Eryngium creticum
Eryngium creticum Lam.
Apiaceae – Carrot family
Conservation status. Endangered [EN B1ab(i,iii)+2ab(ii,iv)].
Morphology and biology. Annual-biennial, often blue violet plant. Stem 25–70 cm. Basal and lower cauline leaves 5–15 × 3–15 cm, petiolate, slightly coriaceous, entire or tripartite to 3-lobed, dentate; cauline leaves like basal, the uppermost with narrow segments, similar to the capitula bracts. Inflorescence terminal, with rays bearing 30–100 capitula. Capitula bracts 5–7, linear-lanceolate, pungent. Capitula 0.5–1 cm in diameter, globose to broadly ovate, with numerous, congested flowers. Petals white, oblong, longer than the calyx. Fruits elliptical to obovate, consisting of the mericarps. Fl. VI–VII, fr. VII–IX. Insect pollination. Reproduction by seeds.
Habitats and populations. Dry, grassy and stony places, on poor soils, mostly in xerothermic pastures dominated by Festuca valesiaca and shrubs. The populations are small, with scattered individuals and play a secondary role in plant communities. Intensive agriculture leads to reduction of the population size.
Distribution in Bulgaria. Rhodopi Mts (eastern – Golemiya Sipei Protected Site), Thracian Lowland (Shishmantsi village, Plovdiv district; N of Dimitrovgrad; Bryagovo village; Haskovo, Svilengrad and Stara Zagora districts), Toundzha Hilly Country (Knyazhevo village, Elhovo region); up to 300 m alt.
General distribution. Balkan Peninsula, E Mediterranean region, and SW Asia (Asia Minor).
Threats. Intensive grazing, soil pollution, establishment of forest plantations.
Conservation measures taken. One of the localities in Eastern Rhodopi Mts is within the borders of the Golemiya Sipei Protected Site. Some localities are within sites of the European ecological network Natura 2000 in Bulgaria.
Conservation measures needed. Study of the population size and density; monitoring of the populations and storage of seeds in seed genebanks.
References. Assenov 1982; Bozhilova & Tonkov 1984.
Author: Chavdar Gussev
