OROBANCHE BARTLINGII (OROBANCHACEAE), A SPECIES NEW ...

Polish Botanical Journal 46(1): 79–81, 2001 

OROBANCHE BARTLINGII (OROBANCHACEAE), 

A SPECIES NEW TO POLAND 

ZBIGNIEW SZELA˛G 

Abstract: Orobanche bartlingii Griseb. is a new species for Polish flora found in Ojców National Park near Cracow (southern 

Poland). The most important differences between O. bartlingii and O. alsatica Kirschl. are given. The habitat and geographical 

distribution of O. bartlingii in Poland are reported. 

Key words. Orobanchaceae, Orobanche bartlingii, taxonomy, distribution, Poland 

Zbigniew Szela˛g, W. Szafer Institute of Botany, Polish Academy of Sciences, Lubicz 46, PL-31-512 Kraków, Poland; e-mail: szelag@ 

ib-pan.krakow.pl 

16 o 20 o 24 o 

54 o 

52 o 

Fig. 2. Orobanche bartlingii Griseb. in Ojców National Park. 

Fig. 1. Locality of Orobanche bartlingii Griseb. in Poland. 

50 o 

Orobanche bartlingii Griseb. was found in the 

central part of Ojców National Park on a slope of 

Grodzisko Hill in June 1992 (Fig. 1 & 2). Since 

that time the locality has been visited regularly, 

and every year some 30–45 specimens in an area 

of ca 1500 sq. m have blossomed. O. bartlingii 

grows on a slope with a southern exposure in xerothermic 

grassland of the Festucetalia valesiaceae 

alliance; single specimens are found in open, 

rocky grassland on limestone with Festuca pallens 

Host (Table 1). I have not searched for further 

localities in Ojców National Park, but their occurrence 

is probable because xerothermic vegetation 

with Libanotis pyrenaica (L.) Bourg., a host plant 

of O. bartlingii, is common.

80 POLISH BOTANICAL JOURNAL 46(1). 2001. 

Table 1. Phytocoenolgical spectrum of Orobanche bartlingii in 

the Ojców National Park, Grodzisko hill: 1 – rocky grassland, 

2 – rocky grassland, 3 – calcareous rock (date of relevés – 

22.06.1997). 

Relevé number 1 2 3 

Area of relevé [m 2 ] 100 150 5 

Inclination [ o ] 45 40 20 

Exposure SSW SSW S 

Altitude a.s.l. [m] 380 390 380 

Cover of shrubs [%] 0 15 0 

Cover of herbaceous plants [%] 100 90 70 

Cover of bryophytes and lichens [%] 0 0 20 

Corylus avellana . + . 

Fraxinus excelsior . + . 

Pinus sylvestris . + . 

Prunus spinosa . + . 

Quercus petraea . + . 

Rhamnus catharticus . + . 

Orobanche bartlingii 1 + 

Orobanche lutea 1 + . 

Libanotis pyrenaica 3 2 1 

Coronilla varia 2 1 . 

Festuca pallens + + 2 

Festuca rupicola 2 1 1 

Agrimonia eupatoria 1 . . 

Allium montanum . . 1 

Brachypodium sylvaticum 1 1 . 

Centaurea jacea 1 . . 

Centaurea scabiosa 1 + . 

Clinopodium vulgare 1 1 . 

Euphorbia cyparissias 1 + + 

Fragaria vesca 1 1 1 

Galium album 1 . . 

Medicago falcata 1 + . 

Scabiosa ochroleuca + + + 

Achillea millefolium + + + 

Acinos arvensis . . + 

Echium vulgare + + . 

Festuca pratensis + . . 

Melica transsilvanica . . + 

Origanum vulgare + 1 . 

Phleum phleoides + + . 

Potentilla arenaria + . + 

Potentilla argentea + + . 

Potentilla heptaphylla + . + 

Rhinanthus minor + . . 

Sedum sexangulare . . + 

Sempervivum soboliferum . . + 

Thymus austriacus . + 

Trifolium pratense + . . 

Vincetoxicum hirundinaria + + + 

Orobanche bartlingii Griseb. (Fig. 2 & 3a) 

Spicil. Fl. Rumel. II: 57–58 (1844). 

Orobanche libanotidis Rupr. 1845. – O. alsatica 

Kirschl. subsp. libanotidis (Rupr.) Tzvelev 1973. – O. 

alsatica Kirschl. var. libanotidis (Rupr.) Beck 1890. 

Orobanche bartlingii is closely related to O. alsatica 

Kirschl. from which it differs in the small 

size of its corolla and in flower morphology. 

The wide range of O. bartlingii, spreading 

from eastern France to China (Pusch & Barthel 

1992), may suggest that it is a common species, 

but the low number of its published localities 

seems to point to the opposite view that, at least in 

Central Europe, it is a very rare species. The task 

of reasonably establishing the range of O. bartlingii 

is hindered by various systematic approaches. 

In many local floras O. bartlingii is treated jointly 

with O. alsatica, in spite of striking morphological 

differences between them (Table 2, Fig. 3). 

Another kind of problem is presented by their 

biology. O. bartlingii parasitizes Libanotis pyrenaica, 

whereas the host plant for O. alsatica is 

Peucedanum cervaria (L.) Lapeyr. These relationships 

are to be found in Germany (Pusch & Barthel 

1992) Austria (Wagner & Mecenovic 1973; 

Melzer 1974, 1981; Melzer & Barta 1995) the 

Czech Republic (Zázvorka 1997) and now also in 

Poland. However, in Slovakia the problem is more 

complicated. Here, Orobanche bartlingii maintains 

its morphological identity but may parasitize 

both Libanotis pyrenaica and Peucedanum cervaria 

(Zázvorka 1997). It would be interesting to 

investigate the degree of host fidelity in both 

Orobanche species on the S-E transect. 

Fig. 3. Differences between Orobanche bartlingii (a) and O. 

alsatica (b).

Z. SZELA˛G: OROBACHE BARTLINGII IN POLAND 81 

Table 2. Morphological differences between Orobanche bartlingii and O. alsatica. 

Orobanche bartlingii 

Corolla 20 mm long 

Stamens set 4–7 mm above ovary 

Style of carpel distinctly glandular pubescent 

Host – Peucedanum cervaria 

SPECIMENS EXAMINED. POLAND. CRACOW–CZE˛S- 

TOCHOWA UPLAND. Ojców National Park, Grodzisko 

Hill, open rocky grassland on limestone, (50 o 14’N/ 

19 o 50’E) 380–390 m a.s.l., 20.06.1992, leg. Z. Szeląg 

Herbarium specimens have been deposited in 

the Herbarium of the Institute of Botany of the 

Polish Academy of Sciences in Kraków (KRAM) 

and in the Herbarium of the Institute of Botany, 

Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic in 

Průhonice (PRC). 

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. I thank Ms. Jolanta Urbanik for 

drawing, Dr. Józef Mitka for help with the English 

translation and the anonymous reviewer for helpful 

comments on the paper. 

REFERENCES 

MELZER H. 1974. Neues zur Flora von Steiermark 16. Mitt. naturwiss. 

Ver. Steiermark 104: 143–158. 

MELZER H. 1981. Neues zur Flora von Kärnten und dem 

angrenzenden Süden. Carinthia II 171/91: 103–114. 

MELZER H. & BARTA T. 1995. Orobanche bartlingii Griseb., die 

Bartling-Sommerwurz – neu für das Burgenland und andere 

Neuikeiten zur Flora dieses Bundeslandes, sowie von 

Nieder- und Oberösterreich. Linzer Biol. Beitr. 27(2): 

1021–1043. 

NIESCHALK A. & NIESCHALK C. 1974. Mitteilungen zur Verbreitung 

von Orobanche bartlingii Griseb. [= Orobanche 

libanotidis Rupr., O. alsatica Kirschl. var. libanotidis 

(Rupr.) Beck] in Bayern. Ber. Bayer. Bot. Ges. 45: 71–74. 

PUSCH J. & BARTHEL K.-J. 1992. Über Merkmale und Verbreitung 

der Gattung Orobanche L. in den östlichen Bundesländern 

Deutschlands. Gleditschia 20(1): 33–56. 

WAGNER & MECENOVIČ 1973. Flora von Eisenerz und Umgebung. 

Mitt. Abt. Bot. Landesmus. Joanneum Graz 

43/44(2–3): 1–258. 

ZÁZVORKA J. 1997. Orobanchaceae Vent. Zárezovité – In: K 

GOLIAŠOVÁ (ed.), Flóra Slovenska 5(2): 460–529. VEDA, 

Bratislava. 

Received 18 May 2000

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