Crete The island of perpetual spring

The flora of Crete, the richest in Europe, has its own history with roots in the era when Asia and Europe were unified. Traces of the common terrestrial evolutionary signs are hidden deep in the "belly" of Crete. The findings of dwarf elephant and deer fossils were perhaps the most exciting for human imagination.

The flora of Crete numbers 1800 species 10% of which are endemic, i.e. grow only in specific regions. This wealth in plant life is the primordial legacy of Crete and the result of unique microclimatic conditions prevailing on the island for thousands of years. The multifaceted relief of the island in mountains, gorges, valleys, etc. creates diverse biotopes distinguished for their flora and fauna. The E.U. program NATURA 2000 registered 109 different types of ecotopes in Greece 55 of which were recorded on the island of Crete. Although the area of Crete is only 6% of the area of Greece, yet it hosts approximately 28% of the entire flora encountered in Greece.

In the last few years, botanist and professor of applied sciences at the Technological Educational Institute of Heraklion, Mr. Zacharias Cypriotakis, discovered 4 new plant species: the Allium Platakissi, found on Pontikonissi rock off the shores of Crete; the Scilla Talosi, found on the isle of Dia (7 miles north of Heraklion); the Bellevasia Sitiaca, and Limonium Cornarum found in the region of Sitia (east Crete). Mr. Cypriotakis is currently studying 15 more plant species that are probably new, in which case the known flora of Crete is expected to increase significantly.

The flora of Crete is not only rich, but also interesting: a large number of plants and herbs are always in blossom and when perceived in their particular habitat create the impression of perpetual, cyclic spring. In other words, off-season Spring is relative to the location where blossoming plants are noticed. In winter this perception is verified along the coast line where scores of little flowers are in blossom. Spring recedes to its natural locus of the prairies and from there to higher and higher altitudes the following two seasons.

The Cretan Archipelago is rich in marine life. Of particular importance are the remarks of Mr. Cypriotakis concerning the significance of the species Posidonia Oceanica, a ribbon-like, dark brown plant which we all have noticed lying on beaches, occasionally accumulated in large masses. According to the professor, the appearance of this plant has wrongly been associated with sea pollution. On the contrary, a sign of sea pollution is the appearance of the green sea weed which fishermen use to dress their catch.

The flora of Crete is in grave danger. Fifteen species are in the brink of extinction with the endemic flora also at risk. Astragalus Idapus, a wild plant of Mt. Psiloritis, has been extinct for about a century now. However, Mr. Cypriotakis believes that nature has a way of preserving its more sensitive progeny. Therefore, he decided to trace this forsaken plant in locations where this plant had been noticed in the past. The Astragalus was last reported seen in 1869.

Plants provide an alternative historical record of the land we live in. The science of Botany is a valuable source of information for the science of geology. It can prove or disprove major hypotheses with regard to rock genealogy and formation. According to Prof. Cypriotakis, the likeness of the endemic flora of Crete to that of the Asia Minor is explained by the geological fact that the Aegean Sea, Crete and Asia Minor were a unified land thousands of years ago. Fossils of the cinnamon tree on Crete and the palm tree on the isle of Santorini prove the mobility of plants at long distances through centuries of evolutionary changes.

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The island of never-ending spring