Table of Contents

The discovery of some interesting bryophytes at the Pollino National Park is reported in this paper. These are Calliergon cordifolium and Marchantia polymorpha subsp. montivagans, new records for the Southern Italy bryoflora, for which the Pollino massif represents the southernmost limit of their Italian distribution. Moreover, the occurrence of Marchantia polymorpha subsp. polymorpha, new record from Basilicata region, is reported too.

Silene monerantha Williams (Caryophyllaceae), previously unrecorded for Turkey, has been collected in Siirt, SE Anatolia. A description of the plant, and an illustration with details, are presented

New data on representatives of the genus Atriplex sect. Teutliopsis and sect. Atriplex are given for Israel and Syria a. A. laevis (A. littoralis auct.) is new for the Eastern Mediterranean region. A. patula is represented in both Syria and Israel with the special variety A. patula var. palaestina. Its lectotype is chosen. A. prostrata is evidently very rare in Syria and not found yet in Israel. The specimens earlier defined as A. prostrata belong mostly to A. davisii. Atriplex micrantha, new to Israel (and Jordan) is represented by two forms. A new key for the representatives of Atriplex sect. Teutliopsis in the study area is given. Atriplex sagittata (=A. nitens auct.) should be excluded from the floristic lists of both countries. The records earlier defined as A. sagittata belong to A. hortensis, a very rare alien.

An updated geographical distribution of the genus Gagea in Sicily with a grid map for each taxon is given. This study is based on literature, herbarium and field investigations. The examined species are G. bohemica (Zauschn.) Schult. & Schult. f., G. chrysantha Schult. & Schult. f. sensu stricto, G. dubia A. Terracc., G. foliosa (C. Presl) Schult. & Schult. f., G. fragifera (Vill.) E. Bayer & G. López González, G. granatelli (Parl.) Parl., G. lacaitae A. Terracc., G. lojaconoi Peruzzi, G. sicula Lojac., G. trinervia (Viv.) Greuter. The occurrence in Sicily of the phytogeographically interesting G. mauritanica Durieu is here confirmed in three localities. Besides, the actual presence in Sicily of historically occurring G. lutea (L.) Ker Gawl., G. pratensis (Pers.) Dumort. and G. villosa (M. Bieb.) Sweet is not confirmed. Finally, an analytical key for the identification of the studied species is presented.

Summary of the 10th Iter Mediterraneum. —The author gives a report of the tenth Iter Mediterraneum, which took place in the three departments of the extreme southeastern France, from 26th May to 9th Juny 2000. The 10 participants were from France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Turkey. More than 1.300 sheets of vascular plants were collected, corresponding to ca. 700 taxa. The first part of this article is devoted to a general presentation of this country (geology, hydrology, climate, relief ...) then to the description of the 23 main explored stations with the numbers of the sheets collected in each one. The complete list of the taxa collected in alphabetical order is reported. Among them, we have to point out a new species to France (Poa ligulata Boiss.), identified by H. Scholz, and some endemics or plants with high biogeographical value as: Aquilegia bertolonii, Asperula hexaphylla, Ballota frutescens, Centaurea balbisiana, Gentiana ligustica or Micromeria marginata.

Cynoglossum germanicum Jacq. (C_. montanum_ Lam. non Hayek) is a species so far found only once in the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria in July 1899, by Nejčev, I. (1908) in the Central Balkan Mountain (the region of Gabrovo, the Shipchenska Planina Range, in the locality of Malusha). The species is enlisted in the Bulgarian Red Data Book (Evstatieva 1984) as an extinct. C. germanicum is legally protected by the Biological Diversity Act. Annex 3 (2007). The current publication reports finding for the second time of C. germanicum Jacq. It occurs in shady and wooded places within the mesophylic beech belt at about 1000 m altitude.

Taraxacum sect. Erythrocarpa is reported for the first time for Sicily. After field, herbarium and laboratory studies, a new species belonging to that section is described as new to science: T. garbarianum (2n = 32). Morphological, cytotaxonomical and distributional data are illustrated and discussed.

This is the second contribution to the knowledge of Dematiaceous Hyphomycetes found on different plant litters and collected from Pantelleria mediterranean maquis. Four new species are proposed while others are identified only as genera because of the scanty material found.

The discovery of Sedum nevadense Coss. (Crassulaceae) in Abruzzo region (central Italy) is reported. It was previously known for Spain, France and N. Africa.

Two records of the polymorphic taxon Anthemis cretica L. (Asteraceae) on serpentine outcrops in central Tuscany are reported. The species is new to this region, and the two isolated populations mark the northwestern distribution limit of the taxon. Based on morphology of mainly capitula and achenes, the populations can be referred to A. cretica subsp. columnae (Ten.) Franzén, and karyological analyses showed that these are tetraploid with x = 9. Populations are located in garrigue-like communities of the association Armerio-Alyssetum bertolonii, together with several obligate serpentine endemics. At these sites A. cretica is found at only ca. 300 and 500 m a.s.l., well below its normal altitudinal range which is usually above 1200 m. Such findings reveal the capacity of this species to penetrate into mediterranean habitats and to tolerate the several anomalies of the ultramaphic substrates, as confirmed by its presence in similar habitats of Greece and, probably, Albania.

The study consists in a micromorphological investigation of the characteristic trichome types in leaves, stems, calyces and corollas in the Stachys L. species (Stachys cretica L. subsp. vacillans Rech. f., Stachys ehrenbergii Boiss., Stachys distans Benth., Stachys neurocalycina Boiss., Stachys nivea Labill., Stachys palaestina L.) distributed in Lebanon and restricted to Levantine as part of the taxonomical study of the genus _Stachys. The results showed twenty one different types of trichomes (11 non-glandular, 10 glandular) on the studied species. Fourteen types were characteristic for one species alone. Only four types of trichomes were found on all the 6 studied species. Of the 21 different types of trichomes, 8 non-glandular hairs and six glandular hairs were characteristic of one species. Those results indicate that non-glandular hairs are more important than glandular hairs concerning the separation between Stachys species. In addition, the study shows that the corollas and calyces of the studied species have the most important number of typical trichomes (6 of 21). Concerning the species Stachys neurocalycina comes first with five typical trichomes (1, 2, 4, 5 and 17), followed by Stachys palaestina with four (14, 15, 20 and 21), Stachys ehrenbergii with two (12 and 13), and one typical trichome for Stachys cretica subsp. vacillans (19), Stachys distans (18) and Stachys nivea (7).

A pollen analysis was carried out on 138 samples from 19 taxa of Genista sect. Spartioides. The taxa were compared in terms of quantitative and qualitative characters, examined by LM and SEM. The combined analysis of the pollen characters allows to notice some differences among the species. The western and eastern taxa of the section appear distinguishable. Among the western ones, a grouping is highlighted including G. cinerea (various subspecies), G. majorica and G. ramosissima, which corresponds to ser. Spartioides of subsect. Spartioides. The other series of the subsection, ser. Floridae Cantó, Rivas-Martínez, Greinwald & van Rensen, is not homogeneous: G. obtusiramea emerges as the most distinct species of the whole section; G. cinerascens, described by Gibbs (1966) as a variety of G. cinerea, differs from G. cinerea s.l.; the Moroccan populations of G. florida (ascribed to subsp. maroccana) differ from the Iberic ones. Subsect. Chamaespartum Cantó, Rivas-Martínez, Greinwald & van Rensen proves to be heterogeneous as well. G. pilosa, the only widely distributed species of the section, is more similar to the western taxa, and acts as a trait d’union with the eastern ones. Among the eastern taxa, the pollen analysis supports the distinction of the two examined subspecies of G. pulchella (pulchella and villarsiana), and of the two varieties of G. albida (albida and godetii); G. involucrata, belonging to G. albida aggr., eme...

On Mount Mitsikeli, 448 plant taxa have been recorded, 169 of which are provided from bibliography. The overall taxa belong to 65 families and 239 genera. After having analyzed the life spectrum of the recorded taxa, it is evident that among the six life-form categories recorded, the Hemicryptophytes dominate with 45% while the Therophytes follow with 20%. Through the chorological analysis, several partial units of wide geographical distribution and many subunits arise. Among them the Mediterranean floristic elements prevail with 34%, reflecting a relative Mediterranean character of the local flora, whereas the Eurasiatic (29%) and the European (12%) follow. The area is quite important for regional endemism. In total 16% of the recorded taxa consist Balkan floristic elements and 15 taxa are Greek endemics.

Orobanche daninii a new species belonging to Orobanche sect. Trionychon is described and illustrated from the inland near Paran, Israel. Its relationships with O. aegyptiaca, O. mutelii and O. schultzii are examined.

Embryological study on native Bulgarian populations of Gentiana lutea L. has been carried out. The peculiarities of the anthers, ovules, micro- and macrosporogenesis, the development of male and female gametophyte as well as the embryo- and endospermogenesis are established. The results of the study reveal a specialization of this species, in particular regarding the female gametophyte development not only according to the basic Polygonum (monosporic)-type but to the Allium (bisporic)-type too and a tendency to gametophytic apomixis (apospory). Some of relatively primitive features are established in the male generative sphere but they are not so much and important to change the status of G. lutea as an evolutionary advanced species and they are only considered as a manifestation of the heterobathmy.

The coastal dune vegetation in Migliarino-San Rossore-Massaciuccoli Regional Natural Park (NW Tuscany, Italy) was studied using morphological and functional traits of 34 species. The species composition of the vegetation was recorded in 5 different sites, from Viareggio (Province of Lucca) to Marina di Vecchiano (Province of Pisa). A multivariate analysis applied to a single matrix of traits vs. species made it possible to classify all the plant units living on dune ecosystems into five functional types. The identified PFTs may be related to the most important community types described for coastal dunes, which range from annual communities on the shoreline to Mediterranean “macchia” on the inland stabilized dunes. The occurrences of these functional groups in the different sites was analysed in order to check any differences along the coastline studied.

Pinus pinea L. (Stone pine) forests are not widespread on the World. Spread area of stone pine around the world indicates that it is a taxon localized in the Mediterranean basin. In this study the floristic features of Pinus pinea forests in the Aegean region of Turkey have been investigated. 274 taxon belonging to 166 genera and 44 families were identified in the study area. Distribution numbers and rates of the taxon in terms of phytogeographic regions are as follows: Mediterranean elements 92 (33.57%), Euro-Siberian elements 12 (4.37%) and Irano-Turanian 1 (0.0036%). The numbers of endemic taxa are 13 and the rate of endemism is 4.74%. In addition, twenty taxa are new record for B1 square.

The occurrence and the invasive status in Italy of Amaranthus polygonoides L. are discussed. Morphological characters, taxonomical notes and distribution map are also given.

A population of Juncus valvatus Link was found during a floristic-phytosociological field-work in small-size humid areas of the western Murgian plateau in the municipality of Santeramo in Colle (Apulia region, southern Italy). Juncus valvatus is a species of community interest listed in the Habitat Directive 92/43 EEC and in the Strasbourg Convention. This record allows to significantly enlarge eastwards the whole range of the species which at present was known for Portugal, Tunisia and Algeria only

This paper presents a synthesis of the hitherto available information on the Italian distribution of Calicioid lichens and fungi. 65 species and 15 genera are known from Italy. Their distribution in the 20 administrative regions of the country is depicted by maps based on a critical screening of the literature and original collections. Five species are reported as new to Italy: Calicium montanum, Chaenothecopsis consociata, Ch. ochroleuca, Ch. nana and Ch. vainioana.

In 1812, Robert Brown described a new species, Iberis violacea, based on a specimen which had been grown at the Lee & Kennedy Nursery, Hammersmith, Middlesex, England, in 1782. Although the name was widely used in British horticultural literature for over a hundred years and the type material has been available at BM since before 1812, I. violacea has been neglected in continental Europe since 1821. It proves to be conspecific with I. pruitii Tineo (1817), which name must now give way to it.

Sixteen species of Dematiaceous Hyphomycetes were found and described on litter of Mediterranean maquis at Circeo National Park; three of them are proposed as new species: Dictyochaeta circei, Circinotrichum mediterraneum and Penzigomyces ilicis.

Erysimum brulloi from the Aeolian Archipelago (Sicily) is described and illustrated. This new species occurs in the Alicudi island, where it grows in the abandoned fields and degraded maquis. From the taxonomic point of view, it is closer to E. metlesicsii, from which it differs in several morphological characters and ecological requirements.

Corrections and integrations to the “A Catalogue of the plants growing in Sicily” by Giardina & al. (2007) are here reported. In particular, several disregarded taxa have been added and updated together with new other ones described or reported simultaneously or subsequently to the date of publication of the Catalogue. Finally nomenclature of some taxa has been updated and a new taxonomic status has been proposed for two of them.

This is the nineteen of a series of reports of chromosomes numbers from Mediterranean area, peri-Alpine communities and the Atlantic Islands, in English or French language. It comprises contributions on 21 taxa: Allium, Ammi, Andryala, Daucus, Diplotaxis, Emex, Mercurialis, Torilis, Urtica from Morocco, by F. E. El Alaoui-Faris, H. Tahiri, P. Cubas & C. Pardo (Nos 1688-1696); Bellevalia from Israel, by A. Giordani & L. Peruzzi (Nos 1697); Gagea from Cyprus, Italy, France, by L. Peruzzi, G. Astuti, A. De Rossa & A. Giordani (Nos 1698-1701); Calicotome from Balearic Islands, Corse, Greece, Israel, Italy, Sardinia, Sisily, Spain, Portugal, Tunisia and Morocco, by T. Cusma Velari, L. F. Caparella & V. Kosovel (Nos 1702-1705); Chamaecytisus from Canary Islands, by T. Cusma Velari, L. Feoli Chiapella, V. Kosovel & A. Santos Guerra (Nos 1706-1708).