and in-the-field surveys the genus Fraxinus has been analysed in Sicily under the taxonomic and distributive point or view. The results confirm that the specific taxa occurring in this island are Fraxinu.l' ornu.l' L., F. angustifolia Vahl subsp. angustifolia and F. excelsior L. The presence of this lalter species, which is ovenidden in recent literature, is confimlcd to the island. Its occurrence has been ascertained in only one among the localities reported in the pasl. Besides, frequent citation or F. angustifolia subsp. oxycarpa (Bieb. ex Willd.) Franco et Rocha Afonso, is to be rcferred to F. angustifolia subsp. angustifolia.

Genisla madoniensis, a new shrub species in the northem slope of Madonie Mts (C.-N. Sicily), is described. The ncw taxon, occurring in the Quercus suber woods, is close to Genisla cupanii, endemie to the same mountains, and G. triacanthos Brot. occurring also in the cork woods in the southern Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and in N. Africa (Marocco and Algeria).

This is the nineth instalment of a series of reports of chromosome numbers from Mediterranean area, peri-Alpine communities and the Atlantic Islands, in French or English language. It comprises contributions on 80 taxa: Aetheorhiza, Belleva/ia, Diantl/us, Leucojum from Greece and Iris from Syria, by E. P. Bareka & G. Kamari (Nos. 1026-1030); Alliaria, Arabis, Berteroa, Brassica, Cakile, Capsella, Cardamine, Draba and Lepidum from Bulgaria, by M. Ancev & V. Goranova (Nos. 1031-1049); Centaurea from Bulgaria, by S. T. Bancheva (Nos. 1050-1054); Crepis, Hypochoeris and Scorzonera from Bulgaria, by D. Dimitrova (Nos. 1055-1057); Dryopteris, Polystichum and A~plenium from Bulgaria, by D. Ivanova (Nos. 1058-1063); lIieracium from Bulgaria, by D. Pavlova (Nos, 1064-1065); Centaurea. Helichrysum, Otanthus, Pycnocomon and Solidago from Italy, by I. Amore, G. Bedini & F. Garbari (Nos. 1066-1070); Cytisus and Lupinus from Sardinia, by T. Cusma Velari, L. Feoli Chiapella, G. Bacchetta & V. Kosovel (Nos. 1071-1072); Genista from Morocco and Cytisus from Italy, by T. Cusma Velari, L. Feoli Chiapella & C. Cristin (Nos. 1073-1074); Adenocarpus, Cynoglossum, Ebenus, Lathyrlls, Ononis, Rumex, Si/ene and Trifo/ium from Morocco, by R. Pana, B. Valdés, I. Gordillo & R. Vcnanzi (Nos. 1075-1082); Cistus, Lavandula, Marrubium, Si/ene and Thymlls from Morocco, by B. Valdés, R. Parra, F. J. Pina, R. Àlvarez, M. I. Lopez & A. E. Rubio (Nos. 1083- 1088); Allium, Gentiana, Hieracium, Leu...