''Hladnikia'' is a

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

genus of

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 ...

s belonging to the family

Apiaceae Apiaceae or Umbelliferae is a family of mostly aromatic flowering plants named after the type genus ''Apium'' and commonly known as the celery, carrot or parsley family, or simply as umbellifers. It is the 16th-largest family of flowering plants ...

. Its sole

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

, ''Hladnikia pastinacifolia'', is a

Slovenian Slovene or Slovenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Slovenia, a country in Central Europe * Slovene language, a South Slavic language mainly spoken in Slovenia * Slovenes The Slovenes, also known as Slovenians ( sl, Sloven ...

paleoendemite, restricted to the area of only 4 km, located in

Trnovo Forest Plateau The Trnovo Forest Plateau ( sl, Trnovski gozd) is a karst plateau that constitutes the extreme northwest end of the Dinaric Alps.Perko, Drago, & Milan Orožen Adamič. 1998. ''Slovenija: pokrajine in ljudje''. Ljubljana: Mladinska knjiga, p. 324. ...

karst Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant ro ...

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ha ...

Western Slovenia Western Slovenia (''Zahodna Slovenija'') is one of the two NUTS-2 Regions of Slovenia. The region forms the western part of the country and includes the cities of Ljubljana, Koper, Kranj and Nova Gorica. It is the wealthier of the two regions o ...

. German botanist

Heinrich Gottlieb Ludwig Reichenbach Heinrich Gottlieb Ludwig Reichenbach (8 January 1793 – 17 March 1879) was a German botanist and ornithologist. It was he who first requested Leopold and Rudolf Blaschka, Leopold Blaschka to make a set of glass marine invertebrate models for sci ...

named the genus after Carniolan botanist and founder of

Ljubljana Botanical Garden The Ljubljana Botanical Garden ( sl, Ljubljanski botanični vrt), officially the University of Ljubljana Botanical Garden (), is the central Slovenian botanical garden, the oldest botanical garden in Southeastern Europe, and one of the oldest cul ...

Franz Hladnik.

Description

''Hladnikia pastinacifolia'' is a

monocarpic Monocarpic plants are those that flower and set seeds only once, and then die. The term is derived from Greek (''mono'', "single" + ''karpos'', "fruit" or "grain"), and was first used by Alphonse de Candolle. Other terms with the same meaning are ...

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of t ...

perennial 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 ...

plant, which takes a few vegetation periods to develop into a flowering plant. Individuals, which have erect flowering stem, can reach from 15 to 30 centimetres of height. At first plant's leathery and glossy leaves are

simple Simple or SIMPLE may refer to: *Simplicity, the state or quality of being simple Arts and entertainment * ''Simple'' (album), by Andy Yorke, 2008, and its title track * "Simple" (Florida Georgia Line song), 2018 * "Simple", a song by Johnn ...

shaped and arranged into rosettes. Later on, as their area increases, leaves also change shape into lobate. ''Hladnikia pastinacifolia'' resembles well-known

celery Celery (''Apium graveolens'') is a marshland plant in the family Apiaceae that has been cultivated as a vegetable since antiquity. Celery has a long fibrous stalk tapering into leaves. Depending on location and cultivar, either its stalks, lea ...

(''Apium graveolens''), but has thicker foliage and shorter leaf stems. The species'

root In vascular plants, the roots are the organs of a plant that are modified to provide anchorage for the plant and take in water and nutrients into the plant body, which allows plants to grow taller and faster. They are most often below the sur ...

is long and lignified. The plant's

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

has white, heart-shaped and 1 mm long

petals Petals are modified leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''corolla''. Petals are usually ...

. Not much is known about the plant's exact breeding system. This plant species is

entomophilous Entomophily or insect pollination is a form of pollination whereby pollen of plants, especially but not only of flowering plants, is distributed by insects. Flowers pollinated by insects typically advertise themselves with bright colours, some ...

and has multiple different

pollinators A pollinator is an animal that moves pollen from the male anther of a flower to the female stigma of a flower. This helps to bring about fertilization of the ovules in the flower by the male gametes from the pollen grains. Insects are the maj ...

. It is thought that outcrossing happens occasionally. The species flowering period is between Mai and July. After successful pollination

seeds A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiosperm pl ...

that don't have any special dispersal adaptation develop between the end of August and into September. A

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

is a

schizocarp A schizocarp is a dry fruit that, when mature, splits up into mericarps. There are different definitions: * Any dry fruit composed of multiple carpels that separate. : Under this definition the mericarps can contain one or more seeds (the m ...

, which after maturing splits into two 4 mm sized mericarps, 2 mm wide. ''Hladnikia pastinacifolia''

chromosome A chromosome is a long DNA molecule with part or all of the genetic material of an organism. In most chromosomes the very long thin DNA fibers are coated with packaging proteins; in eukaryotic cells the most important of these proteins are ...

number is 2n = 22. Hladnikia pastinacifolia3.jpg Hladnikia pastinacifolia.jpg Hladnikia pastinacifolia2.jpg Hladnikia pastinacifolia 2.jpg

Distribution and conservation

The plant is a Slovenian paleoendemic species restricted to small area (4 km) in Trnovski gozd. There these plants grow only on southern slopes of the plateau and two isolated areas located 9 km away on the northern slopes. As the plant species is not a habitat specialist its growing areas are various; ''Hladnikia pastinacifolia'' was found on stony

grasslands A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natural ...

, rock crevices and screes. Laboratory molecular analyses have shown that ''Hladnikia pastinacifolia'' is a

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...

survivor ''in situ''. Even though its

population trend Population growth is the increase in the number of people in a population or dispersed group. Actual global human population growth amounts to around 83 million annually, or 1.1% per year. The global population has grown from 1 billion in 1800 to ...

is labeled as stable by

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 ...

, it has

data deficient A data deficient (DD) species is one which has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as offering insufficient information for a proper assessment of conservation status to be made. This does not necessaril ...

(DD) conservation status. Among mentioned threats are human intrusions and disturbance (such as recreational activities) as well as natural system modifications. The Trnovo Forest Plateau is listed as

Natura 2000 Natura 2000 is a network of nature protection areas in the territory of the European Union. It is made up of Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas designated under the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive, respectively ...

site. Because of its small area of distribution and different threats the species is studied for possible

cryopreservation Cryo-preservation or cryo-conservation is a process where Organism, organisms, organelles, cell (biology), cells, Biological tissue, tissues, extracellular matrix, Organ (anatomy), organs, or any other biological constructs susceptible to damage ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from1=Q5900781, from2=Q17138204 Apioideae Monotypic Apioideae genera Endemic flora of Slovenia