Roczniki Akademii Rolniczej w Poznaniu CCCLXXXVIII Botanika – Steciana , , - www.up.poznan.pl/steciana ISSN - CEPHALANTHERA RUBRA L. RICH. ORCHIDACEAE IN MID‐WEST POLAND WIELKOPOLSKA DISTRIBUTION, ENDANGERMENT AND CONSERVATION STATUS RADOSŁAW SAJKIEWICZ, MACIEJ GĄBKA, PAWEŁ M. OWSIANNY R. Sajkiewicz, Department of Plant Taxonomy, Institute of Environmental Biology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Umultowska , - Poznań, Poland, e-mail: [email protected] M. Gąbka, Department of Hydrobiology, Institute of Environmental Biology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Umultowska , - Poznań, Poland, e-mail: [email protected] P.M. Owsianny, Department of Geomorphology, Institute of Geoecology and Geoinformation, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Dzięgielowa , - Poznań, Poland, e-mail: [email protected] (Received: March , . Accepted: September , ) ABSTRACT. A signifi cant decline of the population of Cephalantera rubra has been observed in the NW territory of Poland. This endangered species is legally protected in Poland: it has been included in the Polish red book of plants (category EN) and in the national and local Red lists (Red list of vascular fl ora of Wielkopolska – category EN). In June , two sites of this rare species has been found in the Notecka Forest (Karwin Forest District – north west Wielkopolska). This paper presents the results of verifi cation of the new sites of C. rubra and shows present state of knowledge of conservation, distribution and threat degree of the mentioned species in the area of the Wielkopolska and Ziemia Lubuska regions. KEY WORDS: Cephalanthera rubra, Orchidaceae, distribution, threatened species, ATPOL, conservation status, Wielkopolska, Poland INTRODUCTION , NOBIS and NOBIS ). This species was only rarely recorded in anthropogenic habitats (e.g. NOWAK Red helleborine, Cephalanthera rubra (L.) Rich. (Or- and NOWAK ). chidaceae), is a plant occurring mainly in deciduous According to HEREŹNIAK and BERNACKI (), in forests. It is usually indicated as a characteristic spe- Poland, C. rubra is characterised by its wide and, at the cies of the alliance Fagion sylvaticae Luquet em. same time, scattered distribution. The species is mainly Lohm. et R.Tx. in R.Tx. Red helleborine attains known from the country’s lowlands, while it is rarely its optimal distribution in Poland in fertile beech woods found in the mountain areas (BARTOSZEK et AL. ). – Mercuriali-Fagetum Celiński and in local types It attains the highest density of localities, as the maps of orchid beech woods: coastal (Cephalanthero rubrae- of its distribution in Poland show (SZLACHETKO and -Fagetum Piotr. et Olacz. ex W. Mat. ), Kashubian SKAKUJ , HEREŹNIAK and BERNACKI , ATLAS... (Fagus sylvatica-Cypripedium calceolus community) and ), in the Sandomierska Basin, Great Mazurian Lakes Sudeten (Fagus sylvatica-Hypericum maculatum com- region and Białowieża Forests. The number of this or- munity) as well as in those characteristic for the Pieniny chid localities, confi rmed after , is estimated at ca. Mts. (Carici albae-Fagetum) and the Małopolska region , from about know from Poland (HEREŹNIAK and (Fagus sylvatica-Cruciata glabra community) (BRZEG BERNACKI ). and WOJTERSKA , MATUSZKIEWICZ J.M. , DA- Red helleborine is rated in Poland an endangered NIELEWICZ and PAWLACZYK , HERBICH and PAW- species (the EN category) and listed in the “Polish red LACZYK , KWIATKOWSKI , PERZANOWSKA book of plants” (POLSKA CZERWONA KSIĘGA... ), , MATUSZKIEWICZ W. ). A synthetic study by as well as in the “Red list of the vascular plants in Po- HEREŹNIAK and BERNACKI () reveals that red hel- land”, in the EN category (ZARZYCKI and SZELĄG ). leborine was found also in thermophilous oak woods, It is under legal protection both in Poland and neigh- oak-hornbeam forests, lime-maple forests and mixed bouring countries (POLSKA CZERWONA KSIĘGA... ). coniferous forests. It prefers relatively sunny habitats In the Wielkopolska and Lubuska regions, C. rubra and is found in those fragments of forest communities is a critically endangered species (JACKOWIAK et AL. which are characterised by lower tree cover as well as ), after , found or confi rmed in only fi ve lo- at the edges of various types of forests and along for- calities (BRZEG , CHMIEL , STEFANEK-PAŃCZUK est roads and tracks (HEREŹNIAK and BERNACKI and ANTKOWIAK , JERMACZEK , and the POZ and literature there cited, BRZOSKO and WRÓBLEWSKA herbarium). R. Sajkiewicz ... The aim of this work is to present information on RESULTS the distribution and conditions of occurrence of C. ru- bra in the newly found localities in the Notecka Forest. New localities of Cephalanthera rubra in the Notecka Moreover, all available data on the occurrence of red Forest helleborine in the Wielkopolska and Lubuska regions In the years and , two new localities of (Wielkopolska-Kujawy Region). The article particularly C. rubra, not reported earlier, were found in the western draws attention to the problem of this species protec- part of the Notecka Forest. They are situated south of tion in Poland. the town of Drezdenko (Strzelce-Drezdenko County, Lu- busz Province) in the forest complexes under the Karwin Forest District Management. MATERIAL AND METHODS The fi rst of the localities lies within two neighbour- ing forest divisions – no. and – of the Solecko The area under study – the Notecka Forest ( forest subdistrict (Karwin Forest District), about . km thousand ha) – is situated in the vast area of the Warta to the south of the village of Gościm. In the ATPOL and Noteć rivers interfl uve, in the Gorzów Valley (KON- grid square system (ATLAS... ) it is localized in the DRACKI ). It is a compact forest complex, dominated square BC. In June , individuals were found by scots pine forests, mostly of the Leucobryo-Pinetum in the division no. , while in , fl owering in- type (LIBBERT ) W. Mat. em. W. et J. Mat. dividuals were recorded within the division and . A scots pine forest landscape complement nu- during the subsequent monitoring visit. All populations merous, scattered spots of raised peat bogs, natural or occurred at the edges of acidophilous beech forest, right anthropogenic watercourses and water bodies, as well as next to a periodically drying watercourse (on its both small complexes of deciduous forests – mainly acidophil- sides) connecting lakes Łąkie and Gostomie. The esti- ous oak and beech woods. mated area of the locality with C. rubra is about m. New localities of C. rubra were found in the area of Phytosociological relevés illustrate species composi- the Karwin Forest District, in the course of the studies tion and quantitative relations within the studied popu- carried out as a part of the general inventory of forest lation of red helleborine. and non-forest habitats in the State Forests (-). Relevé no. Sunny edge of the acidophilous beech In the present work, the names of vascular plant spe- wood. Date: ... The area: m. Tree cover ‘a’ cies follow MIREK at AL. () while phytosociological – %: Pinus sylvestris ., Fagus sylvatica .; shrub classifi cation and nomenclature of plant communities cover ‘b’ – %: Fagus sylvatica .; herbaceous plants is based mainly on the work by BRZEG and WOJTERSKA cover ‘c’ – %: Cephalanthera rubra ., Vaccinium (). vitis-idaea +., Vaccinium myrtillus ., Rumex acetosella +., Calluna vulgaris +., Deschampsia fl exuosa +., Fagus sylvatica +, Quercus robur +; layer ‘d’ cover – %. FIG. Distribution of Cephalanthera rubra localities found in the Notecka Forest in the years -: – roads, – watercourse, – wooded area, – lakes, – towns, – localities Cephalanthera rubra (L.) Rich. (Orchidaceae) in Mid-West Poland (Wielkopolska) ... Relevé no. The area between the watercourse subdistrict is certainly the biggest center of this spe- and acidophilous beech wood. Date: ... The cies amongst those recently found in western Poland area: m. Tree cover ‘a’ – %: Fagus sylvatica ., (cf. HEREŹNIAK and BERNACKI ). Occurrence of Betula pendula +; shrub cover ‘b’ – %: Fagus sylvatica red helleborine in new localities in the Notecka Forest ., Alnus glutinosa +. herbaceous plants cover ‘c’ – %: has been documented with photographs demonstrating Cephalanthera rubra ., Fagus sylvatica +., Carex morphological features and environment inhabited by remota +., Oxalis acetosella +., Ranunculus repens +, this species (Phot. -). Poa nemoralis +, Luzula pilosa +, Geranium robertianum, Scutellaria galericulata +., Athyrium fi lix-femina +, Ga- lium uliginosum +; layer ‘d’ cover – %. The analysed locality is characterised by a low diver- sity of species and a large share of organic dead matter from decaying beech leaves. It should be stressed that C. rubra was not found in the adjacent forest communi- ties – an acidophilous beech wood (in its part further from the watercourse), as well as in the dried up alder swamp forest. The second locality of red helleborine was also found in June , at the edge of a small watercourse in the Galewice forest complex (in the vicinity of the village of Lipówek), ca. km to the southeast of the village of Karwin, within the Karwin forest subdistrict – forest di- vision no. a. In the ATPOL grid (ATLAS... ), the locality is situated in the square BC. There, the indi- viduals of C. rubra have scattered distribution through- out the transition zone between an alder carr and scots pine dominated forest plantation. This fragment of a topographic low was connected with the drying spring section of the Człopia river. The watercourse merges with fi shponds