Bunium ferulaceum
Bunium ferulaceum Sibth. & Sm.
Apiaceae – Parsley family
Conservation status. Critically Endangered [CR A4c; B1ac(ii)+2ab(v)]. BDA.
Morphology and biology. Perennial herbaceous plant, with tubers. Stem 20–60 cm. Leaves 2–3-pinnatisect, with slender, linear lobes. Flowers small, petals white. Fruit dehiscent, 4–6 mm long; mericarps with ridges, and vittae. Fl. VI–VII, fl. VIII. Reproduction by seeds.
Habitats and populations. Occurs on calcareous and basalt rocks, on shallow soil in the xerothermic oak-horn-beam forests. Populations are with small number of individuals. The species participates in the herbaceous layer of communities of Quercus pubescens, Fraxinus ornus, Paliurus spina-christi, Carpinus orientalis, together with Melilotus neapolitanus, Smyrnium perfoliatum, Lysimachia atropurpurea, Senecio papposus, Stachys serbica, etc.
Distribution in Bulgaria. Rhodopi Mts (eastern – Ribino and Studen Kladenets villages, above Potochnitsa and Dolna Kula villages, Krumovgrad region; Sofiitsi village, Dzhebel region; Dangovo and Zvezdelina villages, Kardzhali region); between 250–350 m alt. The species was erroneously reported for Znepole Region instead of Huetia cynapioides (Dimitrov 1994).
General distribution. Bulgaria, R Macedonia, Greece, Turkey, Crimea, Asia Minor, Syria.
Threats. Grazing by cattle, agricultural activities, destruction of forest by fire and felling, afforestation of pastures.
Conservation measures taken. The species is protected by the Biodiversity Act. Populations to the south of Potochnitsa and Studen Kladenets villages are within the borders of Valchi Dol Strict Nature Reserve. Some localities are within sites of the European ecological network Natura 2000 in Bulgaria.
Conservation measures needed. No special measures required.
References. Podpera 1902; Stojanov et al. 1967; Vassilev 1984, Delipavlov, Popova & Cheshmedzhiev 1984; Dimitrov 1994; Petrova, Venkova & Sopotlieva 2006.
Author: Dimitar Dimitrov
