Amphi-Adriatic salt-sprayed rocky cliffs vegetation

Rocky coasts directly exposed to the action of waves, wind and salt-spray, support a highly specialized flora. In the northwestern Mediterranean, the halophilous plant communities next to the coastline, were classified in the alliance Crithmo-Staticion Molinier 1934. Some authors extended the distribution area of this alliance to the Adriatic coasts whereas some others stressed the need for an endemic Adriatic alliance. In the EuroVegChecklist - a recent comprehensive syntaxonomic system of the European vegetation - the amphi-Adriatic salt-sprayed rocky cliffs vegetation is classified in the endemic Limonion anfracti-cancellati (Horvati? 1934) Mucina et al. 2016. Although several syntaxonomic revisions of salt-sprayed rocky coastal vegetation of Croatia and South east of Italy have been carried out, a comprehensive revision for the entire Adriatic basin is still lacking. On the basis of nearly 400 relevés taken from phytosociological literature, this paper revises the vegetation of the Limonion anfracti-cancellati and its relationships with neighboring alliances.