Adil GÜNER, Vehbi ESER - optima

Posters
122
ORCHIDS OF ANTALYA
�smail Gökhan DEN�Z
Akdeniz University, Faculty of Education, Department of Biology Education, Antalya; gdeniz@akdeniz.edu.tr
Turkey is one of the rich countries when considering the number of species belonging to the
Orchidaceae family. According to the results of the researches conducted in recent years,
approximately 170 orchid species growing naturally in Turkey have been identified. Antalya
and Mu�la regions stand out among the other places of Turkey with having approximately
three-quarters of Orchidaceae species distributing in our country. However, the salep flour
produced from the tubers of dried wild orchids, is used to make ice cream and a kind of
beverage. Vast quantities of tubers are collected for this reason. Although it is not allowed to
export the tubers any more, still the tubers are used in Turkey. On the other hand, urbanisation
and the custom of building summer homes in coastal areas where you find macchies and
phryganas are threating the species. According to the researches have been conducted since 6
years in Antalya, observed that the population of the species decreasing due to over collecting
and grazing. In this study, the orchid species distributing in Antalya are listed, along with
some photos, descriptions and the conservation project for the threatened endemic and rare
species.
Keywords: Antalya, conservation, endemic, Orchidaceae, salep
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