Salvia veneris

Salvia veneris, the Kythrean sage, is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae that is endemic to Cyprus. It is found in a very small area just west of the village of Kythrea. A study in 2004 found only approximately 4,000 surviving plants.

Salvia veneris
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Lamiaceae
Genus: Salvia
Species:
S. veneris
Binomial name
Salvia veneris
Hedge
Synonyms

Salvia crassifolia Sibth. & Smith

Salvia veneris has felt-like leaves growing in a basal rosette. The flowers are bi-colored, with the upper lip blue and the lower lip white with pale yellow markings. The stems give off a pleasant fragrance when crushed. The basal rosette leaf habit is unusual in the genus Salvia, and is thought to be an adaptation to grazing by goats.

Sources

  • Viney, D.E., Christofides, Y. & Kadis, C. 2006. Salvia veneris. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 20 July 2007.
  • de Montmollin, Bertrand; Wendy Strahm (2005). IUCN/SSC Mediterranean Islands Plant Specialist Group (ed.). The top 50 Mediterranean Island plants: wild plants at the brink of extinction, and what is needed to save them. IUCN. ISBN 978-2-8317-0832-4.


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