A recent find of Ophrys insectifera (Orchidaceae) in Ukraine – will it survive another 100 years?

Jan Roleček

doi:10.15407/ukrbotj78.04.297

Abstract

Here I report the first find of Ophrys insectifera in Ukraine since 1920. A single individual was found at its last recorded site, Chortova Hora near Rohatyn (Ivano-Frankivsk Region). The species occurs in a steppe meadow habitat situated in the lower part of a steep northern slope. Local vegetation may be classified to a broadly circumscribed association Brachypodio pinnati-Molinietum arundinaceae from the alliance Cirsio-Brachypodion pinnati (class Festuco-Brometea). I discuss possible causes of the long-term neglect of O. insectifera at the site, its habitat conditions and suitable conservation management. To ensure the continued occurrence of this poor competitor and other rare species, it is necessary to prevent accumulation of litter and successional changes of the grassland. Mowing, low-intensity grazing, controlled early spring burning or their combination may be suitable ways to achieve this.

Highlights

Ophrys insectifera L. (Orchidaceae) is the most northerly distributed Ophrys species, with the range centred in France, Germany, and Switzerland, and extending to the British Isles, Baltic region, and Fennoscandia
Across its distribution range it favours calcareous habitats of various kinds, mainly nutrient poor semi-dry and mesic grasslands, thermophilous scrub, and open and semi-open woodlands, often dominated by pine. It may tolerate deeper shade in calcicolous beech woodlands (Stroh, 2015), and towards the western, northern, and eastern periphery of its distribution range it increasingly occupies calcareous wetlands (Wolff, 1951; Galeyeva, 2006; Roze et al, 2011; Stroh, 2015). While it is classified as Least Concern in the IUCN Red List (Rankou, 2011), it has retreated in many parts of its distribution range and is evaluated, e.g., as Critically Endangered in Bulgaria (Petrova, Vladimirov, 2009) and Denmark (Wind, 2019), Endangered in the Czech Republic (Grulich, Chobot, 2017) and Finland (Hyvärinen et al, 2019), Vulnerable in Poland (Kaźmierczakowa et al, 2016), Germany (Metzing et al, 2018), and Switzerland (Bornand et al, 2016), Declining in Russia (Bardunov, Novikov, 2008), and Rare in Romania (Oltean et al, 1994)
Recent occurrence of Ophrys insectifera at Chortova Hora was recorded on 3 June 2019

Summary

Introduction

Ophrys insectifera L. (Orchidaceae) is the most northerly distributed Ophrys species, with the range centred in France, Germany, and Switzerland, and extending to the British Isles, Baltic region, and Fennoscandia. Across its distribution range it favours calcareous habitats of various kinds, mainly nutrient poor semi-dry and mesic grasslands, thermophilous scrub, and open and semi-open woodlands, often dominated by pine It may tolerate deeper shade in calcicolous beech woodlands (Stroh, 2015), and towards the western, northern, and eastern periphery of its distribution range it increasingly occupies calcareous wetlands (Wolff, 1951; Galeyeva, 2006; Roze et al, 2011; Stroh, 2015). In Ukraine the species has always been very rare and a single documented record comes from Chortova Hora near Rohatyn, Ivano-Frankivsk Region (Kagalo, 2009). Chortova Hora (333 m a.s.l.) is a famous hill and a natural site near the town of Rohatyn in the western part of Ukraine (Ivano-Frankivsk Region). Species-rich steppe grasslands and calcareous fens are scattered throughout the region, containing many habitat specialists and rare species, indicating a long history of open landscape

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