Parvotrisetum myrianthum
Parvotrisetum myrianthum (Bertol.) Chrtek
Poaceae – Grass family
Conservation status. Critically Endangered [CR B1ab(ii,iii,iv)+2ab(ii,iii,iv)].
Morphology and biology. Annual. Stems 20–50 cm high, single or several in groups, erect, glabrous. Leaves up to 2 mm wide, enrolled, glabrous beneath, puberulent above. Panicle erect-patent, 5–20 cm long, 2–6 cm wide. Spikelets numerous, 2–2.5 mm long, laterally compressed, with 2 florets. Glumes lanceolate, scarious, subequal, with scabrid keel, longer than lemma, persistent. Lemma 1.5–2 mm long, with dorsal, fragile, scabrid awn, 2–3.5 mm long. Caryopsis oblong. Fl. IV–V, fr. V–VI. Reproduction by seeds.
Habitats and populations. Occurs on shallow sandy and stony soils in open herbaceous communities in silicate places, sometimes as a weed in agrocoenoses. Populations fragmented with low numbers of individuals.
Distribution in Bulgaria. Valley of Struma River (southern – Pchelina hill, north of General Todorov railway station, Petrich district); 100–400 m alt. Collected once in 1987.
General distribution. Southernmost and westernmost parts of the Balkan Peninsula and N Italy.
Threats. Grazing and trampling by domestic animals; habitat fragmentation; restricted distribution; populations with low numbers of individuals.
Conservation measures taken. For protection of the habitats of the species the Biological Diversity Act requires establishment of protected areas in accordance with the regulations of the Protected Areas Act. The locality is within a site of the European ecological network Natura 2000 in Bulgaria.
Conservation measures needed. Inclusion of Pchelina locality (Malak Kozhuh hill) within the borders of Kozhuha Nature Monument; detailed study of the area and number of individuals per population, biology and ecology of the species and threats; collection of seeds for the National Seed Genebank in Bulgaria.
References. Dogan 1985; Delipavlov 1992; Delipavlov 2003.
Author: Stoyan Stoyanov
