Abstracts, XIV OPTIMA Meeting, Palermo (Italy) , 9-15

XIV OPTIMA Meeting, Palermo (Italy), 9-15 September 2013
Karyological studies on some endemic and rare species of Kefalonia
SAMAROPOULOU S., ARTELARI R., KAMARI G.
Laboratory of Botany, Section of Plant Biology, Department of Biology, University of Patras, Patras, Greece. E-mail:
ssamaro@hotmail.com
Karyological investigations contribute significantly to biosystematic studies and play a significant
role in the distinction of some morphologically indistinguishable taxa.
Kefalonia is the largest island of the Ionian Sea (West Greece) and has a very rich flora. Although
only a few, i.e. 5 taxa have been found to be stenoendemic of the island, a lot of Greek endemic species
are also distributed there. Among other things, this implies that Kefalonia is an island, derived from the
mainland, rather than from the sea. For instance, it is the only island of Greece characterized by an
Abies cephalonica fir forest, with Mt. Ainos being its “locus classicus”. Based on its floristic elements
and their distribution, Kefalonia belongs to the Adriatic-Ionian phytogeographical region.
During this study, endemic and rare species of Kefalonia were karyologically examined, following
their cultivation in the Experimental Botanic Garden of the University of Patras. Apart from their chromosome
numbers and comments on the karyotype morphology, data are also given about their habitat,
and on potential threats.
Finally, an attempt is being made to assess the conservation status of their populations and suggest
measures for their protection and sustainable management.
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