Hieracium heuffelii
Hieracium heuffelii Janka
Asteraceae – Daisy family
Conservation status. Endangered [EN B1ab(iii)+2ab(iii)].
Morphology and biology. Perennial herb without stolons. Stem 5–30 cm, erect, covered with stellate and sparse simple, eglandular hairs. Leaves numerous, most of them gathered in a basal rosette, lanceolate-spatulate to lanceolate, rounded or acute at apex, with long simple eglandular hairs above and stellate and sparse simple eglandular hairs beneath; cauline 1(–3), linear-lanceolate to linear. Synflorescence with 2–12 flower heads. Heads 7–8 mm long. Involucral bracts with dense stellate and simple eglandular hairs and without or with a few glandular hairs. Fl. V–VI, fr. VI–VII. Sexual species. Reproduction by seeds.
Habitats and populations. Occurs in open rocky places with poor vegetation cover. The population in Sininte Kamani locality above Sliven town has been visited recently and estimated to comprise several hundred mature individuals growing by the asphalted road from Sliven to the Hotel Karandila.
Distribution in Bulgaria. Balkan Range (entral – Gabrovo district; eastern – Sinite Kamani locality); at 500–1600 m alt.
General distribution. Balkan Peninsula (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia), Romania.
Threats. Low population density and size; accidental destruction of plants by tourists.
Conservation measures taken. The locality is included within the boundaries of Sinite Kamani Nature Park and in a site of the European ecological network Natura 2000 in Bulgaria.
Conservation measures needed. Protection of the species under the national Biodiversity Act. Precise estimation of the population size and area of occupancy; studies on the species ecology and biology, population monitoring; deposition of seeds to the National Seed Genebank in Bulgaria.
References. Zahn 1923; Sell & West 1976; Szeląg 2007.
Author: Vladimir Vladimirov
