Volume 19 (2020): Edizione 2 (December 2020)

Polylepis species represent one of the most important and endemic woodlands of the mid- and high-elevation regions of the Andean Cordillera. I provide a review of the current situation of Polylepis woodlands, discuss the potential effects of various conservation measures and consider the likely impact of climate change on tree phenology and tree regeneration, aiming to foster the conservation and sustainable management of these woodlands through proper environmental planning. I argue that in addition to the delineation and extension of protected areas, it is essential to incorporate actions such as forestation, forest policies, environmental education and local community participation. To be effective, conservation measures should be implemented in an international transdisciplinary research framework and in harmony with site-specific conditions. Finally, given the likely but uncertain influences of climate change on Polylepis woodlands, further research (and communication of that research) is needed to improve forest management strategies and research priorities for the Andean region.

Based on our analysis of a large number of relevés of communities of moist rock crevices in western Slovenia (southern Julian Alps, northern part of the Trnovski Gozd Plateau) we described several new syntaxa with the endemic Primula carniolica. The most unique in terms of ecology is a hygrophytic chasmophytic community classified into the association Astrantio carniolicae-Primuletum carniolicae, which is, together with similar hygrophytic associations Astrantio carniolicae-Pinguiculetum alpinae and Campanulo cespitosae-Saxifragetum aizoidis, associations Phyteumato columnae-Primuletum carniolicae, Primulo carniolicae-Potentilletum clusianae and the subassociation Primuletum carniolicae violetosum biflorae, temporarily classified into the alliance Cystopteridion and order Potentilletalia caulescentis. Only the new association Paederoto luteae-Potentilletum caulescentis is classified into the alliance Physoplexido comosae-Saxifragion petraeae. The elevational range of chasmophytic communities with Primula carniolica is 200 to 1460 m a.s.l. Species that most commonly accompany Primula carniolica in rock crevices include Paederota lutea, Phyteuma scheuchzeri subsp. columnae, Sesleria caerulea, Aster bellidiastrum and moss Orthothecium rufescens.

This study deals with the diversity of forest vegetation in the Slivenska Mountain (Eastern Stara planina) and presents a contemporary classification scheme for the identified syntaxa. A total of 137 relevés were collected and analyzed using specialized software (JUICE 7.0 and PC-ORD Version 4). As a result, forest vegetation is classified into 10 associations, 3 subassociations, 4 variants and 5 communities They belong to 7 alliances, 5 orders and 3 classes: Carpino-Fagetea sylvaticae, Quercetea pubescentis and Alno glutinosae-Populetea albae. The recorded 18 distinguished vegetation groups show a relatively high diversity of forest plant communities of the study area.

The paper describes two new mesophilous communities of oriental hornbeam (Carpinus orientalis) coppice from the northern Dinaric Alps in Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H). While oriental hornbeam is mainly considered to be a part of thermophilous forests and scrub, numerical analysis of 103 relevés of C. orientalis dominated coppice from B&H has shown that two new, rather mesophilous, communities thrive on calcareous bedrock of NW B&H. They represent secondary successional stages of mesotermic forest vegetation in this region. Association Epimedio alpini-Carpinetum orientalis ass. nova hoc loco is related to Illyrian oak-hornbeam forests of Erythronio-Carpinion betuli, while Asplenio scolopendrii-Carpinetum orientalis ass. nova hoc loco is linked to Balkan submediterranean ravine forests of Ostryo-Tilion. Although these two associations were recorded only in the NW B&H, their distribution is potentially larger, as their source communities are relatively common throughout the Dinaric Alps, so the information about their distribution, vertical structure, and syndynamic relations could be very useful in a national scale forest management and nature conservation.

Cladium mariscus (L.) Pohl (Cyperaceae) is a rare species in Europe considered by several authors to be a relict of the early Holocene period. It is listed in the Red Data Book of Ukraine, Annexes of the Habitat Directive and the Bern Convention. Communities with domination of this species are included in the Green Data Book of Ukraine. Substantial differences in major ecological factors for Cladium mariscus communities in the western (carbonate bogs) and the southern (marshes and floating swamps of the northern Black Sea) regions of Ukraine were shown. The author carried out comparisons of relevés characterizing different communities with Cladium mariscus within Europe. Based on the results of TWINSPAN analysis, four associations were identified, confirmed by floristic indices and ecological data: Cladietum marisci Allorge 1921, Soncho maritimi-Cladietum marisci (Br.-Bl. & O. de Bolòs 1957) Cirujano 1980, Dorycnio recti-Cladietum marisci Gradstein & Smittenberg 1977 and Junco maritimi-Cladietum marisci (Br.-Bl. & O. de Bolòs 1957) Géhu & Biondi 1988. Thus, in addition to the association Cladietum marisci, a new one was indicated for Ukraine, Junco maritimi-Cladietum marisci.

Herbarium collections have proven to be irreplaceable information base in recent studies directed towards revealing shifts in plants phenology and morphology caused by climate change. We examined eight parameters of morphological traits in the perennial herb species Plantago lanceolata L. collected in the wild between 1905 and 2019 and stored at the KW-herbarium (Kyiv, Ukraine) to find out if there were changes in plants’ organ sizes during the last 114 years. For this period, we also calculated 13 climatic parameters obtained from meteorological records from the State archive that gave us the opportunity to check if there are any relations between the climate change in Kyiv region and shifts in morphological parameters of plants. Our results have shown Plantago lanceolata leaf blades, petioles and spikes had become significantly longer with time, increasing 3.0 cm, 2.1 cm and 0.6 cm respectively. The Co-inertia analysis revealed that 34% of the morphological changes was attributed to climate change. The analysis also demonstrated that leaf length correlated more with raised temperatures when plants were in flower, while spike length depended on the temperatures during bud development. Received knowledge can be used to reveal rapid evolutionary processes of the Plantago species and predicting their further course for the construction of historical climate models based on the leaves traits.

Lotus sanguineus is one of the endemic taxa from Mediterranean Region of Turkey. It has hitherto been known from type locality and was assessed under VU and EN categories despite the lack of information on the population size, number of location and habitat quality. This study aims to determine the global conservation status and conservation strategies of the narrow endemic species. We collected all available data and evaluated them with the field studies. We reported the sizes of populations, altitude, coordinates, habitat types and the threats it faces for each locality. GeoCAT analyses at global levels indicate the extent of occurrence 19.965 km² and area of occupancy 9 km² and there could be an inferred decline due to habitat loss and fragmentation of the original population, suggesting this species might be classified as Critically Endangered, based on criterium B1ab (i, ii, iii) + 2ab (i, ii, iii) in the Red List categorization. Conservation priorities include life history and ecology studies, in-situ conservation, population monitoring and ex-situ conservation to prevent the destruction of the existing gene pool.

Helichrysum oocephalum is a medicinal plant of the genus Helichrysum that have limited distribution in Iran. Local geographical populations may differ in their genetic content and form different gene pools. Therefore, we carried out population genetic investigation and morphological studies in five geographical populations of Helichrysum oocephalum by using ISSR molecular markers. AMOVA produced the significant genetic differences. The mean Nm value revealed some degree of gene flow among Helichrysum oocephalum 8. Molecular and morphological analysis indicated that we have 2 groups in the studied populations. The present findings may be of use in the conservation of this medicinal plant in Iran.

As part of ongoing studies of Tunisian Malvaceae, a population of Phymosia umbellata was discovered in Monastir city. It represents the first generic record for the national and continental flora. Morphological characters, as well as ecological data are given. A list of all the accepted names in Phymosia, their synonyms and types is also provided, with nomenclatural notes about some accepted Phymosia species.

Amaryllis belladonna L. is recorded for the first time as a naturalized non-native geophyte new to Tunisian and continental North African flora. Additional information on its current distribution and habitat, a brief morphological description, as well as some taxonomic notes, are provided.

Forests are the principal terrestrial ecosystem for protected and endangered large carnivores, providing the main habitat for species maintenance and survival. Changes in forest cover influence species distribution. The aim was (1) to test hypotheses on the natural environmental (abiotic) and biological (biotic) factors and human disturbances that determine the colonization and local extinction of three large carnivore species in relation to forest cover, (2) to infer the biotic interactions between these three large carnivore species occupying the same forested areas in Albania. Colonization is estimated to be positively affected by forest cover for brown bear, Balkan lynx and grey wolf. Brown bear and grey wolf tend to compete for the same forested areas. Local extinction increased with decreasing forest cover for brown bear and increased with decreasing mixed broadleaved forests for Balkan lynx. Anthropological variables (proximity to villages and to neighbourhood roads) increased local extinction for brown bear, grey wolf and Balkan lynx. Further studies are recommended for better understanding biotic interactions of large carnivore species in forest habitats in Albania and its neighbouring countries, which could contribute to conservation of large carnivore species on a large scale.