Limonium elaphonisicum A. Mayer (1995: 96)

Brullo, Salvatore & Erben, Matthias, 2016, The genus Limonium (Plumbaginaceae) in Greece, Phytotaxa 240 (1), pp. 448-450 : 448-450

54. Limonium elaphonisicum A. Mayer (1995: 96) ( Fig. 54 )

Type:― GREECE. Crete: Crete, Ep. Selinos, bay between the island of Elafonisos and the cape of Krios. Collapsed beachrock / conglomerate reef partially covered by grey sands of medium size. Lon. 23° 33´E; lat. 35° 16´N; altitude: 3 m; exposure: SE, inclination: 14°; gravels, cobbles, large boulders present, 20 June 1990, Mayer 286 (holotype M!, isotype Herb. Mayer) .

Description: —Plant perennial, glabrous, forming a sub-shrub 25–50 cm tall, with numerous ascending to erect stems and a robust tap-root. Caudices 3–10 cm long, branched, densely spirally leafy in the upper half; living leaves in rosettes at apices. Leaves fleshy, green, verrucate, 15–40 mm long and 2–5 mm broad, narrowly oblanceolate, apex acute to obtuse, retuse, flat or v-shaped in cross-section, with one central nerve, gradually tapering into the petiole. Stems green, 20–45 cm long, verrucate, sometimes with many crateriform glands, flexuous, constricted at the nodes, branching begins near the base; rarely proliferating in axils. Inflorescence rhombic in outline. Sterile branches 1–9 per stem, 1–12 cm long, more or less straight, constricted at nodes, verrucate, undivided, only longer

122 • Phytotaxa 240 (1) © 2016 Magnolia Press

BRULLO & ERBEN LIMONIUM (PLUMBAGINACEAE)

Phytotaxa 240 (1) © 2016 Magnolia Press • 123 branches branched. Fertile branches 4–20 cm long, verrucate or tuberculate with many crateriform glands, constricted at nodes, straight to slightly curved, directed obliquely upwards, forming branching angles of 20°–40°, branched. Spikes 25–50 mm long, straight, directed obliquely upwards; often axis of spike with crateriform glands. Spikelets 8.0– 9.5 mm long, composed of 1–7 flowers, mostly very remotely arranged with 1–4 per 2 cm. Outer bract 2.5–3.5 mm long and 2.0– 2.6 mm broad, triangular-ovate, acute; bract margin broadly membranous; central part slightly fleshy, sometimes only at the base, acuminate. Middle bract membranous, 2.7–3.5 mm long and 2.0– 2.2 mm broad, oblong-elliptic, rounded. Inner bract 7.3–8.0 mm long and 3.5–4.2 mm broad, oblong-obovate, rounded; bract margin broadly membranous; central part fleshy, 4.6–6.0 mm long and 2.1–3.6 mm broad, oblong-elliptic, acuminate, forming a narrowly triangular tip, 0.8–1.2 mm long, not reaching the upper margin. Calyx 5.0– 6.1 mm long, exceeding the inner bract by 1.0– 1.5 mm; calyx tube sparsely shortly to long hairy, only sometimes glabrous, with 5 ribs ending at or shortly before the base of lobes; calyx lobes ca. 0.7 × 0.9 mm, semi-elliptic. Corolla pale blue.

Distribution: —Confined to the southwestern coast of Crete, between Cap Elafonisos and Cap Krios ( Fig. 88D ).

Habitat: —Calcareous rocky coast and sandy places.

Taxonomic remarks: —Habit and several features regarding the stems, leaves and spikelets show that L. elaphonisicum is closely related to L. chersonesum , from which it differs by having green stems and leaves and longer inner bracts.

Specimens examined: — GREECE. Crete: W-Teil der Insel Elafonisi, Flugsand, 5–30 m, 31 May 1982, Greuter & Risse s.n. (B); Insel Elafonisi, Sanddünen und Felsblöcke, 1–25 m, 24 September 1985, Risse 2037 (B); Crete, bay between the island of Elafonisos and the cape of Krios , 20 June 1990, A. Mayer 0681 (M); Creta, Capo Krios, 5 June 2000, Brullo & Giusso s.n. (CAT, Herb. Erben); Creta, isola di Elafonisos, 30 August 2006, Brullo & Giusso s.n. (CAT); Creta, isola di Elafonisos, affioramenti arenacei, 9 July 2012, Bacchetta, Brullo Giusso s.n. (CAT) .

Figures

FIGURE 54. Limonium elaphonisicum A. Mayer. A) Habit; B) Spikelet; C) Outer bract; D) Middle bract; E) Inner bract; F) Calyx; G) Calyx lobes; H) Leaves. (Habit and leaves drawn from “Creta, isola di Elafonisos, Brullo & Giusso s.n., CAT”, spikelet details from “A. Mayer 286, M”).

FIGURE 88. (Map 3) Geographical distribution of Limonium amopicum (A); L. doerfleri (B); L. ikaricum (C); L. elaphonisicum (D); L. creticum (E); L. damboldtianum (F); L. astypaleanum (G); L. glomeratum (H); L. grabusae (I); L. isidorum (J); L. cythereum (K); L. kirikosicum (L); L. dolihiense (M); L. minoicum (N).