Typification de Juniperus thurifera var. africana Maire, délimitation taxonomique et conséquences nomenclaturales sur le Genévrier thurifère d’Algérie

Abstract

Abstract Spanish juniper populations of the Moroccan Atlas, very studied, are known to be distinct from European populations which justified creation of the taxon Juniperus thurifera var. africana Maire, often treated at subspecies rank. The Algerian populations from Aures mountain, in turn, have recently been reconciled with European populations on the basis of their genetic polymorphism (AFLP), which makes us question the taxonomic and nomenclatural status this biogeographical entity. A nomenclatural analysis was performed on all taxa associated with Juniperus thurifera. It showed that the René Maire’s var. africana includes heterogeneous collections from both Morocco and Algeria. One of the herbarium sheets from Algeria, recently designated as lectotypus, is unfortunately disabled, which is why we have designated another, collected from Morocco in order to conserve the dominant use. A taxonomic synthesis, completed by a brief morphological study of fruits based on herbarium samples, con- cludes with the desirable distinction of a Moroccan taxon (var. or subsp. africana) and an Algerian one, which has thus no name. We call it here Juniperus thurifera var. aurasiaca and a MPU herbarium sheet collected in Algeria by René Maire is designated as holotypus.