El Mokni & Al. Cactaceae New to Tunisian Flora, Bradleya 2020
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Bradleya 38/2020 pages 35–50 New records of cacti (Opuntioideae & Cactoideae, Cactaceae) from Tunisia Ridha El Mokni 1,2,3 , Filip Verloove 4, Alessandro Guiggi 5 & Mohamed Hédi El Aouni 1 1. University of Carthage, Laboratory of Botany and Plant Ecology (SNA-214), Department of Life Sciences, Faculty of Sciences of Bizerta, Jarzouna, 7021, Bizerte, Tunisia. (email: riridah@hot - mail.com) 2. University of Jendouba, Laboratory of Silvo-Pastoral Resources, Silvo-Pastoral Institute of Tabarka, BP. 345, 8110-Tabarka, Tunisia. 3. University of Monastir, Laboratory of Botany, Cryptogamy and Plant Biology, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences “A”, Faculty of Pharmacy of Monastir, Avenue Avicenna, 5000-Monastir, Tunisia. 4. Botanic Garden of Meise, Nieuwelaan 38, B-1860 Meise, Belgium. (email: [email protected]) 5. DISTAV, Polo Botanico, Università degli Studi di Genova, International Cactaceae Research Cen - ter (ICRC), Corso Dogali, 1M - 16136 Genova, Italy. (email: [email protected]) Photographs: Ridha El Mokni. Summary : Botanical surveys undertaken in Cen - Beschreibungen gegeben, Kommentare zu ihrem tral and Northern Tunisia (North Africa), mostly aktueller Status werden angegeben und Fotos wer - between 2012 and 2018, have revealed first records den bereitgestellt. and/or new distributional records for non-native succulents (sensu lato) belonging to the Cactaceae Introduction family. Some can be considered naturalised or even Succulents are found across the globe in nearly potentially invasive [e.g. Opuntia dillenii (Ker all types of habitat, but most often in arid or semi- Gawl.) Haw.], whereas others are here reported for arid parts of the world. They are specially adapted the first time for North Africa, either as recently to deal with dry, desert-like conditions, and able to naturalised or casual, e.g.: Echinopsis eyriesii store water in one or more of their organs; their (Turpin) Zuccarini, Opuntia dejecta Salm-Dyck, O. leaves, stems, or roots are often filled with water- lindheimeri Engelm., O. monacantha Haw and O. storing tissue and are thus unusually fleshy and robusta J.C. Wendl. ex Pfeiff. Short descriptions are enlarged. The Cactaceae family is distinguished given for each of these species, comments on their from the other succulent plant families (i.e. actual status were pointed out and field photo - Agavaceae, Aloaceae, Euphorbiaceae, etc.) by the graphs are provided. presence of small rounded woolly areas normally localized along the ribs of the plant (known as are - Zusammenfassung : Botanische Untersuchungen in oles) from which new segments, flowers and spines Zentral- und Nordtunesien (Nordafrika), haupt - are developing (retrieved from https://www.iucn.org sächlich zwischen 2012 und 2018, haben erste /ssc-groups/plants-fungi/cactus-and-succulent- Aufzeichnungen und/oder neue Beobachtungen für plants-specialist-group/what-are-cacti-and-succu - nicht-einheimische Sukkulenten (sensu lato) aus lents). Cactus roots are generally less specialized in der Cactaceae-Familie ergeben. Einige können als morphology than the above-ground vegetative eingebürgert oder sogar potentiell invasiv angese - parts. They have a shallow distribution, which en - hen werden [als Opuntia dillenii (Ker Gawl.) ables them to exploit limited rainfall, and are rich Haw.], während andere hier zum ersten Mal für in root hairs. Associations with fungi and bacteria Nordafrika berichtet werden, entweder vor kurzem can improve the capture of mineral nutrients eingebürgert oder vorübergegend: Echinopsis ey - (Dubrovsky & North, 2002; Land Protection, 2006). riesii (Link) Zucc. ex Pfeiff. & Otto, Opuntia dejecta Recent classifications of Cactaceae recognize Salm-Dyck, Opuntia lindheimeri Engelm., O. four subfamilies (Anderson, 2001; Wallace & Gib - monacantha Haw und O. robusta J. C. Wendl. ex son, 2002; Nyffeler, 2002) including Cactoideae Pfeiff. Für jede dieser Arten werden kurze with 1,222 species (the highest diversity) where Bradleya 38/2020 35 A B C D Figure 1. Austrocylindropuntia subulata , A. Monastir city, coastal area, 3rd January 2017; B. Monastir city, coastal area, clayey slope, 30th May 2019; C. & D. Monastir city, coastal area, clayey slope, 12th June 2018. species have stems with ribs or tubercles and aroles 2009; Guiggi, 2008, 2010, 2014; Guillot et al., 2014; without glochids (Gibson & Nobel, 1986) and Op - Verloove, 2016; Verloove et al., 2017a & b). In untioideae with about 186 species where species North Africa, very few papers have dealt with the are articulated cacti with flat, cylindrical or globu - inventory of Cactaceae (Véla, 2013), hence the orig - lar stem-segments (Gibson & Nobel ,1986; Ter - inality of the present work where 12 taxa are pre - razas-Salgado & Mauseth, 2002). sented and illustrated, most of them not previously The first reports of the cultivation of cacti in Eu - reported for the non-native Tunisian or even North rope date back to the 1500’s, following their intro - African flora. Several species, e.g. Opuntia dejecta duction from the Americas (Howard & Touw, 1981) Salm-Dyck, Opuntia lindheimeri Engelm. O. and soon became common in European collections monacantha Haw. and O. robusta H.L. Wendl. ex and gardens (Anderson, 2001). Today, Europe pro - Pfeiff. are here reported for the first time from duces millions of propagated cacti per year from its North Africa. horticultural industry. However, there remains a persistent demand for species collected from the Materials and Methods wild (McGough et al., 2014). Thus, many introduced Field work carried out by the first and the succulents have been reported as alien species (see fourth authors ( pro parte ) within Central and e.g., Guillot & van der Meer, 2004; Guillot & Lodé, Northern Tunisia (North Africa), mostly between 36 Bradleya 38/2020 2012 and 2018, has revealed new national and even Bab-Bnat, one single population on the roadside, North African records. All records here reported are 36°47′51″N, 10°09′51″ W, 67m a.s.l., 05.03.2018, R. documented by short descriptions of each species. El Mokni s.c. ; Sousse: towards motorway, one sin - The actual degree of naturalization for each taxon gle extended population on the roadside, is assessed based on numerous sources such as 35°50′01″N, 10°33′52″ W, 45m a.s.l., 02.01.2017, R. Richardson et al. (2000), Occhipinti-Ambrogi & El Mokni s.c. ; Monastir: Menzel Harb towards Galil (2004), Richardson & Pyšek (2006), Pyšek et Monastir’s airport, one huge population growing on al. (2004) or Richardson (2011). Further comments the roadside, 35°45′49″N, 10°43′12″ W, 13m a.s.l., on distribution, habitats occupied, etc. and field 11.03.2018, R. El Mokni s.c. photographs of most of them are also presented. The second and third authors assisted with the Probably native only to the Andes of Peru, Aus - identification of most of the species. trocylindropuntia subulata is now one of the most The paper is divided in two parts in both of widely distributed opuntioids of South America, which the taxa are arranged in alphabetical se - particularly in Argentina and Bolivia where it is quence. Nomenclature of the taxa presented is widely cultivated as natural fencing. It has widely mostly in accordance with recent sources (cf. APD, naturalised in parts of southern Europe and in the 2019; Korotkova & Raab-Straube, 2017; online tropics where it was initially introduced as an or - database http://www.llifle.com/Encyclopedia/ namental. CACTI/Family/Cactaceae/). Description: Stem (trunk) 6 to 10cm in diame - ter, the old bark smooth and brown, its areoles Results bearing clusters of 8 spines or more, branches nu - 1. OpuntIOIDeAe SuBFAMIly merous, elongate, unsegmented, 30–50cm long, 4– 1.1 Austrocylindropuntia subulata (Muehlenpf.) 7cm in diameter, more or less clustered but not Backeb., Cactaceae Jahrb. Kakteen . Pereskioideae whorled, at first almost at right angles to main Opuntioideae 1941(2 ): 12. 1942. (Figure 1) stem but soon erect, somewhat fragile, bright ≡ Opuntia subulata (Muehlenpf.) Engelm., Gard. green. Areoles, shortly woolly, sitting in the retuse Chron. 19 : 627. 1883. grooves on upper parts of the tubercles. ≡ Pereskia subulata Muehlenpf., Allgem. Garten - Leaves, persistent for more than a year, green, zeitung 13 : 347. 1845. more succulent than on other species, awl-like, ≡ Cylindropuntia subulata (Muehlenpf.) F.M. nearly at right angles to branch, straight or some - Knuth in Backeb. & F.M. Knuth, Kaktus-ABC : 121. what bowed above, nearly terete, pointed, 5 to 12cm 1936. long, grooved on the underside. Spines, usually 1 or New for the non-native flora of Tunisia and sec - 2 or sometimes spineless (more numerous in older ond record for the flora of North Africa (APD, 2019; stems), slender, erect, strong, straight, pale yellow Korotkova & Raab-Straube, 2017). to greyish white, to 8cm long. Flowers borne toward the ends of the branches, red, not opening widely to TUNISIA: Jendouba: Route Bulla Regia, one single 6cm long. Pericarpels long, tuberculate, awl-like, population on the roadside, 36°31′20″N, with erect scales to 2cm long. Sepals reddish, 08°45′05″ W, 169m a.s.l., 24.03.2018, R. El Mokni minute, 4 to 8mm long or less. Petals broader than s.c. ; idem , Jleyleya, one single extended population the sepals, orange-red or greenish yellow. Style on the roadside, 36°32′57″N, 08°43′06″ W, 206m rose-red except for the whitish base, including the a.s.l., 13.10. 2004–01.08.2017, R. El Mokni s.c. ; stigma-lobes about 3cm long, about as long as the Route Boussalem, after the Bridge “Five Dinars”, longest stamens. Stigma-lobes 5 or 6, slender, or - 36°24′ 02″N, 08°53′58″ W, 157m a.s.l., 01.08.2017, ange-yellow. Fruits, ovoid to oblong to club shaped, R. El Mokni s.c. ; Tabarka, one single population on more or less persistent, sometimes spiny, 6 to 10cm the roadside towards touristic route, 36°57′00″N, long, leafy, with a deep umbilicus, sometimes pro - 08°46′20″ W, 29m a.s.l., 24.10.2014-24.01.2018, R.