XVI International Botanical Congess

The two genera of Thymelaeaceae present in Italy are the Eurasian Daphne L., with 13 taxa, and the Mediterranean Thymelaea P. Mill., with 5 species. Systematics and chorology of some of the Italian entities are discussed. These are interesting because of both the geographic position of the Italian peninsula in the Mediterranean sea and the presence of the Alps, to which some endemic taxa are related. Populations somehow at the edges of the area of distribution of their taxon have been studied, such as D. alpina L. and D. oleoides Shreb. on the Apennines, or the mainly Balkan D. sericea Vahl., or T. passerina Coss. & Germ. progressively substituted by its Mediterranean vicariant T. gussonei Boreau. It is pointed out that very often these entities grow in very small, isolated and threatened populations. Also notes on more common species, i.e. the T. hirsuta (L.) Endl. reproductive biology, are given.