Contribution to the study of Adriatic island flora: Vascular plant species diversity in the Croatian Island of Olib

Abstract

This paper is a first contribution to knowledge of the vascular plant species diversity of the NE Adriatic Island of Olib (26.13 km 2 ). The total vascular flora of the island comprises 465 taxa of native and naturalised vascular plants, and 69 commonly cultivated taxa. The Mediterranean character of Olib flora is reflected by a large proportion of taxa belonging to the families Poaceae, Fabaceae and Asteraceae and a clear domination of the steno-Mediterranean plants, accompanied by a high percentage of therophytes. Although a low level of human influence is shown, the presence of exotic taxa outside cultivation has to be monitored due to their potential naturalisation. With this in mind, this article aimed at updating the statuses of the species Ipomoea quamoclit and Aptenia cordifolia in the checklist of Croatian vascular plants. Ovaj rad prvi je prilog poznavanju raznolikosti vaskularne flore sjevernojadranskog otoka Oliba (26,13 km 2 ), koja prema našem istraživanju obuhvaća 465 domaćih i udomaćenih biljnih svojta te 69 češće uzgajanih vrsta. Sredozemni karakter olipske flore ogleda se u velikoj zastupljenosti svojta iz porodica Poaceae, Fabaceae i Asteraceae, te prevladavanju steno-mediteranskih vrsta s visokim udjelom jednoljetnica (terofiti). Usprkos tome što je utjecaj čovjeka na otoku danas slab, pronašli smo više stranih vrsta izbjeglih iz uzgoja, što ukazuje na potrebu nadziranja njihovog budućeg širenja i mogućeg udomaćivanja. Smatramo potrebnim i da se vrste Ipomoea quamoclit i Aptenia cordifolia uključe u popis hrvatske flore.Ključne riječi: vaskularne biljke, raznolikost, otok Olib, istočni Jadran, Sredozemlje INTRODUCTIONThe Mediterranean basin is the second largest biodiversity hotspot on Earth, the largest of the world's five Mediterranean-climate regions and third richest hotspot in terms of its plant diversity (Mittermeier et al., 2004). Circum-Mediterranean countries house about 25,000 plant species, almost one tenth of the world's vascular flora, 63 % of which are endemic (Greuter, 1991;Médail & Quézel, 1997, 1999 origins exist in the Mediterranean basin and their wide ranges of altitudes, substrates and morphologies, as well as human activities, have resulted in the evolution of a highly diversified flora (e.g. Snogerup, 1985;Hulme, 2004; Vogiatzakis & Griffiths, 2008). Generally, the islands are highly vulnerable ecosystems on which intense environmental fluctuations or human interference, even of a low intensity, can considerably affect the flora and vegetation (Vidal et al., 1998;Panitsa & Tzanoudakis, 2010).In the northern section of the Mediterranean Sea, the Adriatic basin forms its most important part. The Adriatic Sea comprises over 1,300 islands and isles, mostly located along its eastern, Croatian, coast, which are considered among the most diverse in the Mediterranean region. Generally, the Dalmatian coast could be also defined as a hotspot, but the data on its flora are still incomplete (Médail & Quézel, 1997). An estimation using the species-area relationship analysis (SAR) fo...

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