Hedera algeriensis Rantonnet ex C. Morren
Eng.: Algerian ivy. Spa.: Hiedra argelina. Fre.: Lierre d’Algérie. Ara.: Qessuss, luaïa, luwaya, habl el masakeen. Tam.: Tanesfalt.
Woody plant, hermaphrodite, perennial, that climbs rocks and plants through its aerial adventitious roots. Stems reddish, somewhat hairy and with stellate scales, reddish-brown. Leaves alternate, simple, very shiny; leaves on fertile stems entire, rhomboid, very large (12-20 × c.
12.5 cm), and leaves on sterile branches, smaller (8-11 × 8-10 cm), coarsely dentate or slightly lobulate (3 lobules). Petiole red and turgid. Inflorescence in a raceme of 13-15 pubescent flowers that develop only on the fertile stems or branches. Flowers 8-10 mm in diameter, actinomorphic, hermaphrodite and pentamerous. Sepals triangular, chestnut in colour. Petals deltoid, patent, yellowish-green. Stamens free and yellow-greenish. Fruit a black and globose fleshy berry, 6-7.5 mm.
Flowering:
September to November.
Fruiting:
March to May.
Habitat:
Rocky outcrops and scree, sclerophyllous and marcescent forests and woods, near the coast. It is distributed at moderate altitudes, from sea level to 500 m.
Distribution:
Distributed along the coastal and subcoastal regions of N Algeria and Tunisia
Observations:
In the Jebel Akhdar (NE Libya) there is an ivy, cited normally as H. helix, but it is yet to be determined what species it actually is. Among the species present in North Africa, H. algeriensis is geographically the closest.
Conservation status:
Locally common species but with a small distribution area. Currently, it has not been assessed at a global level in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.