Biologia 72/1: 24—35, 2017 Section Botany DOI: 10.1515/biolog-2017-0002 The current state of steppe perennial plants populations: A case study on Iris pumila Ivan Yu. Parnikoza1, Igor O. Andreev1,OlenaM.Bublyk1,KaterynaV.Spiridonova1, Joanna Gol˛ebiewska2, Magdalena Kubiak2, Anna Kuczynska´ 2, Katarzyna Mystkowska2, Natalia Ol˛edrzynska´ 2,BarbaraUrasinska´ 3, Anna Sl˛´ ezak-Parnikoza2,MarcinGórniak3,KrzysztofWojciechowski4, Yakiv P. Didukh5 &ViktorA.Kunakh1 1Institute of Molecular Biology and Genetics NAS of Ukraine, Acad. Zabolotnogo Str. 150, 03143 Kyiv, Ukraine; e-mail:
[email protected] 2Department of Plant Taxonomy and Nature Conservation, University of Gda´nsk, Wita Stwosza Str. 59,PL-80-308 Gda´nsk, Poland 3Department of Molecular Evolution, University of Gda´nsk, Wita Stwosza Str. 59,PL-80-308 Gda´nsk, Poland 4Administration of Regional landscape parks of Lublin Vojevodship, Graniczna Str. 4, 20-010 Lublin, Poland 5M. Kholodny Institute of Botany NAS of Ukraine, Tereshchenkivska Street 2, 01601 Kyiv, Ukraine Abstract: A comprehensive study of a typical steppe perennial Iris pumila L. were carried out in the central zone of the European part of this species’ range, namely in Ukraine. Intraspecific differentiation, population size and isolation degree and its consequences, the threat of human impact were analyzed, as well as ecological amplitude and genetic variation in ISSR markers and selected chloroplast regions were determined. The species was found to have a low intraspecific differentiation that indicates the uniformity of the gene pool in the studied part of the range. Moreover, the results of isolation assessment, population and ecological study of I. pumila confirm the potential risk of extinction.