Flora and phytogeography of the volcanic dome of Monte Amiata (Central Italy)

Abstract

Summary The most peculiar features of Monte Amiata are its orographic isolation and its recent volcanic origin. Accordingly, the vascular flora was investigated in order to shed light on its main ecological, chorogenetic and historical components. The flora includes 624 entities over about 74 Km2 and is poorer than others of Apenninic areas with comparable altitude and latitude. The largest part of the nemoral component is restricted to mesic chestnut and beech forests of the lower belt, whereas in chestnut groves the elio-xerotolerant plants are prevalent. In the oceanic beech forests of the higher belt, the flora is still poorer and largely composed of hygro-sciaphilous species linked to a elevated atmospheric and edaphic moisture. Therophytes are on the whole less represented than in near Apenninic mountains, whereas geophytes are slightly more abundant; they tend to increase from the lower to the higher beech belt. The boreal component is largely dominant over the tethyan one, and it increases along with the altitude to reach its maximum in the ipsophilous beech forests. Taking into account the numerous European and orophytic species beside the Apenninic endemics, M. Amiata belongs to the Apenninic sector of the European subregion (orophytic dominion). Historical aspects of the flora are also discussed in the light of chorological components, paleobotanical and geochronological data.