Family |
Asparagaceae
Muscari inconstrictum
Rech.f.
Muscari inconstrictum Rech.f.
First published in Ark. Bot., a.s., 2: 314 (1952).
(Nouvelle Flore du Liban et de la Syrie, vol. 1, pp. 253 and 256, under Muscari inconstrictum; Pl. LXXXI, fig. 8)
Description
Synonyms: Pseudomuscari inconstrictum (Rech.f.) Garbari; Muscari racemosum var. brachyanthum Boiss., both verified in Kew POWO.
Life-form & leaves: Perennial bulbous geophyte. Flora of Israel and adjacent areas describes entire, smooth-margined leaves arranged in a basal rosette.
Flowers & diagnostic character: Flowers violet to blackish according to Flora of Israel and adjacent areas. Mouterde distinguishes M. inconstrictum by a perianth whose throat is distinctly unconstricted; his key also places it among taxa with perianth lobes matching the rest of the flower in colour. In his comparison, M. commutatum has a slightly constricted throat.
Historical regional records: Mouterde cites the original material from Petra and tentatively refers a collection near Hammé in Syria to this species. He reports both constricted and unconstricted perianths among plants from Khabab, illustrating his uncertainty about the distinction. These are historical observations, not a modern reassessment of those specimens.
Flowering and habitat
Flowering, habitat & elevation: Mouterde supplies no separate flowering period, habitat description or numerical elevation range for M. inconstrictum. The February–May period and fields/pastures habitat printed under M. commutatum are not transferred here.
Distribution
Recorded locations: Sannine.
Native range: Eastern Mediterranean to northwestern Iran. Kew lists Iran, Iraq, Lebanon-Syria, Palestine, Sinai, Transcaucasus and Türkiye.
Additional descriptive source: Flora of Israel and adjacent areas, Muscari inconstrictum account, for leaf arrangement and flower colour.
⚠️ Taxonomic note:
The earlier Muscari commutatum identification is replaced by Muscari inconstrictum Rech.f. This is a reidentification of the recorded plant, not an assertion that the two names are synonyms. Mouterde discusses M. inconstrictum on vol. 1, p. 256 but questions whether its unconstricted perianth represents a distinct species or an extreme form of M. commutatum. Kew currently accepts M. inconstrictum as a separate species and includes Lebanon-Syria in its native range. The earlier M. commutatum description and locality list are therefore not assigned wholesale to this corrected record.