An update of alien plant taxa for Italy
A recent update of alien taxa in Italy presents updates on 106 taxa. The floristic data in the present work are the result of field and herbarium research carried out in twelve Italian regions: Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Lazio, Liguria, Molise, Puglia, Sardinia, Sicily, Toscana, Umbria, and Trentino-Alto Adige. The highest proportion of reports are from Calabria, with 39 casual alien, 6 naturalized alien, and 3 invasive alien taxa reported. Among 117 updated records for the regions, 89 are first records, 27 are changes to status and 1 alien plant that was previously recorded is no longer found. Seven new taxa for the Italian alien flora are reported, two of which are new to Europe. The two main Italian island regions contributed an important number of taxa with 12 casual alien, 1 naturalized alien and 4 invasive alien taxa reported for Sardinia, and 12 casual alien and 3 naturalized alien taxa for Sicily.
Table 1. Plants new to the Italian flora.
Taxa | Family | Region | Status |
Leucaena leucocephala subsp. glabrata | Fabaceae | Calabria | Invasive |
Bidens aurea | Asteraceae | Sardinia | Invasive |
Jaborosa integrifolia | Solanaceae | Sardinia | Invasive |
Melia azedarach | Meliaceae | Calabria | Invasive |
Polanisia dodecandra subsp. trachysperma | Cleomaceae | Toscana | Invasive |
Bauhinia variegata* | Fabaceae | Sicily | Casual |
Pinus elliottii* | Pinaceae | Sardinia | Casual |
* First record for Europe.
Sources
Musarella CM, Laface VLA, Angiolini C, Bacchetta G, Bajona E, Banfi E, Barone G, Biscotti N, Bonsanto D, Calvia G, Cambria S, Capuano A, Caruso G, Crisafulli A, Del Guacchio E, Di Gristina E, Domina G, Fanfarillo E, Fascetti S, Fiaschi T, Galasso G, Mascia F, Mazzacuva G, Mei G, Minissale P, Motti R, Perrino EV, Picone RM, Pinzani L, Podda L, Potenza L, Rosati L, Stinca A, Tavilla G, Villano C, Wagensommer RP, Spampinato G (2024) New alien plant taxa for Italy and Europe: an update. Plants 13, 620. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13050620