Vicia amphicarpa
Vicia amphicarpa Dorth.
Fabaceae – Pea family
Conservation status. Endangered [EN A3c; B1ab(ii,iv); D].
Morphology and biology. Annual. Forms underground shoots with cleistogamous flowers. Stems 20–80 cm. Leaves pinnate, with 3–4 pairs of linear-cuneate leaflets. Calyx teeth shorter than the tube. Standard purple violet. Legume 3–3.5 cm long, 4–5 mm wide, smooth, almost glabrous, dark brown, with 8–10 seeds. Seeds 3.8–4 mm long, 4.5–5 mm wide. Fl. V–VI, fr. VII–VIII. Insect or self-pollinated. Reproduction by seeds.
Habitats and populations. Grows in dry, calcareous grasslands, among shrubs of Paliurus spina-christi and others, in the xerothermic oak forests up to the beech belts.
Distribution in Bulgaria. Slavyanka Mt (Stargach massif, above Ilinden village, Gotse Delchev region), Pirin Mts (southern – Melnik), Rila Mts (in the vicinity of Rila Monastery), Thracian Lowlands (Isperihovo village, Pazardzhik district); from 100 up to 1200 m alt.
General distribution. S Europe, Mediterranean area, SW Asia, Crimea.
Threats. Exploitation of marble quarries (Pazardzhik and Gotse Delchev regions), grazing and road construction.
Conservation measures taken. Some localities are within sites of the European ecological network Natura 2000 in Bulgaria.
Conservation measures needed. Proclamation of the species localities near Isperihovo and Ilinden (Gotse Delchev region) for protected sites.
References. Kuzmanov 1976; Terziiski 1984.
Author: Dimitar Dimitrov
