Verbascum minutiflorum
Verbascum minutiflorum Stef.
Scrophulariaceae – Figwort family
Conservation status. Critically Endangered [CR B1ab(iii)+2ab(iii)]. BDA. Bulgarian endemic.
Morphology and biology. Herbaceous perennial. Basal leaves up to 30 cm long and 12 cm wide, ovate to ovate-lanceolate, acute at apex, sparsely pubescent above, tomentose beneath, cuneate at base, with petiole 10–12 cm long. Cauline leaves smaller, with shorter petioles. Flowers 8–12(20) in a dichasium, each flower with 2 bracteoles. Corolla 5–10 mm in diameter, yellow, glabrous inside, with sparse stellate hairs outside. Stamens 5, filaments with violet hairs, the lower 2 glabrous in the upper part; anthers all reniform. Fruit a capsule. Fl. VII–VIII, fr. VIII–X. Insect pollination. Reproduction by seeds.
Habitats and populations. Grows in open grasslands, glades, sometimes by and within settlements. Forms a strongly fragmented population; fragments are small.
Distribution in Bulgaria. Balkan Range (eastern – Kamchiiska Mt., hunting reserve Sherba, extending to the north to Grozdyovo village and to Eleshnitsa dam westwards); up to 100 m alt.
General distribution. Bulgaria.
Threats. Major threat is habitat degradation, caused by urban development, tourism activities and afforestation.
Conservation measures taken. Protected species according to the national Biodiversity Act. Some localities are situated in a site of the European ecological network Natura 2000 in Bulgaria.
Conservation measures needed. More precise estimation of the population size and area of distribution, research into species biology and ecology as well as threats; protection and maintenance of habitats and the area occupied.
References. Stefanoff 1965; Stefanova-Gateva 1995.
Authors: Desislava Sopotlieva & Boris Assyov
