A New Hybrid Record for The Vascular Flora of Türkiye: Fagus x taurica Popl.

Abstract

The presence of Fagus x taurica Popl., a hybrid of two Fagus L. taxa known to be naturally distributed in Türkiye, has been detected in the natural deciduous-mixed forests of Bolu. Specimens were collected from Kökez Old Growth Fir Forest Nature Reserve Area, Bolu Kale Fındığı Nature Reserve Area, and Yedigöller National Park in Bolu province, northwest Türkiye. After the identification, specimens were compared with materials in the international herbaria. As a result of the examinations, the morphological features seen to be different from its parents are as follows: Young shoots are grayish-green in color, leaves have 7-13 pairs of lateral veins, are ovate or obovate, and their margins are dentate, and the cupula scales are subulate. It resembles F. orientalis Lipsky in terms of leaf characteristics and F. sylvatica L. in terms of cupula characteristics. In this article, a botanical description of the taxon, differences from the main species, distribution maps, and photos are given. Fagus x taurica is a new hybrid record for the vascular flora of Türkiye. With this new record, the number of Fagus sp. taxa in the flora of Türkiye has risen to 3.