Flora and Vegetation of the Island Syra

 

 

Flora. The flora of the island Syra consists of 580 species, 60 subspecies, 1 variety, and 1 form, in total 642 taxa, which belong to 340 genera and 81 families… The flora of Syra is not extensively polymorphic, and so it does not include endemic species in a narrower sense, which is attributed to the lack of high mountains and to the small degree of isolation of Syra. For the island of Syra K.H.Rechinger, Zerlentis and Diapoulis are referring to 20 endemic species in the wider sense, from which Orobanche amethystea Thuill.ssp. amethystea, Orobancge fuliginosa Reuter ex. Jordan, Chenopodium ficifolium Sm., Suaeda splendens (Pourret) Gren & Gordon, Centaurea eriopoda Rech. fil. and Fritillaria ehrhardii Boiss& Oerph. were found.   

The very numerous families are the Fabaceae with 74 taxa, the Poaceae with 63 taxa, the Asteraceae with 48 taxa and the Cichoriaceae with 32 taxa. Also from the total of species of the Syra’s flora 132 (20,56%) are characterized as aromatic and medicinal plants, 1 (0,16%) as clearly aromatic plant, 65 (10,12%) as clearly medicinal plants, 75 (11,68%) as toxic, 8 (1,25%) aw flavourings and 148(23,05%) are characterized as apicultural plants. The larger number of species of leguminous plants (Fabaceae), of grasses (Poaceae) and the apicultural plants justifies the developed stock farming and apiculture correspondingly of the island.

Chorological analysis of floristic elements has shown that the mediterranean species are much more numerous than other species in island (76,79%)…

The vegetation spectrum of the island Syra, which has been made according to Raunkiaer’s method, shows the dominance of therophytes as 51,41% per cent. This confirms the fact that the flora of the island belongs to the climatic zone of therophytes, which is considered as a representative zone of the mediterranenan climate. The analysis, on the other hand , of ecological forms confirms that the species of the Syra’s flora consists of 334(52,02%) annuals, 29(4,25%) biennals, 223 (34,74%) perrenials, 50 (7,79%) shrubbies and 6 (0,93%) arboreals plants.

Vegetation. The vegetation of Syra is the typical meditarranean one and, from the phytosociological point of view, it is distinguished in the formations of sea-shores, evergreen sclerophyll shrubby (macchia), xerophile low-shrubby (phrygana) and tares.

The sea-shores formation depending on the local ecological conditions, is distinguished in the ammophilous vegetation, the halophytic vegetation and the vegetation of the rocky shores. The two forst vegetation types, on account of human activities, have intensively diminished, and as a result some species which do not give the image of well-shaped ammophilous and halophilous correspondingly plant plant communities are found to those types. The vegetation of rocky shores, from the composition and ecology of the species which are composing it, belongs to the Crithmo – Limonion  Molinier 34 alliance of the Crithmo- Limonietea Br.-Bl. 47class.

The evergreen sclerophyll formation (macchia), which has also suffered from the human activities, is found on the island in forms of isolated plants or groups in a way that in most of the cases phrygana have penetrated into those. The characteristic species of macchia vegetation in Syra are the evergreen shrubs Juniperus phoenicea, Pistacia lenticus, Quercus coccifera … and also the deciduous shrubs Anthyllis hermanniae, Genista acanthoclada, Pyrus spinosa and Asparagus acutifolius …

The phrygana formations, on account of the mediterranean climate, which favours their fast growth, occupied a large part of the island and particularly un cultivated parts, from where macchia disappeared because of the human and grazing factors. Characteristic species of phrygana , which found in Syra , are the Cistus incanus, C. salvifolius, Ballota acetabulosa, Lavandula stoechas, Fumana thymifolia, Sacropoterium spinosum …

The formations of tares, due to favourable conditions, appear a wide extension in Syra, where they form various plant communities. According to the biotope, where they develop, we can distinguish the communities of tares of the cultivated fields, which, from phytological point of view, belong to the Secalinetea Br.-Bl. 1951 class, and the nitrophilous communities, which they extended around settlers and belong to the Chenopodietea Br.-Bl. (1951) 1952 class. On the borders of roads and paths there appears communities of tares, which constitute even from nitrophilous tares or teres of cultivated fields.

Views are finally expressed the eventual adoption and application of which will contribute not only to the protection of the flora, vegetation and soil, which have suffered a considerable decline through the years, but will also contribute to ecological development of the island Syra in general

 

   in Syriana Grammata, 26-27 (1994) pp.199-200 by  Giorgos P. Sarlis