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Die Orchideen von Zypern: Beschreibung, Lebensweise, Verbreitung, Gefährdung, Schutz und Ikonographie / The Orchids of Cyprus: Description, Pattern of Life, Distribution, Threat, Conservation and Iconography.
Abstract
For many people who are interested in botany, and especially those who want to get to know the orchids of the eastern Mediterranean region, Cyprus was and is a popular travel destination. Almost every nature-enthusiast, who is interested in Mediterranean orchids, has visited Cyprus once, or maybe even several times. This can be explained by the fact that many eastern Mediterranean and very rare orchid species occur on this island, for example Epipactis condensata, Epipactis veratrifolia, Ophrys bornmuelleri, Ophrys flavomarginata, Ophrys lapethica and Orchis punctulata, and these species are easily accessible. Cyprus presents an abundance of orchid biotopes and a multitude of species, some of which are endemic, especially in the southern and central parts of the island. Unfortunately, nowadays many habitats, especially in the coastal regions, are threatened by, or have already been lost to mass tourism.
The most recent status of research into the orchid flora of Cyprus, which is characterized by its beauty and its interesting pollination biology, is documented in this book. All data that was at the disposal of the author can be found in this book, supplemented by the knowledge and experience of the author. Besides chapters on geography, the landscapes of Cyprus and its orchids, climate, vegetation, conservation and threats, this book also treats the taxonomy and nomenclature of the entire orchid flora of Cyprus. Special attention is given to the species groups of Ophrys sphegodes-mammosa and Serapias. Furthermore, doubtful findings or false identifications are dealt with in detailed argument. Numerous photographic images of all orchid species are shown. Moreover, some hybrids, as well as many biotopes are also pictured. Detailed distribution maps in a UTM-2 km grid give an overview of the distribution of the 52 orchid species of Cyprus, which are known up to now.
... The causes include overgrazing or lack of grazing, intensification of cultivation (especially in the case of olive groves), growing tourism at coastal areas, agricultural use of rivers for watering (leading to local drought) (Kretzschmar, Kretzschmar, & Eccarius, 2004;Kreutz, 2004). Therefore, small patches of remnant, seminatural vegetation with multiple threatened species became of conservation concern. ...
... In case where orchids were present these parameters were recorded for every individual, while if orchids were absent the parameters were recorded every 10 m along a 50 m road section. Where orchids were found, we additionally recorded the de- Taxa were identified following Kreutz (2004), Kretzschmar et al. (2004) and Delforge (2006). Total number of orchid species occurring in Cyprus and Crete were quantified based on Delforge (2006), while in Lesbos based on Karatzas and Karatza (2009). ...
Several important habitats have become threatened in the last few centuries in the Mediterranean Basin due to major changes adopted in land‐use practices. The consequent loss of natural and seminatural orchid habitats leads to the appreciation of small anthropogenic habitats, such as cemeteries and roadside verges. Colonization of cemeteries and roadside verges by orchids has long been known, but no study to date compared the suitability of these two anthropogenic habitats for orchids. Therefore, in this paper our aim was to survey cemeteries and roadside verges and to compare these two habitats regarding their role in conserving Mediterranean terrestrial orchids. We conducted field surveys in three Mediterranean islands, Cyprus, Crete, and Lesbos, where both cemeteries and roadside verges were sampled on a geographically representative scale. We found a total of almost 7,000 orchid individuals, belonging to 77 species in the two anthropogenic habitat types. Roadside verges hosted significantly more individuals than cemeteries in Crete and Lesbos, and significantly more species across all three islands. Our results suggest that although cemeteries have a great potential conservation value in other parts of the world, intensive maintenance practices that characterized cemeteries in these three islands renders them unable to sustain valuable plant communities. On the other hand, roadside verges play a prominent role in the conservation of Mediterranean orchids in Cyprus and Greece. The pioneer status of roadside verges facilitates their fast colonization, while roads serve as ecological corridors in fragmented landscapes.
... Specifically on Orchidaceae, one book has illustrated Lebanese orchids in the field (Haber and Semaan-Haber 2009) with many novelties suggested for Lebanon, but without any discussion. In contrast, numerous works specializing in the taxonomy of orchids from Lebanon or from the Levant area were recently published (Kreutz 1998Kreutz , 2004Kreutz , 2006Kreutz , 2007aKreutz , 2007bKreutz , 2014 Schönfelder and Schönfelder 2001; Kreutz, Segers, and Walraven 2002; Baumann 2005a, 2005b; Shifman 2008 Shifman , 2014). The only study proposing a revised, although partial, checklist for Lebanon and Syria is by Kreutz (2006), but it is limited to the taxa encountered by him and is now outdated. ...
... This poorly known species was considered endemic to Cyprus since its description (Kreutz, Segers, and Walraven 2002, Kreutz 2004). It is clearly distinct from Ophrys mammosa complex, except for some superficial similarities with the Pontic Ophrys caucasica Woronow or the Peloponnesian Ophrys aesculapii Renz. ...
Since the publication of the last Lebanese and Syrian classical flora, the only complete work on Lebanese flora is an illustrated book based on the same taxonomy and nomenclature with a few exceptions and some additions. Specifically on the Lebanese orchids, one book has illustrated orchids in the field with an unusual taxonomic point of view. Several Euro-Mediterranean monographs propose a conflicting taxonomy that is not always useful in identifying living specimens. Several years of exploration throughout Lebanon allowed the authors to build considerable knowledge of the orchid flora and its taxonomy. Other works made on adjacent areas completed the investigations and provided some useful indications to build taxonomic understanding and compile a preliminary checklist of Orchidaceae. Historical nomenclature was reanalysed from a modern point of view; recent critical appellations were confronted with biogeography and integrative evolutionary taxonomy, and some poorly known taxa are highlighted and their taxonomy is reinvestigated. A total of 51 species and subspecies are listed for Lebanon. Two new chorological records for Lebanon (Epipactis helleborine " subsp. praecox " nom. provis.; Ophrys alasiatica) and four new nomenclatural combinations (Androrchis × ehdenica, Epipactis helleborine subsp. turcica, Ophrys episcopalis subsp. libanotica, Serapias vomeracea subsp. levantina) are presented. At least 14 taxa are regionally endemic, seven of which are limited to two border countries, the other seven being too poorly known for conclusions about their biogeography.
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