Genista sericea Wulfen subsp. pollinensis F.Conti, Feoli Chiapella & Bernardo, 2014

Conti, Fabio, Bernardo, Liliana, Velari, Tiziana Cusma, Kosovel, Vera & Chiapella, Laura Feoli, 2014, Morphometric and karyological study of Genista sericea (Cytiseae-Fabaceae), Phytotaxa 181 (2), pp. 61-78 : 72

Genista sericea Wulfen subsp. pollinensis F.Conti, Feoli Chiapella & Bernardo , subsp. nov.

It differs from subsp. sericea for the shorter flowers and leaves and from subsp. rigida for the longer calyx lower teeth, the shorter basal half of standard and the hairy upper surface of the leaves, observed in most leaves.

Type: ― ITALY. Calabria, Cosenza, Massiccio del Pollino, in località Petrosa (Frascineto), pendici meridionali, prateria a Stipa austroitalica ed Euphorbia spinosa , 650 m a.s.l., 13 June 2008, L. Bernardo s.n. (holotype, APP!; isotype, CLU!) (Fig. 6).

Low, branched shrub. Young woody stems strongly ribbed, hairy within the furrows, herbaceous stems hairy, appressed sericeous. Leaves alternate, simple, the basal ones obovate, the middle ones elliptic (4–)6.4(–9) × (1.5–)2.4(–4) mm in fertile stems, (4.5–)8.8(–16) × (1.5–)2.5(–3.8) mm in sterile stems, the flower-subtending leaves (4.2–)5.5(–8) × (1.2–)2.0(–3.7) mm, with appressed sericeous hairs on lower surface, upper hairy in most leaves. Flowers in congested terminal racemes with 2–4 flowers or sometimes borne singly. Bracteoles hairy, very short (0.5–)1(–1.6) mm. Pedicels 1–5 mm with erect-patent hairs. Calyx (4.2–)5.3(–6.5) mm, hairy, upper teeth (2.1–)2.7(–3.2) mm, lower teeth (0.9–)1.6(–2.4) mm. Corolla yellow; standard (8.4–)10.2(–11.1) × (6.2–)7.7(–8.7) mm, broadly ovate, sericeous on back, claw (1.4–)2.1(–2.7) mm, basal half (4.3–)5(–5.5) mm; wings (7.5–)9.6(–11.5) × (2–)2.5(–2.9) mm, glabrous with ciliate basal margin, claw (1.8–)2.3(–2.8) mm; keel (9.2–)10.2(–11.1) × (2.5–)2.7(–3) mm, sericeous on back, claw (1.9–)2.5(–3.1) mm. Stigma introrse. Legume (11–)13.3(–16.5) × (3.5–)4.1(–5) mm, hairy, 1–4 seeded. Seeds (2.5–)3(–3.5) × (1.5–)2.3(–2.8) mm, lens shaped, brown to dark brown.

Etymology: ―The subspecies name comes from its locus classicus Mt. Pollino.

Chromosome number: ―2n = 48.

Habitat: ―Garigues and sparse black pine forests on rocky calcareosus slopes, generally between 500 m and 1000 m a.s.l. The taxon is considered characteristic of the subass. genistetosum sericeae of Elaeoselino asclepii - Salvietum officinalis Lucchese, Persia & Pignatti 1995 ( Cutini et al. 2007). Previously, it was indicated as characteristic of Genisto sericeae-Pinetum nigrae Bonin 1978, an endemic association of the northern Calabria ( Bonin 1978).

Phenology: ―Flowering May–June.

Distribution: ―S-Italy, very localized on Southern slopes of Pollino Massif (Calabria) and on Tyrrhenian coastal ranges of Basilicata ( Fig. 2 ).

Conservation status: ― This taxon is assessed here as Vulnerable VU [B1ab(iii) + B2ab(iii)] according to IUCN Red List Categories ( IUCN 2014), because of a restricted range (350 Km 2), a small occupied surface (44 Km 2) and the limited number of locations (10), which are subjected both to human disturbance (i.e. frequent fire) and to vegetation dynamics; the latter is very fast in the Calabrian locations, basing on a recent survey on the Pollino massif ( Gargano et al. 2012).

Additional specimens seen (paratypes): ― ITALY. Cosenza : Calabria, M . Pollino , in pascuis rupestribus montanis, calc., 18 June 1898, G . Rigo s.n. ( W!); Locis lapidosis sterilibus ad pedem M . Pollino pr. Castrovillari , 6–700 m, 8 June 1877 , 600 m, Huter, Porta & Rigo s.n. (FI!); M. Pollino , salendo il Vallo di Gaudolino , 22 June 1899, A. Fiori s.n. (FI!); Falde meridionali del M. Pollino , 20 June 1899, A. Fiori s.n. (FI!); Pendici S del Pollinello , 1000 m, 2 May 1968, S . Pignatti s.n. ( TSB 84460!, 84461!, 86824!); Morano Calabro, Convento di Colloreto-Colle Gaudolino , 950 m, 24 July 1988, A . Codogno & M . Codogno s.n. ( TSB!); Pollino, Timpone Dolcetti , 9 June 1997, D. Puntillo s.n. ( TSB 84141!); Morano Calabro , 3 June 1997, A . Vaccaro s.n. ( TSB 84140!); Moschereto, Pollino , 8 June 1997, D. Puntillo & M . Puntillo s.n. ( CLU 10936!); Cozzo Cacarsella, Saracena , 900 m, 28 June 1998, L . Bernardo s.n. ( CLU 10938!); Vallone Colloreto, sotto il Convento, Morano Calabro , 800 m, 9 June 1997, L . Bernardo , M. Aversa & A. Beni s.n. (CLU 10939!); Pendici del Pollinello fra Vallone Torta e sorgente Sambuco , Morano , 900–1200 m, 1 June 1995, L. Bernardo s.n. ( CLU 10940!) ; Vallone Cornale, a monte dello svincolo A3 per Morano Calabro , 850–900 m, 20 May 1994, L . Bernardo & G. Maiorca s.n. ( CLU 10941!) ; Vallepiana, pendici di Serra Dolcedorme , Pollino , Castrovillari , 1000 m, 23 July 1993, L. Bernardo & N. Passalacqua s.n. ( CLU 10943!) ; Massiccio del Pollino, ca. 9 Km NNW of Castrovillari, Vallone Colloreto, 900–1000 m, 17 June 1997, Partecipanti VIII Iter mediterraneum s.n. ( CLU 10944!) ; La Petrosa , Frascineto , 650 m, 30 May 2007, L. Bernardo s.n. ( CLU 21699!, TSB 90582!) . Potenza : M . Coccovello, Maratea , 27 June 2001, L . Cancellieri s.n. ( APP!) .

Figures

FIGURE 2. Distribution of the different units.Yellow dots—Genista sericea subsp. sericea; red dots—Genista sericea subsp. rigida; blue dots—Genista sericea subsp. pollinensis.