Flora-Fauna

Lonicera etrusca Santi

(First published in Viagg. Montamiata 1: 113; 1795. Treated in Nouvelle Flore du Liban et de la Syrie, vol. 3, p. 321; 1983)

• Life-form & habit: Climbing shrub, 2–5 m, with stems and leaves glabrous or more or less pubescent; var. hispidula Boiss. with inflorescence-branches glandular-hispid.
• Leaves: Glaucous; lower leaves obovate, shortly petiolate; upper and floral leaves connate-perfoliate.
• Inflorescence & flowers: Flowers grouped in capituliform glomerules at the tip of branches of similar length, subtended by a short floral leaf, from which arise 3 short peduncles sometimes with a smaller connate bract. Calyx short, with acute teeth. Corolla tube usually curved, 1–3 cm, narrow at base, gradually widening into a funnel below the limb; limb bilabiate; anthers and style markedly exserted. Fresh corolla white flushed with pink, especially towards the apex.
• Fruit: Multilocular berry, reddish, turning black on drying.
• Phenology: Flowers April–June.
• Habitat & elevation: Hedges, rocky places.
• Lebanese distribution: Tyre (Gaillardot), Ras Jedra (Samuelsson), Beirut (Boissier, Post, Vierhapper), Nahr el-Kalb (Pabot), Nahr Beirut (Mouterde), Nahr Ibrahim near Aqaibé (Mt), Tripoli, Bikfaya, Douma, Dhoûr Choueir, Bouara near ‘Aley, Falougha, Ehden, Dimane, Hasroun, ‘Aïn Zehalta, Qabb Elias, source of Nahr Hasbani.
• Syrian distribution: Zebdani (Boissier), Tartous (Gaillardot), ‘Aïn ech-Cha‘ara, ‘Aïn Halakim, Mass‘adi, Quneitra. Var. hispidula: Kessab, Jabal Cassius, Haffé, Slenfé, Zebdani.
• Native range: Albania; Algeria; Azores (Pico, Santa Maria, São Jorge); Bosnia-Herzegovina; Bulgaria; Canary Islands (Tenerife); Corsica; Crete with Karpathos; Crimea; Croatia; Cyprus; East Aegean Islands; Former Yugoslavia; France (including Channel Islands and Monaco); Georgia; Germany; Greece; Israel/Palestine; Israel/Palestine–Jordan; Italy (including San Marino and Vatican City); Jordan; Lebanon–Syria; Libya; Madeira (Madeira Island); Montenegro; Morocco; Portugal; Russia (North Caucasus); Sardinia; Sicily (with Malta); Slovenia; Spain (including Gibraltar and Andorra); Switzerland; Syria; Tunisia; Türkiye (Asiatic and European parts); Ukraine (including Crimea). (Euro+Med)

⚠️ Taxonomic note: A widespread Mediterranean honeysuckle, sometimes confused with Lonicera implexa Aiton, but distinguished by its larger, more elongated flowers and longer corolla tube. The perfoliate upper leaf pair is a key identification feature. Levantine populations are morphologically typical of the Mediterranean form and occasionally cultivated for their fragrant blossoms. Mouterde distinguishes var. hispidula Boiss. (inflorescence-branches glandular-hispid) from the glabrous/pubescent type.