''Acis fabrei'' is a bulbous

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

in the family Amaryllidaceae, native to France. It has white flowers that appear in late spring after the leaves. Although first collected in 1882, it was not scientifically described until 1990. It is now known from only four populations in the Vaucluse department in south-east France, around

Mont Ventoux Mont Ventoux (; oc, Ventor, label= Provençal ) is a mountain in the Provence region of southern France, located some northeast of Carpentras, Vaucluse. On the north side, the mountain borders the department of Drôme. At , it is the highest ...

and the River Nesque. It is considered to be a "threatened species".

Description

''Acis fabrei'' is a small bulbous

perennial plant A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wide ...

. Each bulb produces one to four narrow leaves, 2 to 5 mm wide and up to 30 cm long, averaging around 17 cm. The leaves appear before the flowers. Flowering takes place in late spring with the flowers held considerably below the top of leaves. There is usually a single flower to each stem ( peduncle), with six white

tepal A tepal is one of the outer parts of a flower (collectively the perianth). The term is used when these parts cannot easily be classified as either sepals or petals. This may be because the parts of the perianth are undifferentiated (i.e. of very ...

s, 10–11 mm long, carried on a stalk (

pedicel Pedicle or pedicel may refer to: Human anatomy *Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures ...

) 5–11 mm long. The flower bud is enclosed in a

spathe In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of ...

that is divided into two segments. The

style Style is a manner of doing or presenting things and may refer to: * Architectural style, the features that make a building or structure historically identifiable * Design, the process of creating something * Fashion, a prevailing mode of clothing ...

is slightly longer than the six stamens. The smooth black seeds are 2–3 mm long. The whole plant dies down in early summer.

Taxonomy

''Acis fabrei'' was first collected in 1882 on the southern slopes of

. Specimens were sent to the National Museum of Natural History in Paris by the entomologist

Jean-Henri Fabre Jean-Henri Casimir Fabre (21 December 1823 – 11 October 1915) was a French naturalist, entomologist, and author known for the lively style of his popular books on the lives of insects. Biography Fabre was born on 21 December 1823 in Saint-L ...

. It was only re-discovered in the 1970s and 1980s. In 1990, it was first described as a new species, as ''Leucojum fabrei''. In 2004, it was transferred to '' Acis'', along with other species of ''Leucojum'', on the basis of a molecular phylogenetic study. It resembles '' Acis nicaeensis'', which has an overlapping distribution, but can be distinguished by several characters, including wider leaves, longer

pedicels In botany, a pedicel is a stem that attaches a single flower to the inflorescence. Such inflorescences are described as ''pedicellate''. Description Pedicel refers to a structure connecting a single flower to its inflorescence. In the absenc ...

, and a larger distance between the stigma and the anthers.

Distribution and habitat

, ''Acis fabrei'' was only known from four populations in the Vaucluse department in south-east France, around

and the River Nesque. All the populations are within 20 km of one another. Plants are found in eroded soils poor in organic matter, such as terra rossa, in rocky glades, grassy areas and under ''

Quercus pubescens ''Quercus pubescens'', the downy oak or pubescent oak, is a species of white oak (genus ''Quercus'' sect. ''Quercus'') native to southern Europe and southwest Asia, from northern Spain (Pyrenees) east to the Crimea and the Caucasus. It is also fo ...

''.

Conservation

, ''Acis fabrei'' was not listed in the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...

, although listed as a "threatened species" in the French . The species occurs in a generally protected region of France; two populations are in an area with a management plan that includes ''Acis fabrei''. One threat is the natural and deliberate expansion of forests, which produces closed canopies and, where the trees are pines or cedars, more acid soils through the build-up of leaf litter. Wild boars are another threat as they can destroy many individual plants.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5656659 fabrei Flora of France Plants described in 1990