Cerastium utriense

Cerastium utriense
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Core eudicots
Order:	Caryophyllales
Family:	Caryophyllaceae
Genus:	Cerastium
Species:	C. utriense
Binomial name
Cerastium utriense Barberis, 1988

Cerastium utriense is a species of perennial flowering plant in the genus Cerastium, belonging to the pink family.

Description

Flowers of Cerastium utriense

Cerastium utriense is a hemicryptophyte scapose plant reaching on average 15–20 centimetres (5.9–7.9 in) of height, with a maximum of 25 centimetres (9.8 in). It takes the form of a mat or clump. It is usually somewhat hairy in texture, with glabrous, linear and lance-shaped leaves, a few centimeters in length. The inflorescence is pubescent and usually consists of a dense cluster of many flowers. The flower has five white glabrous petals, each with two lobes, and five hairy sepals at the base. The flowering period extends from May through July. The fruit is a sub-cylindrical capsule up to 1.5 centimeters long, containing several brown seeds. This species is quite similar to Cerastium arvense, but it may be distinguished by the erect peduncles bearing the ripe fruits.

Distribution

It is an Italian endemism with a quite restricted distribution range. It is only present in the Apennines of Liguria and Piedmont, in northwestern Italy.

Habitat

The species is strictly associated with serpentine substrates, without a manifest relationship with chemical properties of these soils. It grows in ultramafic outcrops and scrublands in mountain evironment, at an altitude of 400–1,200 metres (1,300–3,900 ft) above sea level.

References

• Barberis G., 1988 - Cerastium utriense sp. nov. (Caryophyllaceae) nell'Appennino ligure-piemontese - Webbia 42(2): 153-160
• S. Marsili - Acta plantarum
• S. Marsili, E. Roccotiello, I. Rellini, P. Giordani, G. Barberis, and M. G. Mariotti - Ecological Studies on the Serpentine Endemic Plant Cerastium utriense Barberis - Northeastern Naturalist, Humboldt Field Research Institute

External links

• Cerastium utriensis
• Distribution