''Sideritis elica'' is a plant species in the genus '' Sideritis'', endemic to

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

. The species was discovered and described by Associate Prof. Ina Aneva and Senior Assistant Prof. Georgi Bonchev of the

Bulgarian Academy of Sciences The Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (abbreviated BAS; , ''Bŭlgarska akademiya na naukite'', abbreviated БАН) is the National Academy of Bulgaria, established in 1869. The Academy, with headquarters in Sofia, is autonomous and consists of a S ...

, as well as by Prof. Petar Zhelev of the University of Forestry in

Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the western part of the country. The city is built west of the Is ...

. The molecular analysis supports the morphological data about the divergence between the more widespread '' Sideritis scardica'' and ''Sideritis elica''. The studied populations of the two taxa were found to be genetically distant. The species is only known from the northern foothills of the central

Rhodope Mountains The Rhodopes (; , ; , ''Rodopi''; ) are a mountain range in Southeastern Europe, and the largest by area in Bulgaria, with over 83% of its area in the southern part of the country and the remainder in Greece. Golyam Perelik is its highest peak ...

, where it grows in the Chervenata Stena Reserve near Asenovgrad and Bachkovo Monastery.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q122902899 elica Plants described in 2022 Endemic flora of Bulgaria Rhodope Mountains