The Endemic Rainbow of the Marsica

Habit: A perennial herb emerging from a robust underground rhizome. Stem: Subcylindrical, erect and vigorous. Leaves: Distinctively falcate-ensiform, midway between a sickle and a sword. They are laterally flattened and arranged in a basal fan, with a glaucous green colour. Flowers: Large and showy, with three outer tepals bent downward and three inner tepals erect and folded inward. Usually 2 or 3 flowers are borne on each flowering stem. Dominant colours range through intense blue, violet and sky-blue tones. Fruits: An oblong capsule with a wrinkled surface that opens at maturity to release numerous seeds. Flowering: May-June.

Chorological type: Italian endemic. Distribution: Restricted to the Central Apennines, with recorded sites in Umbria, Lazio, Marche, Abruzzo and Molise. Habitat: It colonises semi-natural dry grasslands and mountain dry meadows, always on calcareous substrates, between 1000 and 1700 m above sea level.

Generic name (Iris): From the classical Latin iris, itself borrowed from the Greek iris, meaning “rainbow”. The term was chosen to celebrate the extraordinary colour range of the flowers in this genus, whose iridescent tones recall the rainbow. Specific name (marsica): A geographical adjective referring to the Marsica, the historical region of southwestern Abruzzo once inhabited by the Italic people known as the Marsi, where the species was identified as a distinct entity.

Marsica iris is considered a species at high risk of extinction because of its restricted range and the specificity of its habitat. For this reason, it has been included in the Italian Red Lists of Flora and is strictly protected by the European Habitats Directive, Annexes II and IV, as well as by the Bern Convention.