Sorbus busambarensis (Rosaceae), a new endemic species of Sicily

Abstract

In this study, Sorbus busambarensis, a new species from Rocca Busambra (Palermo, NW Sicily) has been described and named. On the basis of the critical features of its flowers, fruits and leaves, it is noted to be a member of S. sect. Aria and is related to the other taxa that form the polymorphic group of S. aria, which in Sicily is represented by S. aria s. str., S. graeca and S. umbellata.

Keywords:

• Spiraeoideae
• Sorbus aria group
• Italian flora
• Sicilian endemics
• taxonomy

Acknowledgements

This study was performed during the PhD course “Vegetal Resources” at the University of Palermo. The author thanks Profs. Werner Greuter and Pietro Mazzola, from the Herbarium Mediterraneum Panormitanum (PAL), for critical review of the text, and the director and staff of the Florence Herbarium (FI) for the loan of material for comparison. The author also thanks Dr Luca C. Raimondo for the drawings in Figure 1, and Natale Surano for Figure 2.