Abies cilicica

Abies cilicica

Cilica fir in north Lebanon
Conservation status
Near Threatened (IUCN 3.1)^[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Gymnospermae
Division:	Pinophyta
Class:	Pinopsida
Order:	Pinales
Family:	Pinaceae
Genus:	Abies
Species:	A. cilicica
Binomial name
*Abies cilicica* (Antoine & Kotschy) Carrière

Distribution

Abies cilicica, also known as Cilician fir^[2] or Taurus fir, is a species of conifer in the family Pinaceae. It is found in Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey.^[3] Abies cilicica and Cedrus libani, together with Acer hyrcanum subsp. tauricolum and Sorbus torminalis subsp. orientalis, are the predominant trees in the phytocoenosis Abeti-Cedrion, a type of forest of the middle and eastern Taurus Mountains of Turkey. These forests occur between 800 and 2,100 meters elevation. Over 5,000 years of logging, burning, and grazing have reduced these forests to enclaves.^[4]

In 2009 at Berenice Troglodytica, the Egypto-Roman port on the Red Sea, archaeologists found: "two blocks of resin from the Syrian fir tree (Abies cilicica), one weighing about 190 g and the other about 339 g, recovered from 1st-century AD contexts in one of the harbour trenches. Produced in areas of greater Syria and Asia Minor, this resin and its oil derivative were used in mummification, as an antiseptic, a diuretic, to treat wrinkles, extract worms and promote hair growth."^[5]

The Cilician fir is a significant source of timber in Turkey, where it is relatively common; it is primarily used for plywood for construction.^[6]^: 72 It is not commonly cultivated, however, because of its susceptibility to late frost in early spring.^[6]^: 72

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Gallery

Abies cilicica in the Horsh Ehden reserve, Lebanon
Abies cillicica cones
Abies cilicica, close-up

Footnotes

^ Gardner, M.; Knees, S. (2013). "Abies cilicica". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2013: e.T42275A2968944. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T42275A2968944.en. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
^ BSBI List 2007 (xls). Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original (xls) on 26 June 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2014.
^ Alizoti, P.G.; Fady, B.; Prada, M.A.; Vendramin, G.G. "Mediterranean firs - Abies spp." (PDF). EUFORGEN Technical Guidelines for Conservation and Use. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 October 2016. Retrieved 18 October 2016.
^ Boydak, M. "Reforestation of Lebanon cedar (Cedrus libani A. Rich.) in bare karstic lands by broadcast seeding in Turkey." In : Leone V. (ed.), Lovreglio R. (ed.). Proceedings of the international workshop MEDPINE 3: conservation, regeneration and restoration of Mediterranean pines and their ecosystems. Bari : CIHEAM, 2007. p. 33-42 (Options Méditerranéennes : Série A. Séminaires Méditerranéens; n. 75)
^ Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego ^{[dead link]}
^ ^a ^b Farjon, Aljos (2010). A Handbook of the World's Conifers: Revised and Updated Edition. Brill. pp. 71–2. ISBN 978-90-04-17718-5. Retrieved 10 February 2023.