Cressa cretica
Cressa cretica L.
Convolvulaceae – Bindweed family
Conservation status. Critically Endangered [CR B1ab(ii,iii)+2ab(ii,iii)]. BA.
Morphology and biology. Perennial herb. Stem erect or ascending, woody at base, densely leafy, with numerous pubescent branches. Leaves elliptic-lanceolate to oblong, sessile, cordate or rounded at base, Flowers on up to 1 mm long pedicels, gathered in dense, short, terminal racemes. Corolla 3–5 mm in diameter, whitish-pink to yellowish. Capsule ovoid, usually 1-seeded. Seeds black, glabrous. Fl. VI–IX, fr. VII–X. Reproduction by seeds.
Habitats and populations. Sandy or saline soil usually near sea. Only a few localities have been recorded so far in the coastal area south of Bourgas town. Forms strongly fragmented populations with a low number of individuals.
Distribution in Bulgaria. Black Sea coast (southern – by the wetlands between Tsarevo and Primorsko, Bourgas district); at sea level.
General distribution. Mediterranean area, the Caucasus, SW Asia, Indo-Himalayan Region, Africa.
Threats. Water and soil pollution in the localities; habitat loss due to rapid tourism development; the limited distribution of the species is also due to its occurrence in a very rare, specific habitat – damp saline soil.
Conservation measures taken. Protected species under the national Biodiversity Act. The localities are within sites of the European ecological network Natura 2000 in Bulgaria.
Conservation measures needed. Precise estimation of the population size and area of occupancy; studies on the species biology and ecology and the specific threats in the particular localities; population monitoring.
References. Kuzmanov 1982; Vasilev 1984.
Author: Vladimir Vladimirov
