Ilex canariensis
Encyclopedia
Ilex canariensisis an endemic species of holly
native to Macaronesian islands. It is a species of plant
in the Aquifoliaceae family. It is found in Macaronesian islands of Madeira
(Portugal
) and Canarias
(Spain
).
or small tree
up to 6.5 meters tall sometimes 10 m high, evergreen, with gray trunk. as with glossy ovate leaves, 5-7 long by and 2.5-4 cm wide, usually whole rounded edges in the leaves and only a few small spines; iota
obtuse or rounded. The leaves have ovate to ovate to lanceolate, bright and whole. The young leaves can be as thorny.
The flower
s are small, clustered in axillary inflorescences. The flower
s are having four white petal
s, the flowers are located in subterminal leaf axils. It blooms from May to June. The fruits are globular and red holly. Fruit
s spherical, about 1 cm wide, fleshy, red and located on stem
s of 3-8 mm long. There are two sub-species. In the ssp. azevinho (Sun
ex Lowe
, Kunkel
) the berries may reach 2 cm.
in Aquifoliaceae family related to european holly, endemic of Madeira
and Canarias
. It have two sub-species both of them is having trunk clear with spots white and brown. It reproduces by seeds and shoots and have hanging humid moss from its branches which can reach five feet and known as "beards". Ilex canariensis needs high humidity and relatively stable and mild temperature.
It is threatened by habitat loss. The species is found mainly at lower altitudes in scrub and laurisilva
where moisture in the air condenses or at the bottom of the ravines or near wet areas. Laurisilva may be increasing in Madeira, but throughout much of the range there are pressures, particularly from sheep and goats grazing and fires. This endemism has lost almost all the spines present on the edge of the leaves of the European holly, certainly due to the lack of pressure from herbivores that did not exist in these islands until the introduction of cattle by humans.
The Laurel forest of Laurisilva
is a subtropical forest
, found in areas with high humidity and relatively stable and mild temperatures. The macaronesian laurissilva is an endemic ecoregion from Macaronesia with many endemic laurifolia trees of what Ilex canariensis is one of them, endemic to the island of Madeira and the Canary Islands
.
Holly
Ilex) is a genus of 400 to 600 species of flowering plants in the family Aquifoliaceae, and the only living genus in that family. The species are evergreen and deciduous trees, shrubs, and climbers from tropics to temperate zones world wide....
native to Macaronesian islands. It is a species of plant
Plant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
in the Aquifoliaceae family. It is found in Macaronesian islands of Madeira
Madeira
Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies between and , just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic Ocean and an outermost region of the European Union...
(Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
) and Canarias
Canarias
Canarias may mean:* The Spanish Canary Islands * The Canarias class cruiser* The Spanish cruiser Canarias...
(Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
).
Description
common name is known as "acebiño" or azevinho. It is a shrubShrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
or small tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
up to 6.5 meters tall sometimes 10 m high, evergreen, with gray trunk. as with glossy ovate leaves, 5-7 long by and 2.5-4 cm wide, usually whole rounded edges in the leaves and only a few small spines; iota
Iota
Iota is the ninth letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals it has a value of 10. It was derived from the Phoenician letter Yodh . Letters that arose from this letter include the Roman I and J and the Cyrillic І , Yi , Je , and iotified letters .Iota represents...
obtuse or rounded. The leaves have ovate to ovate to lanceolate, bright and whole. The young leaves can be as thorny.
The flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
s are small, clustered in axillary inflorescences. The flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
s are having four white petal
Petal
Petals are modified leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They often are brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. Together, all of the petals of a flower are called a corolla. Petals are usually accompanied by another set of special leaves called sepals lying...
s, the flowers are located in subterminal leaf axils. It blooms from May to June. The fruits are globular and red holly. Fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
s spherical, about 1 cm wide, fleshy, red and located on stem
Plant stem
A stem is one of two main structural axes of a vascular plant. The stem is normally divided into nodes and internodes, the nodes hold buds which grow into one or more leaves, inflorescence , conifer cones, roots, other stems etc. The internodes distance one node from another...
s of 3-8 mm long. There are two sub-species. In the ssp. azevinho (Sun
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...
ex Lowe
Lowe
Lowe is a common surname in English. See List of people with surname Lowe.Lowe may also refer to:- Other uses :* Lowe Alpine, an American outdoor equipment manufacturer and supplier* Löwe Automobil, a German car-part manufacturer...
, Kunkel
Kunkel
-Surnames:*Adam Kunkel , Canadian hurdler*Benjamin Kunkel, American novelist*Bill Kunkel , Major League Baseball pitcher and umpire*Bill Kunkel , ex-executive editor of Electronic Games Magazine...
) the berries may reach 2 cm.
Ecology
Ilex canariensis is a plantPlant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
in Aquifoliaceae family related to european holly, endemic of Madeira
Madeira
Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies between and , just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic Ocean and an outermost region of the European Union...
and Canarias
Canarias
Canarias may mean:* The Spanish Canary Islands * The Canarias class cruiser* The Spanish cruiser Canarias...
. It have two sub-species both of them is having trunk clear with spots white and brown. It reproduces by seeds and shoots and have hanging humid moss from its branches which can reach five feet and known as "beards". Ilex canariensis needs high humidity and relatively stable and mild temperature.
It is threatened by habitat loss. The species is found mainly at lower altitudes in scrub and laurisilva
Laurisilva
Laurisilva or laurissilva is a subtropical forest, found in areas with high humidity and relatively stable and mild temperatures. They are characterised by evergreen, glossy-leaved tree species that look alike with leaves of lauroide type...
where moisture in the air condenses or at the bottom of the ravines or near wet areas. Laurisilva may be increasing in Madeira, but throughout much of the range there are pressures, particularly from sheep and goats grazing and fires. This endemism has lost almost all the spines present on the edge of the leaves of the European holly, certainly due to the lack of pressure from herbivores that did not exist in these islands until the introduction of cattle by humans.
The Laurel forest of Laurisilva
Laurisilva
Laurisilva or laurissilva is a subtropical forest, found in areas with high humidity and relatively stable and mild temperatures. They are characterised by evergreen, glossy-leaved tree species that look alike with leaves of lauroide type...
is a subtropical forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
, found in areas with high humidity and relatively stable and mild temperatures. The macaronesian laurissilva is an endemic ecoregion from Macaronesia with many endemic laurifolia trees of what Ilex canariensis is one of them, endemic to the island of Madeira and the Canary Islands
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
.
Source
- World Conservation Monitoring Centre 1998. Ilex canariensis. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 22 August 2007.