Silene chlorantha
Silene chlorantha (Willd.) Ehrh.
Caryophyllaceae – Pink family
Conservation status. Critically Endangered [CR B1ab(ii)].
Morphology and biology. Perennial, herbaceous plant. Stem usually single, rarely numerous, up to 75 cm high, erect, glabrous, in the upper internodes with glutinous rings. Leaves opposite, lower oblanceolate, cauline leaves linear, up to 4 cm long and up to 0.5 cm wide. Inflorescence botryoid, with 7–12 pairs of flowers along the main axis. Calyx 5-merous, up to 10 mm long, glabrous, tubular-cylindrical, veins not pronounced. Petals greenish yellow, up to 1.5 cm long, deeply bifid. Fruit elliptic-cylindrical capsule. Fl. VI–IX, fr. VI–X. Reproduction by seeds.
Habitats and populations. Inhabits grasslands and scrub. Despite of the continuous search for the species in Lozenska Mt the current extent of the populations is unknown.
Distribution in Bulgaria. Mt Sredna Gora (western – Lozenska Mt, unconfirmed since 1953), Thracian Lowland (Popovitsa village, unconfirmed since 1914), up to 700 m alt.
General distribution. C and E Europe, Balkan Peninsula, SW Asia, Siberia.
Threats. Not precisely known, most probably the limited distribution in this country and the loss of the preferred habitats.
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.
Conservation measures needed. Further survey of the status of the populations in any of the known localities.
References. Ganchev 1956; Jordanov & Panov 1966; Petrova 1984.
Authors: Boris Assyov, Cvetomir M. Denchev
