Juniperus brevifolia | |
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Juniperus brevifolia on the humid montane dwarf forests of Pico Island | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Gymnospermae |
Division: | Pinophyta |
Class: | Pinopsida |
Order: | Cupressales |
Family: | Cupressaceae |
Genus: | Juniperus |
Section: | Juniperus sect. Juniperus |
Species: | J. brevifolia |
Binomial name | |
Juniperus brevifolia | |
Juniperus brevifolia, the Azores juniper, is a species of juniper, endemic to the Azores (on Corvo, Faial, Flores, Pico, Santa Maria, São Jorge, São Miguel, and Terceira), where it occurs at altitudes of 240–800 metres (790–2,620 feet), rarely up to 1,500 m (4,900 ft). It is closely related to Juniperus oxycedrus (prickly juniper) of the Mediterranean region and Juniperus cedrus (Canary Islands juniper) of the neighboring Macaronesian islands. It is threatened by habitat loss. [2] [3] [1]
It is a shrub or small tree growing to a height of 6 m (20 ft) and a trunk diameter up to 50 centimetres (20 in). The leaves are evergreen, needle-like, in whorls of three, glaucous green, 4–10 millimetres (1⁄4–1⁄2 in) long and 1–3 mm broad, with a double white stomatal band (split by a green midrib) on the inner surface. It is dioecious, with separate male and female plants. The seed cones are berry-like, green ripening in 18 months to orange-red with a variable pink waxy coating; they are spherical, 6–9 mm diameter, and have three or six fused scales in one or two whorls of three, the three larger scales each with a single seed. The seeds are dispersed when birds eat the cones, digesting the fleshy scales and passing the hard seeds in their droppings. The male cones are yellow, 2–3 mm long, and fall soon after shedding their pollen in early spring. [2] [3]
This is a vulnerable species in its native range due to a combination of historical felling for the valuable wood and competition from invasive introduced plants. [1]
On the island of Graciosa, Juniperus brevifolia has gone extinct, and on the other islands, it remains endangered. [4] The decline in population is due to habitat fragmentations of its preferred habitat (laurel forest) caused by island colonization and grazing pressures. [4] [5]
Juniperus communis, the common juniper, is a species of small tree or shrub in the cypress family Cupressaceae. An evergreen conifer, it has the largest geographical range of any woody plant, with a circumpolar distribution throughout the cool temperate Northern Hemisphere.
Juniperus indica, the black juniper, is a juniper native to high-altitude climates in the Himalaya, occurring in Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan and China.
Juniperus oxycedrus, vernacularly called Cade, cade juniper, prickly juniper, prickly cedar, or sharp cedar, is a species of juniper, native across the Mediterranean region, growing on a variety of rocky sites from sea level. The specific epithet oxycedrus means "sharp cedar" and this species may have been the original cedar or cedrus of the ancient Greeks.
Juniperus excelsa, commonly called the Greek juniper, is a juniper found throughout the eastern Mediterranean, from northeastern Greece and southern Bulgaria across Turkey to Syria and Lebanon, Jordan, the Caucasus mountains, and southern coast of Crimea.
Juniperus drupacea, the Syrian juniper, is a species of juniper native to the eastern Mediterranean region from southern Greece, southern Turkey, western Syria, and Lebanon, growing on rocky sites from 800–1,700 metres in altitude. The species is the sole member of Juniperus sect. Caryocedrus., which is sometimes recognised as genus Arceuthos.
Juniperus californica, the California juniper, is a species of juniper native to southwestern North America.
Juniperus horizontalis, the creeping juniper or creeping cedar, is a low-growing shrubby juniper native to northern North America, throughout most of Canada from Yukon east to Newfoundland, and in some of the northern United States.
Juniperus recurva, commonly named the Himalayan juniper or drooping juniper, is a juniper native to the Himalaya, from northern Pakistan, through India, Nepal and Bhutan, to western Yunnan in southwestern China. It grows at altitudes of 3,000–4,000 metres.
Juniperus procumbens is a species of shrub in the cypress family Cupressaceae, native to Japan. This low-growing evergreen conifer is closely related to the Chinese juniper, Juniperus chinensis, and is sometimes treated as a variety of it, as J. chinensis var. procumbens.
Juniperus squamata, the flaky juniper, or Himalayan juniper is a species of coniferous shrub in the cypress family Cupressaceae, native to the Himalayas and China.
Juniperus cedrus, the Canary Islands juniper, is a species of juniper, native to the western Canary Islands and Madeira, where it occurs at altitudes of 500–2400 m. It is closely related to Juniperus oxycedrus of the Mediterranean region and Juniperus brevifolia of the Azores.
Juniperus deppeana is a small to medium-sized tree reaching 10–15 metres in height. It is native to central and northern Mexico and the southwestern United States.
Juniperus flaccida is a large shrub or small tree reaching 5–10 metres tall. It is native to central and northern Mexico and the extreme southwest of Texas, United States. It grows at moderate altitudes of 800–2,600 metres, on dry soils.
Juniperus phoenicea, the Phoenicean juniper or Arâr, is a juniper found throughout the Mediterranean region.
Juniperus rigida, the temple juniper, is a species of juniper, native to northern China, Mongolia, Korea, Japan, and the far southeast of Russia, occurring at altitudes of 10–2,200 metres (33–7,218 ft). The species is also naturalized in the United States. It is closely related to Juniperus communis and Juniperus conferta, the latter sometimes treated as a variety or subspecies of J. rigida.
Juniperus semiglobosa, the Himalayan pencil juniper, is a species of juniper native to the mountains of Central Asia, in northeastern Afghanistan, westernmost China (Xinjiang), northern Pakistan, southeastern Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, western Nepal, northern India, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. It grows at altitudes of 1,550–4,420 metres.
Juniperus standleyi is a species of juniper native to Guatemala and the adjacent extreme southeast of Mexico, where it occurs at elevations of 3,000–4,250 metres. Its local common names include huitó, cipres, and huitum.
Juniperus taxifolia is a species of juniper, endemic to the Bonin Islands southeast of Japan.
Juniperus lutchuensis or Ryūkyū juniper is a species of juniper native to the Ryūkyū Islands, Izu Islands, Izu Peninsula, and Bōsō Peninsula, Japan.
Juniperus macrocarpa is a species of juniper, native across the northern Mediterranean region from southwestern Spain east to western Turkey and Cyprus, growing on coastal sand dunes from sea level up to 75 metres in altitude. A single, isolated tree is found further west, in a cliff in southern Portugal.