Salsola squarrosa Steven ex Moq.

Raab-Straube, Eckhard von & Raus, Thomas, 2025, Euro + Med-Checklist Notulae, 18, Willdenowia 55 (1), pp. 107-144 : 114

Salsola squarrosa Steven ex Moq.

+ Al: Albania: Prefecture of Shkodër, Municipality of Velipojë, Velipojë beach, 41°51'38"N, 19°26'02"E, 1 m, slightly ruderalized sand dunes in front of coastal Pinus pinea L. stand 50 m from seashore, 22 Oct 2024, Raus 35178 ( B). – This is the first published, georeferenced record from Albania of this species, which replaces Salsola kali L. along the shores of the Mediterranean and Black Sea region ( Mosyakin 2017b); the latter is confined to the Atlantic and Baltic coasts of Europe ( Rilke 1999). Recently published evidence for S. kali ( subsp. kali ) in Albania ( Uotila 2011 +; Fanelli & al. 2015; Vangjeli 2015, 2017; Pils 2016; Barina & al. 2017, 2018) is misleading, referring in fact to S. squarrosa , which is the earliest available binomial applicable for the whole Mediterranean coastal complex of races known earlier as S. controversa , S. pontica (≡ S. tragus subsp. pontica ) and under the misapplied name S. kali auct. ( Mosyakin 2017b: 526). Bartolucci & al. (2018: 243) accepted S. squarrosa subsp. controversa (Tod. ex Lojac.) Mosyakin as indigenous to Italy, while Dimopoulos & al. (2024) and the Flora Ionica Working Group (2016 +) accepted S. squarrosa subsp. squarrosa as indigenous to the W coast of mainland Greece and the Ionian islands; the two infraspecific taxa may merge in Albania. It seems premature to allocate Albanian populations to subspecific rank unless sufficient material has been morphologically examined. Th. Raus