Daphne blagayana
Daphne blagayana Freyer
Thymeleaceae – Daphne family
Conservation status. Endangered [EN B2ab(i,ii,iii)]. BDA.
Morphology and biology. Evergreen dwarf shrub up to 30 cm, with long, sparingly branched stems, leafless except at the apex. Leaves 3–6 cm, obovate, obtuse, sessile, glabrous, coriaceous. Flowers creamy white, fragrant, sessile, in terminal heads of 10–15, subtended by pale, sericeous bracts ca. 10 mm long. Hypanthium 15–20 mm, narrow, with a few silky hairs. Sepals 6 mm long, obtuse, patent. Drupe whitish. Fl. IV–VI, fr. VII–VIII. Insect pollination. Reproduction by seeds.
Habitats and populations. Stony grasslands and among juniper shrubs, mostly on limestone. Small, mosaic populations.
Distribution in Bulgaria. Balkan Range (Central); 1500–1900 m alt.
General distribution. Balkan Peninsula, extending northwards to Slovenia and S Carpathians.
Threats. Potential threat is tourism development in the areas of the species distribution.
Conservation measures taken. The species is protected by the Biological Diversity Act. All populations are within the borders of Central Balkan National Park, Balgarka Nature Park and in a site of the European ecological network Natura 2000 in Bulgaria.
Conservation measures needed. Detailed study of the chorology, biology and ecology of the species, numerical strength and area of its subpopulations; long-term monitoring; collection of seeds for the National Seed Genebank in Bulgaria.
References. Webb & Ferguson 1968; Markova & Cherneva 1979; Markova 1984; Marinov 2009a.
Author: Dessislava Dimitrova
