Saxifraga paradoxa explained

Saxifraga paradoxa, commonly known as the fragile saxifrage,[1] is a perennial plant species in the family Saxifragaceae,[2] which occurs as a tertiary relict and endemic Saxifraga species[3] in the South-Eastern Alps.[4] Count Kaspar Maria von Sternberg described this species in his work Revisio Saxifragarum iconibus of 1810.

Description

This perennial species is a deciduous to semi-deciduous low-growing plant that can reach up to 200NaN0 in height and can spread around for approximately 300NaN0 with its ascending to decumbent stems.[5] Its shining and small leaves are mid- to bright green, in shape usually reniform (kidney-like) and slightly lobed. Saxifraga paradoxa characteristic are also small pale green coloured flowers that have linearly-shaped petals, red anthers and are arranged into an axillary cyme.[6] The plant's flowering period is between May and August.[7]

Distribution and conservation

This Saxifraga species native range are South-Eastern Alps, with most of its populations inhabiting Slovenia and Austria. In Austria Saxifraga paradoxa occurs in Carinthia and Styria, while in Slovenia its growing area includes valleys of rivers Hudinja[8] and Lobnica (tributary of Drava)[9] near Pohorje, as well as Kozjak mountains and Košenjak. Its habitat usually consists of damp and shaded rocky screes with non-calcareous basis, mostly containing granite and gneiss.[10] After this species Slovakian botanist Ladislav Mucina named plant community Saxifragetum paradoxae, with Saxifraga paradoxa being its characteristic species.

Saxifraga paradoxa has not yet been evaluated for the IUCN Red List.[11]

Taxonomy

So-called European purple saxifrages (members of Saxifraga's section Porphyrion and subsection Oppositifoliae) are a big group of numerous taxa with uncertain taxonomic position, widely distributed in mountain ranges of central and southern Europe. Researchers studied their evolutionary relationship with a use of amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) fingerprinting and Saxifraga paradoxa was shown not to be genetically divergent taxon.[12] Recent research treats Saxifraga paradoxa as a member of Saxifraga's section Saxifraga and subsection Arachnoideae.[13] [14]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Saxifraga paradoxa Fragile saxifrage Zahlbrucknera Care Plant Varieties & Pruning Advice. 2021-08-21. www.shootgardening.co.uk. en.
  2. Web site: Saxifraga paradoxa Sternb.. 2021-08-21. www.gbif.org. en.
  3. Web site: Juvan. Nina. 2008. Vegetacija skalnih razpok silikatnega skalovja : diplomska naloga. 2021-08-21. repozitorij.uni-lj.si.
  4. Web site: Saxifraga paradoxa Sternb. Plants of the World Online Kew Science. 2021-08-21. Plants of the World Online. en.
  5. Web site: Saxifraga paradoxa. 2021-08-21. Alpine Garden Society. en.
  6. Web site: Praprotnik. Dr Nada. Deloindom - Kamnokreči: Prvaki rastlinskega sveta. 2021-08-21. deloindom.delo.si. sl.
  7. Web site: Pregled organizmov-Nenavadni kamnokreč. 2021-08-21. www.fito-info.si.
  8. Web site: Vitanje – Gremoven.com. 2021-08-21. en-US.
  9. Web site: Lobnica na Pohorju. 2021-08-21. Gore Ljudje. sl-SI.
  10. Web site: Endemische Pflanzen der Ostalpen - Veranstaltung Naturkundemuseum. 2021-08-21. www.museum-joanneum.at. de.
  11. Web site: Saxifraga paradoxa - Sternb.. 2021-08-21. eunis.eea.europa.eu.
  12. Winkler. Manuela. Tribsch. Andreas. Schneeweiss. Gerald M.. Brodbeck. Sabine. Gugerli. Felix. Holderegger. Rolf. Schönswetter. Peter. 2013-10-29. Strong nuclear differentiation contrasts with widespread sharing of plastid DNA haplotypes across taxa in European purple saxifrages (SaxifragasectionPorphyrionsubsectionOppositifoliae). Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society. 173. 4. 622–636. 10.1111/boj.12104. 0024-4074. free.
  13. Gerschwitz. Michael. Kadereit. Joachim W.. 2020. Species composition of Saxifraga sect. Saxifraga subsect. Arachnoideae (Saxifragaceae) based on DNA sequence evidence. Willdenowia . 50 . 2 . 225 . 10.3372/wi.50.50208 . 219466780 . en. 1868-6397. free.
  14. Tkach. Natalia. Röser. Martin. Suchan. Tomasz. Cieślak. Elżbieta. Schönswetter. Peter. Ronikier. Michał. 2019-01-11. Contrasting evolutionary origins of two mountain endemics: Saxifraga wahlenbergii (Western Carpathians) and S. styriaca (Eastern Alps). BMC Evolutionary Biology. 19. 1. 18. 10.1186/s12862-019-1355-x. 1471-2148. 6329101. 30634910 . free .

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