An updated inventory of the vascular flora of the Island of Montecristo (Tuscan Archipelago, Italy)

By

Siccardi, Eugenia
Ferretti, Giulio
Foggi, Bruno
Mugnai, Michele
Bardaro, Maria Rosaria Pasqualina
Landi, Marco
Quilghini, Giovanni
Zoccola, Antonio
Lazzaro, Lorenzo

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2025-3-19

Original Publication

Comparative cytogenetics : international journal of plant & animal cytogenetics, karyosystematics and molecular systematics

Volume

19

Pages

87--106

Subjects

alien plant species , Biodiversity , endemics , floristic studies , Mediterranean island , taxonomy

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

St. Petersburg, Russia [Published] with technical support of Zoological Institute RAS [2007]-

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/italianbotanist.19.139675

 

Abstract

We present an updated inventory of the vascular flora of the island of Montecristo (Tuscan Archipelago, Italy). The inventory has been updated based on a comprehensive bibliographical revision of floristic floras and previous inventories, together with the revision of herbarium specimens already preserved in Tuscan Herbaria and the implementation of survey campaigns carried out on the island between 2011 and 2024. The inventory counts 582 specific and subspecific taxa currently present on the island (including 515 spontaneous taxa and 67 cultivated ones), the highest number of species ever recorded on the island. Since 2000, 45 new to Montecristo Island, and 28 species confirmed after one century. We excluded 14 species, 8 of which were the result of a revision of herbarium material, which led to the correction of previous erroneous identification or due to the description of new taxa, such as Saxifraga montis-christi Mannocci, Ferretti, Mazzoncini & Viciani. The characterisation of the flora of Montecristo is consistent with the Mediterranean climate of the island in terms of life forms and chorotypes. The analysis showed that the main geographical distribution elements are Eurosiberian-Mediterranean and Mediterranean species, while the predominant life form is the therophyte. From a floristic point of view within the Tuscan Archipelago, Montecristo is the poorest island in terms of species and has the highest amount of endemism in relation to its surface area.