Vella pseudocytisus: characteristics, distribution and habitat

pitano area

Today we are going to talk about a plant that is an endemism of the Iberian Peninsula and that has a stenochoric character. Its about Vella pseudocytisus. Its common name is Ptano and it is a plant that is in a legally protected state. Under the figure of special interest and danger of extinction, it is a highly branched shrub that has a special function in ecosystems.

Therefore, we are going to dedicate this article to tell you everything you need to know about the characteristics, distribution and habitat of Vella pseudocytisus.

Key features

python in danger of extinction

It is a very branched, defenseless and hirsute shrub. If they grow in good conditions, it can reach 150 centimeters in height, although the most usual thing is that it does not exceed one meter. Its leaves are apparently fleshy but they are leathery and spatulate. It presents an abundant flowering with yellow flowers in different shades. These flowers are pedicellate and are arranged in clusters. Their sepals are hairy, so they have a hairy texture. Its petals are provided with a long and characteristic nail that serves to identify this species quite easily. Its pollination is entomophilous.

As for its fruits, they have a valvar and dehiscent artjo. They usually have two locules. The silicle has one or two seeds. This plant is found in Andalusian populations and has some lower average values ​​such as the length of the petals and the width of the leaves. In other areas of the Iberian Peninsula they do have a greater measure.

Distribution area of Vella pseudocytisus

vella pseudocytisus shrubby plant

Let’s see what the area of ​​distribution and the habitat of the populations of the Vella pseudocytisus. The distribution is divided into 3 reduced nuclei. Two of them are in the central area of ​​the Iberian Peninsula and one is on the border of the provinces of Madrid and Toledo. The last one is recently in the municipality of Yeles, in Toledo. We can also find part of the populations in Granada and some old citations name some specimens distributed to the north of Almería but which have not yet been confirmed at present.

Regarding the habitat, this plant has a predilection for those soils that are formed by gypsum and gypsum marl. They can rarely be seen on limestone devoid of gypsum. They are usually located at the foot of slopes and between hills that have a slope below 45 degrees. Usually they are usually placed in parts of shady areas where the sun shines for less time. The perfect climate for the development of the python is continental. It is characterized by mainly having very irregular rainfall, always below 450 mm per year on average. Thermal aspiration that allows Vella pseudocytisus exceeds 20 degrees, so it can adapt well to places with great oscillation between day and night.

It can also be part of other plant communities with a shrubby bearing such as broom, romerales and kermes oak. All of these shrubs share habitat and use insects for pollination. Being the dominant taxon, it is capable of forming more stable and more or less dense populations. It shares habitat with other typical gypsy species of the area. The fact that it is in danger of extinction has to do with the action of human beings in natural ecosystems. It can develop on eroded and somewhat nitrified soils. This is because it can colonize often the slopes of the roads and the borders of cultivation.

Some of the spices with which the Vella pseudocytisus coexists are the following: Artemisia herbaalba, Asphodelus ramosus, Centaurea hyssopifolia, Frankenia thymifolia, Helianthemum squamatum, Herniaria fruticosa, Iberis saxatilis subsp. cinerea, Lepidium subulatum, Phlomis lychnitis, Retama sphaerocarpa, Stipa tenacissima, Teucrium poleum subsp. capitatum, Thymus lacaitae and Thymus zygis

and, only in Andalusian territory, with i

Biology of Vella pseudocytisus

pseudocytis skin

This shrub has a fairly slow growth compared to other species. However, it is a pioneer species in disturbed environments. Although the flowers are of the hermaphroditic type, they attract a large multitude of pollinating insects, among which we find Diptera, Hymenoptera, Lepidoptera and Coleoptera. The number of individuals that flower each year will fluctuate widely. We can find percentages that range from 25% to 60% depending on annual rainfall and fluctuating temperatures. The wind regime can help pollinating insects to work better or worse. All these variables are what influence the number of individuals that bloom each year.

However, we have an average of 45% manual flowering and all these flowers produce fruit. The dispersion of the seeds this type passive ballista. This system is not very common in nature and is more common among ruderal plants. In the Madrid habitat it is not possible to observe signs of regeneration from the seeds, but there is evidence of asexual reproduction through stolons. This study is of vital importance to know the regeneration of the populations caused with a decrease of the same by the human being. Vegetative reproduction could not be quantified but it seems an effective method.

It should be noted that some successful repopulation has been carried out in the sales of El Espartal and El Regajal, Valdemoro and Aranjuez respectively.

State of conservation

We are going to analyze the current conservation status of this species. All the towns of the province of Madrid and Toledo they occupy less than 20 square kilometers. In these areas, adult individuals predominate since in years these plants have not been reproduced demographically since there is an absence of seedlings. The stability of woody species in arid and semi-arid environments depends notably on high drought and large amounts of evapotranspiration. We remember that evapotranspiration is the sum of the evaporation of water caused by solar radiation and the transpiration of the plant when opening the stomata to carry out photosynthesis.

The rejuvenation of the populations will take place in some years that are effectively rainy and with well-distributed rainfall. The most serious damage has occurred on existing populations in the south of Madrid and due to the development of urbanizations caused by humans.

I hope that with this information you can learn more about the Vella pseudocytisus and their characteristics.

Vella pseudocytisus: characteristics, distribution and habitat

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