Helmut Baumann’s scientific contributions

Changes of rules of ICBN now ICN usually are intended to favour stability of botanical nomenclature. This is the case e.g. with improved wording of regulations governing combinations of older names and of requirements on indirect references as with Ophrys arachnites Mill., which confirmed ist formerly proposed synonymy with Ophrys sphegodes Mill. avoiding priority over Ophrys holosericea (Burm. f.) Greuter. Recent weakening of requirements on type material for new names, i.e. allowing retroactively illustrations for the period of 1.1.1958 till 1.1.2007 however seems to be contraproductive making obsolete recent validations of invalid names typified originally on illustrations or even illegitimate. For this Ophrys sphegodes subsp. garganica E. Nelson in O. Danesch et al. 1975 and Ophrys sphegodes subsp. sipontensis Gumprecht in O. Danesch & E. Danesch 1975 have to be treated as valid ab initio.

Detailed morphological investigations of a Platanthera-species, recently reported as new for Sardinia and the second on this island after P. algeriensis, have been carried out in comparison to central, northwest and north European P. bifolia s.l., Caucasian subsp. atropatanica and central European P. chlorantha. The results confirm its affinity to North African P. kuenkelei subsp. kuenkelei, recently shown by molecular genetic investigations carried out by the working group of Cozzolino/Naples, as well as to the Caucasian subsp. atropatanica and overall justify the attribution of both to P. kuenkelei as var. sardoa or respectively as subsp. atropatanica. This species, extremely rare in Sardinia and North Africa, is severely endangered by heavy grazing in this regions, less but still to some extent in the Caucasus too. Conservation of the Sardinian population through suitable protection measures is strongly recommended. Furthermore multivariate analysis does not confirm a recently proposed separation of European P. bifolia L. above variety level based on morphometric data.

Baumann, H. & R. Lorenz (2006): The sections of the genus Orchis L..- J. Eur. Orch. 38 (1): 173-183. Based on morphological criteria a new arrangement of the genus Orchis in nine sections is proposed. The correct names of these sections, together with their types, species and subspecies are listed, their differential characters are communicated. The sections Andranthus, Phalaenanthus are typified. The subsection Saccatae ParI. is elevated to the rank of section. The attribution of species and subspecies of the genus Orchis to the single nine sections is compared with recent moleculargenetically derived cladogramms.

Within the preparation of a new European-Mediterranean orchid field guide and of the OPTIMA-Atlas on their distribution (BAUMANN et al. 2002, 2004, 2005) the review of critical taxa and entities has been continued. The results, i.e. some descriptions of new taxa and few new classifications are presented.

Within the preparation of an updated practice-orientated fieldguide on the European and Mediterranean orchids and of the OPTIMA-Atlas on their distribution (BAUMANN et al. 2002, 2004) the review of nomenclaturally and taxonomically critical taxa as weil as fieldwork has been continued. From this some entities were recognised as new taxa, several others were attributed to different, mainly lower ranks or were evaluated as younger synonyms. Few of the new taxa are treated at this place very concisely, more detailed treatments are in preparation and will be published in this Journal at a later stage.