COROLOGIA, AUTOECOLOGIA E SINECOLOGIA DI ANDROSACE BREVIS (HEGETSCHW.) CES

Androsace brevis is a protected species according to Regional Law 10/2008, included in the National Red List because of its status as an endemic and as a rare species in its distribution range. It is a high altitude, light-demanding cushion plant, with an early flowering period (end of May to the start of June), present above 2000 m asl on rocky ridges exposed to strong winds, on prealpine terrigenous substrates. The distribution range of A. brevis is not yet well defined, and is peculiar compared to the distribution range of other Lombardy endemic species; it consists of two large discontinuous populations separated by Lake Como, on the Western Orobian Alps and the Lugano Prealps and a small portion of the Lepontine Alps, in addition to more disjointed populations in the Rhaetian Alps. The University of Milan has started a research project that aims to define in detail the distribution range of this species (and the causes of this distribution), its distribution, autoecology and sinecology.