| Juniperus macrocarpa | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Juniperus macrocarpa in sand dune habitat, Paros Island, Greece | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Gymnospermae |
| Division: | Pinophyta |
| Class: | Pinopsida |
| Order: | Cupressales |
| Family: | Cupressaceae |
| Genus: | Juniperus |
| Section: | Juniperussect. Juniperus |
| Species: | J. macrocarpa |
| Binomial name | |
| Juniperus macrocarpa | |
Juniperus macrocarpa (large-fruited juniper, syn.J. oxycedrus subsp.macrocarpa (Sibth. & Sm.) Ball) is a species ofjuniper, native across the northernMediterranean Region from southwesternSpain[2] east to westernTurkey andCyprus, growing oncoastalsand dunes from sea level up to 75 metres (246 feet) in altitude.[3][4] A single, isolated tree is found further west, in a cliff in southernPortugal.[5]
It is a spreadingshrub 2–5 m (6+1⁄2–16+1⁄2 ft) tall, rarely a smalltree up to 14 m (46 ft) tall. Theleaves are broad lanceolate, produced in whorls of three, green,12–20 millimetres (1⁄2–3⁄4 in) long and 2–3 mm broad, with a double whitestomatal band split by a green midrib on the inner surface. It isdioecious, with separate male and female plants. Theseed cones areberry-like, green ripening in 18 months to orange-red with a variable pink waxy coating; they are spherical, 12–18 mm diameter, and have six fused scales in two whorls, three of the scales with a singleseed. The seeds are dispersed whenbirds eat the cones, digesting the fleshy scales and passing the hard seeds in their droppings. Thepollen cones are yellow, 2–3 mm long, and fall soon after shedding their pollen in late winter.[3][4][6]
Despite its distinct morphology with large cones and broad leaves more like those ofJuniperus drupacea, it has often been treated as asubspecies ofJuniperus oxycedrus,[4] though recent genetic studies[3][7][8] have shown itsDNA is distinct from that ofJ. oxycedrus.
Media related toJuniperus macrocarpa at Wikimedia Commons
