Rhododendron caucasicum: Red Data Book of Armenia

EN B 1 ab(iii,iv) + 2 ab(iii,iv)

Category. Endangered species. At present only two precise sub– populations are known in the Republic. The extent of occurrence and the area of occupancy are less than 500 km2. The distance between two locations is 30 km. The species is faces decline of both the extent of occurrence and the area of occupancy caused by changes in habitat conditions. It was included in the first edition of the Red Data Book of Armenia under Category 2: Rare species. It is not included in the Annexes of CITES and that of the Bern Convention.

Description. Evergreen shrub up to 50–60 cm. Flowers large, more than 5 cm in diameter, white or creamy, in umbel–shaped raceme.

Distribution. In Armenia it grows in Lori (Bazum mountain range) and Idjevan (Pambak mountain range) floristic regions. AOO is 24 km2. The number of locations is 2. Besides Armenia the species occurs in the Greater Caucasus, Dagestan, Transcaucasia, North–East Anatolia.

Ecological, biological and phytocoenological peculiarities. Grows in sub–alpine belt, at the altitudes of 2000–2400 meters above sea level, in the meadows developing so called "rhodoretes". Flowering in June, fruiting from July to September.

Limiting factors. Restricted extent of occurrence and area of occupancy, haymaking, global climate change.

Conservation actions. One of the sub–populations is distinguished as reservation of "Rhododendron caucasicum". Necessary: monitoring of the population state.