The situation of Trollius europaeus L. (Ranuncu-laceae) in the north-east of Central Europe —history, current changes and conservation

摘要

tane to (sub-)alpine elevations or in boreal environments in most parts of its range. In the north-easternlowlands of Central Europe T.europaeus has experienced a considerable decline since the 1960s,basically due to intensive agricultural land use. It is a threatened species in this region today. Informa-tion from different sources was compiled to summarize the historic distribution as well as the changesto date for this region and to give an overview on its current status in north-eastern Germany andnorthern Poland. A smaller study area was chosen for a survey of localities from which T europaeus has previouslybeen reported or is known to be present. Data on presence or absence, population size and type of landuse were recorded. The general trend of decline in occupied localities could be confirmed for therepresentative study area and demonstrates that, despite conservation efforts, the loss of populationsstill continues. Most extant populations were found to be small and more than half of them persistunder presumably unfavourable habitat conditions. The efficiency of protection efforts and future di-rections to improve conservation strategies for T europaeus are discussed.