On the occurrence of the Poa granitica group in the Romanian Carpathians.

The Poa granitica group includes two taxa endemic to the Carpathian Mountains, morphologically distinguishable and of disjunct distribution. The distribution of P. granitica Br.-Bl. subsp. granitica is limited to the Western Carpathians, that of P. granitica Br.-Bl. subsp. disparilis (Nyar.) Nyar. to the South- Eastern Carpathians. Both taxa are characteristic of (sub-) alpine acidophilic communities (Salicion herbaceae). The most important character for distinguishing these subspecies is the indumentum of the lemma. The main goal of this paper is to examine critically some older reports from the botanical literature regarding the presence of P. granitica Br.-Bl. subsp. granitica in the Romanian Carpathians. Also, morphological description and distributions are given for both taxa. Following a review of available herbarium material and some field surveys, we consider that the presence of P. granitica Br.-Bl. subsp. granitica is highly doubtful in the Romanian Carpathians and, consequently, this taxon should be removed from checklists of the Romanian flora.