Avena eriantha
Avena eriantha Durieu
Poaceae – Grass family
Conservation status. Critically Endangered [CR B1ab(iii)+2ab(iv)].
Morphology and biology. Annual. Stem 20–60 cm high, glabrous, glaucous. Leaves glabrous, smooth. Ligules scarious, 2–3 mm long, rounded at apex. Panicle spread. Spikelets nodding, lanceolate, laterally compressed, 18–25 mm long. Lemmas 11–25 mm long, scarious, acute, persistent at fruit. Glumes 20 mm long, coriaceous, with 30 mm long, with a thick, twisted lower part (column) and a thinner, straight upper part (seta). Grain with ribs. Fl. IV–VI, fr. V–VII. Pollinated by wind. Reproduction by seeds.
Habitats and populations. Occurs in dry, grassy and stony places with steppe vegetation dominated by Koeleria brevis, Stipa lessingiana, Paeonia tenuifolia. Mezoxerophytic species. In isolated but dense populations in low areas, in scrub periphery, where soil is wetter than in the stony steppe areas.
Distribution in Bulgaria. Northeast Bulgaria (Kaliakra Strict Nature Reserve); up to 50 m alt.
General distribution. SE Europe (Bulgaria, Greece, Crimea, the Caucasus), N Africa, Macaronesia, SW and C Asia, China.
Threats. Trampling and grazing; very restricted distribution; urbanization and building of wind electro-generators close to the species localities; active tourism.
Conservation measures taken. Most of the locality is within Kaliakra Strict Nature Reserve and in a site of the European ecological network Natura 2000 in Bulgaria.
Conservation measures needed. Study of the numerical strength and area of the populations, biology and ecology of the species, existing threats. Elaboration of an action plan for the species. Collection of seeds for the National Seed Genebank in Sadovo.
References. Delipavlov 1999; Tzonev et al. 2006.
Author: Rossen Tzonev
