Sorbus aria (L.) Crantz
Crataegus aria L., Aria nivea Host, Pyrus meridionalis Guss., S. meridionalis (Guss.) Nyman, Aria edulis (Willd.) M. Roem.
Eng.: Common whitebeam. Spa.: Mostajo. Fre.: Allier, sorbier, aluchier, alisier blanc. Ara./Tam.: mechtehi, zaârur, meïs, mechthi, sejrat-al-muzah, nelk, ronba.
Tree, deciduous hermaphrodite, up to 15(25) m in height, irregular in shape, but ± ovoid. Trunk well defined, straight or slightly tortuous, with greyish-brown bark, slightly fissured. Branches smooth, greyish, branches a few years old reddish-brown, and younger branches reddish with lanate-whitish hairs. Buds non viscous. Leaves [4-12(16) × 2-9(13) cm] alternate, oval-orbicular or obovate-orbicular, obtuse, with ± rounded base, margin twice serrate, glabrous and of intense green colour on the upper side, villous-lanate, silky to touch and whitish on the underside; with tomentose petiole, 1-1.5 cm. Inflorescence terminal, corymbiform, with numerous flowers, although less than in the previous species, with lanate-whitish peduncles. Flowers about 10-15 mm in diameter. Calyx lanate-whitish, with 5 small triangular-lanceolate sepals about 4 mm long. Corolla with 5 white petals, ovate or suborbicular, glabrous except on the basal claw, which is lanate. Stamens 18-20, with whitish-yellow or reddish anthers. Styles 2, free, hairy at the base. Fruit an ovoid or subglobose pome, (6)10-17 mm long, fleshy, crowned by the persistent calyx, at first green and covered with an indumentum of lanate-whitish hairs flaking as the fruit ripens; fruit bright red when mature. Seeds 1-2(3).
Flowering:
April to June.
Fruiting:
September to November.
Habitat:
Forests and rocky areas in mid mountain (1,300-2,500 m), on calcareous and siliceous terrains. In subhumid to hyperhumid bioclimate, on mesomediterranean and supramediterranean floors.
Distribution:
Central Europe, Mediterranean region and Canary Islands. In North Africa it is distributed in the mountains of Morocco (central-western Rif, Middle Atlas and High Atlas), Algeria (Mt. Tlemcen, Atlas of Blida, Djurdjura Massif, Mt. Babors, Mt. Bellezma, Mt. Refâa and Aures Massif) and Tunisia (Tunisian Dorsal —Mts. Serdj, Mrhila and Chambi—).
Conservation status:
Rare but widely distributed species. Currently, it has not been assessed at a global level in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. In Algeria it is included in the List of protected non cultivated flora (Executive Decree 12-03 on 4-Jan-2012). In Tunisia it is included in its List of native species that are rare and threatened with extinction. (Order of the Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources 19-July-2006).