EPPO Global Database

EPPO Reporting Service no. 03 - 2024 Num. article: 2024/072

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