Halocnemum M. Bieb. vegetation in the Mediterranean Basin

The aim of the article is the syntaxonomic interpretation of hyperhalophilous woody or semi-woody vegetation with Halocnemum M. Bieb. along the coasts of the Mediterranean Basin. For this area, the two species of Halocnemum, H. strobilaceum (Pall.) M. Bieb. and H. cruciatum (Forssk.) Tod. are identified; their morphological characteristics, synonymy and distribution are here described. The study carried out of particular aspects of the plant morphology and the micromorphological characteristics of the seeds collected from different places in the Mediterranean allows to better differentiate the two species. Vegetation studies already done in many communities of the Mediterranean by several authors threw into great confusion because only H. strobilacem has been recognized as a dominant species. As regards the syntaxonomic analyses of the vegetation, the authors refer to the proposals already made by various scientists for the vegetation of inland salt basins of Eurasia and the Irano-Anatolian area, who suggested the classes Kalidietea foliate and Halocnemetea strobilaceiirano-anatolica, respectively. Conversely, in the Mediterranean Basin, the vegetation study is present only in coastal areas where it is considerably impoverished in the number of species. Therefore, the authors propose to include hyperhalophilous, woody and fruticose vegetation in the class Sarcocornietea fruticosae. However, the phytosociological and ecological diversity is highlighted proposing the order Halocnemetalia cruciati in which both the alliance Halocnemion strobilacei, for middle Eastern Europe, and the alliance Halocnemion cruciati, for North Africa with penetrations in the Western and Eastern Europe up to the Middle East coast, are included. This new interpretation has required the correction of the names of two associations (Frankenio corymbosae–Halocnemetum cruciati and Zygophylloalbi–Halocnemetumcruciati) and the proposal of two new associations Arthrocnemo machrostachyi–Halocnemetum cruciati and Halocnemo cruciati–Sarcocornietum fruticosae. A further proposal concerns the addition of the alliance Limoniastrion monopetali, previously included in the order Limonietalia, in the order Halocnemetalia cruciati.