engleski

Convolvulus sabatius – JUST A CASUAL ALIEN PLANT IN DALMATIA OR…?

The genus Convolvulus L. is distributed worldwide and represented with approximately 200 taxa, with the greatest diversity in the Irano-Turanian and Mediterranean regions. Although the genus is of relatively small economic value, several species produce attractive flowers and are therefore cultivated. One of them is C. sabatius Viviani (syn. C. mauritanicus Boissier), native species of Magreb (Africa) and in Italy, popular for its beautiful funnel-shaped, violet-blue flowers. The plant is perennial, pubescent, with branched, woody stocks and petiolate, orbicular to oblong leaves. First observation of C. sabatius in the flora of Croatia was recorded for the town of Omiš (Tafra et al. 2012). It was reported just as a cultivated plant, without the ability to spread out. However, we observed the same plant species in the summer of 2011 in the city of Kaštela or, more precisely, in the settlement Rudine of Kaštel Novi. The population was growing outside of cultivation, on a meadow with a strong anthropogenic influence, covering an area of approximately 6 m2. The plant grows together with the species Cynodon dactylon, Digitaria sanguinalis, Lolium perenne, Cichorium intybus, Oxalis corniculata, etc. Since then, we have noted that population every summer and in 2016 the population still occupies the same area. Even we assume that C. sabatius is a casual alien plant, it might become the first established population in Dalmatia so our caution is needed and possible monitoring in the future is recommended. Namely, according to the DAISIE database, the same species is an established alien plant in Greece, which has, at least partly, similar climatic conditions as Dalmatia.

allochthonous plant ; Convolvulaceae ; Croatia ; new alien taxon

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