Newsletter Nº 38 (1-2) May 2009 OPTIMA Newsletter OPTIMA Newsletter is a news journal OPTIMA Secretariat for the presentation and discussion of Via Lincoln 2/A issues pertinent to Mediterranean I-90123 Palermo, Italy. Tel.: + 39 091 6238232 botany, published by the Secretariat of Fax: + 39 091 6238203 the Organization for the Phyto- E-mail: [email protected] Taxonomic Investigation of the http://www.optima-bot.org Mediterranean Area. ISSN 0376-5016 38: 1-31, (1)-(78), (2009), OPTIMA Newslett. The OPTIMA Secretariat gratefully acknowledges the support of: Dipartimento di Scienze Botaniche Herbarium Mediterraneum Università degli Studi di Palermo Panormitanum Informateur OPTIMA / OPTIMA Newsletter Editors: W. Greuter and G. Domina Layout: M. J. Albert Organization for the Phyto-Taxonomic Investigation of the Mediterranean Area Executive Council 2007-2013 International Board 2007-2013 President: Francesco M. Raimondo, Italy Members: Vice-President: Georgia Kamari, Greece Loutfy Boulos, Egypt Secretary: Werner Greuter, Switzerland Theophanis Constantinidis, Greece Treasurer: Gianniantonio Domina, Italy Avinoam Danin, Israel Members: Tuna Ekim, Turkey Mohammed Fennane, Morocco Eleonora Gabrielian, Armenia Vernon H. Heywood, U. K. José M. Iriondo, Spain Daniel Jeanmonod, Switzerland Nejc Jogan, Slovenia Uzi Plitmann, Israel Stephen Jury, U. K. Benito Valdés, Spain Karol Marhold, Slovak Republic Olja Vasić, Yugoslavia Joël Mathez, France Fréderic Médail, France Christoph Oberprieler, Germany Silvano Onofri, Italy Dražena Papeš, Croatia Auditors Fátima Sales, Portugal Sonja Šiljak-Yakovlev, France Pietro Mazzola, Italy Arne Strid, Sweden Giuseppe Venturella, Italy Pertti Uotila, Finland Ernst Vitek, Austria Vladimir Vladimirov, Bulgaria and the components of the Executive Council Printed in May 2009 by Tipolitografia Luxograph, Palermo (150 copies). OPTIMA NEWSLETTER OPTIMA NEWSLETTER OPTIMA NEWSLETTER EDITORIAL When a newsletter mainly includes “olds” rather now freely available (admittedly, they may still produce than news – as is bound to happen when it is produced funny results occasionally – have fun!) A non-edited every few years rather than several times per year – sample of this paragraph, using Voilà traduction there is a problem. When we accepted to take charge (http://tr.voila.fr/traduction_voila.php), follows. of the OPTIMA Secretariat at its new Palermo location En parlant de la langue, vous pouvez noter we were well aware of that problem and were deter- que tous les textes dans la présente édition sont mined to solve it. Once again, finding and implement- écrits dans l'anglais. Ce n'est pas, pouvons nous ing a solution has taken some time, but now we are insister, un départ de la nature fondamentalement there – or so we hope. bilingue d'OPTIMUMS. Les textes soumis à nous The new style OPTIMA Newsletter is a com- dans le français sont acceptables comme aupara- plement to the OPTIMA Web pages, or if you wish, it is vant. Pourtant, la convenance et les considérations a consolidated version of recent, relevant contents of pratiques nous empêchent de produire des versions that Web site. It is produced once every year, to be bilingues d'articles de forum, comme a été fait aupa- sent by electronic mail to all Members; it also exists as ravant. 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Note that Optima Membership. these advance news items will not be formatted nor Address changes: should your e-mail ad- edited linguistically, as they will be when subsequently dress change, please notify the OPTIMA Secre- incorporated into the annual consolidated version. tariat immediately. Speaking of language, you may note that all texts Tailoring our services to your needs: The de- in the present issue are written in English. This is not, fault option is for OPTIMA Members to receive the may we stress, a departure from OPTIMA’s basically news items and consolidated Newsletter in full, as e- bilingual nature. Texts submitted to us in French are mail attachments. At your discretion, you may cancel acceptable as before. However, expediency and practi- that service; or, to save mailbox space, you may re- cal considerations prevent us from producing bilingual place it by e-mail notification of the corresponding link versions of news items, as was done before. In our to the OPTIMA Web pages. Please instruct. experience, all but every OPTIMA Member has a read- ing knowledge of the English language, and for the few Palermo, April 2009 who have not, automatic translation programmes are Werner Greuter and Gianniantonio Domina May 2009 OPTIMA Newsletter No. 38 1 OPTIMA NEWSLETTER OPTIMA NEWSLETTER OPTIMA NEWSLETTER PUBLICATIONS OFFER THE MED-CHECKLIST COMPOSITAE VOLUME AVAILABLE AT LAST! Werner Greuter, Med-Checklist. A critical published in the volume (Appendix VI); and (9), an inventory of vascular plants of the circum- index of scientific names. Mediterranean countries, 2. Dicotyledones (Com- The first impression of the book is the awe- positae), edited by Werner Greuter and Eckhard some bulk, requiring physical strength and suffi- von Raab-Straube (Pilosella by Siegfried Bräuti- cient space to consult it! Surprisingly, it is not that gam & Werner Greuter; Taraxacum by Jan Kir- heavy (printed on thin paper) with its 1085 pages schner, Jan Štěpánek & Werner Greuter). OP- reflecting the huge amount of work carried out TIMA Secretariat, Palermo, Med-Checklist Trust mainly by Werner Greuter, one of the founders of of OPTIMA, Genève, and Euro+Med Plantbase the series! The introductory part tells the reader Secretariat, Berlin (ISBN: 978-2-8279-0011-4). how the book was prepared. Many collaborators cclxxxvii + 798 pages; cloth. from the Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum Berlin-Dahlem have taken part. An international network of experts have provided data and advice The Med-Checklist series started in 1978, on particular countries and regions, and thus con- under the scientific authority of the Organisation tributed to the accuracy, completeness and reli- for the Phyto-Taxonomic Investigation of the ability of the volume. Siegfried Bräutigam co- Mediterranean Area (OPTIMA). It was planned to authored the account of Pilosella; Jan Kirschner comprise 6 volumes, of which volumes 1, 3 & 4 and Jan Štěpánek that of Taraxacum. Editorial have been published so far. Some 20 years after work was shared with Eckhard von Raab Straube. the appearance of the latest Med-checklist vol- ume, vol. 4 (1989), a new one recently (end of The Checklist is a comprehensive syn- December 2008) saw the light! The book is de- onymic catalogue of all species and subspecies of voted to Compositae, the largest family in the the Compositae in the Mediterranean area, pro- Mediterranean area. It comprises: (1), an introduc- viding a correct nomenclature under current taxo- tory chapter explaining the historical background nomic standards. Furthermore, it gives territory- and nature of Med-checklist, its relation with the by-territory distribution for all listed taxa up to the Euro+Med Plantbase project, taxonomic and geo- aggregate level. A total of 278 genera, 4 337 spe- graphic coverage and arrangements, preparation cies and additional 2 384 subspecies (6 721 spe- of the book, sources and references, acknowl- cies and subspecies) are accepted, and more edgements, etc.; (2), a Checklist (synonymic cata- than 19 000 names are recorded in the volume! logue, on 798 pp.) of the Compositae species and The geographic coverage includes all countries subspecies growing in the wild in the countries of surrounding the Mediterranean sea plus Portugal, the Mediterranean area; the taxa are arranged in Bulgaria, Crimea (Ukraine), and Jordan. When- alphabetical order by genera, then by species ever the latest comprehensive and competent within a genus (or section, in Taraxacum), and by studies on particular groups for the Med-checklist subspecies within a species; (3), a list of basic area were available, they were taken into account Floras (Appendix I); (4), additional references and featured in the checklist, including for delimi- (Appendix II); (5), a list of genera arranged by tation of genera, species and subspecies. There- tribes (Appendix III); (6), an alphabetical list of the fore, numerous differences from the well known genera with tribes (Appendix IV); (7), a list of ex- taxonomic scheme in Flora Europaea, vol. 4 cluded hybrids (Appendix V. Hybridae exclusae); (1976), are to be found. (8), an index of new names and combinations 2 OPTIMA Newsletter No. 38 May 2009 OPTIMA NEWSLETTER OPTIMA NEWSLETTER OPTIMA NEWSLETTER A few innovations were introduced in this The Med-checklist, vol.