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Orchidaceae in the anthropogenic landscape of central Poland: Diversity, extinction and conservation perspectives

Rewicz Agnieszka (University of Łódz, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, Department of Geobotany and Plant Ecology, Łódź, Poland)
Zielińska Katarzyna M. (University of Łódz, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, Department of Geobotany and Plant Ecology, Łódź, Poland)
Kiedrzyński Marcin (University of Łódz, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, Department of Geobotany and Plant Ecology, Łódź, Poland)
Kucharski Leszek (University of Łódz, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, Department of Geobotany and Plant Ecology, Łódź, Poland)

Orchidaceae are considered one of the largest and most endangered plant families worldwide. We analyzed the status of conservation of orchid sites in Central Poland, which serves as a model area for heavily transformed environments in moderate climate. In the area under study, 26 orchid species from 54 taxa existing in Poland were reported, 17 of them with fewer than 20 localities, 59% of which have not been confirmed since 2000. Spatial analysis of all localities has shown that Central Poland exhibits considerable diversity as regards the incidence of Orchidaceae. It has been shown that contemporary protection methods have failed to prevent the demise of these species in forest, meadow and bog habitats, which incidentally comprised most of those whose localities have been unconfirmed since 2000.

Keywords: orchids, protected species, protection of habitats, floristic value, Central Poland