Eryngium maritimum

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Eudicots
Cladus: Core eudicots
Cladus: Asterids
Cladus: Campanulids
Ordo: Apiales

Familia: Apiaceae
Subfamilia: Saniculoideae
Tribus: Saniculeae
Genus: Eryngium
Species: Eryngium maritimum
Name

Eryngium maritimum L., 1753
Synonyms

Eryngium marinum Garsault

Distribution
Native distribution areas:

Continental: Europe
Albania, Belgium, Baleares, (Ibiza, Mallorca, Menorca), England, Bulgaria, Corsica, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland (incl. Northern Ireland), Netherlands, Spain, Gibraltar, Gibraltar, ?Iceland, Italy, Montenegro, Croatia, Slovenia, Portugal, Norway, Poland, Romania, Crimea, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Ukraine, S-European Russia, Sardinia, Sicily, Malta, Sweden, Cyprus (C-Mountains, E-Cyprus, W-Cyprus), Greece (incl. Kiklades), Crete, East Aegaean Isl., Rhodos, European Turkey
Continental: Asia-Temperate
Georgia [Caucasus], Northern Caucasus, Turkey (N-Anatolia, NE-Anatolia, NW-Anatolia: Bithynia, SSW-Anatolia, W-Anatolia, WN-Anatolia), Israel (coastal W-Israel), Lebanon (coastal W-Lebanon), Syria (coastal W-Syria),
Continental: Africa
Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Libya

References: Brummitt, R.K. 2001. TDWG – World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions, 2nd Edition
References

Linnaeus, C. 1753. Species Plantarum. Tomus I: 233. Reference page. 

Links

Hassler, M. 2018. Eryngium maritimum. World Plants: Synonymic Checklists of the Vascular Plants of the World In: Roskovh, Y., Abucay, L., Orrell, T., Nicolson, D., Bailly, N., Kirk, P., Bourgoin, T., DeWalt, R.E., Decock, W., De Wever, A., Nieukerken, E. van, Zarucchi, J. & Penev, L., eds. 2018. Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life. Published online. Accessed: 2018 Sep 16. Reference page. 
USDA, ARS, Germplasm Resources Information Network. Eryngium maritimum in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service. Accessed: 07-Oct-06.
International Plant Names Index. 2017. Eryngium maritimum. Published online. Accessed: Sep 09 2017.
Govaerts, R. et al. 2017. Eryngium maritimum in Kew Science Plants of the World Online. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published online. Accessed: 2017 Sep 09. Reference page. 
Tropicos.org 2017. Eryngium maritimum. Missouri Botanical Garden. Published online. Accessed: 09 Sep 2017.

Vernacular names
العربية: قرصعنة بحرية
català: Card marí
corsu: Cardu marinu
kaszëbsczi: Òstropùs
čeština: Máčka přímořská
dansk: Strand-mandstro
Deutsch: Stranddistel
English: Sea Holly
español: Cardo de mar
eesti: Rand-ogaputk
euskara: Itsas armika
فارسی: راج دریایی
suomi: Meripiikkiputki
Nordfriisk: Dünemfisel
français: Panicaut maritime
galego: Cardo da ribeira
magyar: Tengerparti iringó
italiano: Calcatrèppola marina
lietuvių: Pajūrinė zunda
Nederlands: Blauwe zeedistel
norsk nynorsk: Strandtorn
norsk: Strandtorn
polski: Mikołajek nadmorski
português: Eryngium maritimum
русский: Синеголовник приморский
slovenčina: Kotúč prímorský
shqip: Eryngium maritimum
svenska: Martorn
Türkçe: Çakırdiken
українська: Миколайчики приморські

Eryngium maritimum, the sea holly or sea eryngo, or sea eryngium, is a perennial species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae and native to most European coastlines. It resembles a plume thistle in appearance on account of its burr-shaped flower. Despite its common name, it is not related to true holly, but is an umbellifer.

Etymology

E. maritimum was formally described by Linnaeus in his Species Plantarum I: 233 (1753). The generic name Eryngium derives from Greek and may have developed from a description of the plant by Theophrastus (300 BC), who referred to it as “Eryngion”, meaning a spiny plant.[1] Alternatively, the name may have derived from the Greek word “eruggarein”, meaning to eructate (belch), since the plant was used to treat various disorders such as trapped gases.[2]

The specific epithet maritimum means “of the sea”.[3]

The common English name appears to date from the 16th century. In his 1548 publication The Names of Herbes, the naturalist William Turner stated that “Eryngium is named in englishe sea Hulver or sea Holly”.[4]
Taxonomy

Although hybrids of E. maritimum have been reported, they are relatively few. For example, records have been made of a hybrid between E. maritimum and E. campestre (=Eryngium 9 rocheri Corb. ex Guétrot) in France,[5][6] and in the region of Valencia, Spain.[7]

The species’ chromosome number is 2n = 16 [8]
Description

Sea holly is a glabrous, intensely glaucous, clump-forming perennial growing to around 60 cm tall. It is also a slightly succulent xerophyte with a deep well-developed root system and waxy leaf cuticles. The leaves are stiff, spiny, and leathery. The basal leaves, which measure 5 – 15 cm long and are rolled when young,[9] are palmately 3-lobed and suborbicular, truncate, or cordate at the base. [8] The stem leaves are similar, but are smaller, sessile, and palmate. All leaves have thick cartilaginous margins, with often purplish veins and stomata on both sides. The petiole is channeled and dilated at the base.[9]

The cotyledons are abruptly contracted into a petiole.[8]

The flowers are bluish white and measure 8mm across, in 1.5 – 2.5 cm heads[10] The bracts are spiny, and the bracteoles are longer than the flowers. The sepals measure 4 – 5 mm and are longer than the petals.[8]

The fruit is 13 – 15 mm, more or less uncompressed and covered in stigmatic papillae which become longer towards the apex. The styles are about 6 mm long, divergent to somewhat recurved.[8]

It flowers June to September.
Identification

Apart from its specific coastal habitat, sea holly may also be distinguished from its congeners by the deeper, strongly spiny teeth on the basal leaves and stem leaves.[11]
Distribution

Throughout its range, sea holly is a coastal species, occurring locally and almost continuously along the coastlines of England and Ireland. In Great Britain, it is most abundant on the south and west coasts, but now largely extinct from the coasts of northeast England and Scotland on a local scale; however, it may have once been more common and widespread here [12] It was formerly extant in Shetland, but never properly established here at the northernmost limit of its native range. The last Shetland record was made from Fitful Head in 1884, where the plant probably once grew extensively on the sands of the Bay of Quendale [13]

In Europe and adjacent parts of northern Africa and the Middle East, the plant has a wide native distribution.[14][15][16] In these regions, it occurs on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, the Baltic and Mediterranean Seas as well as the Black and Azov Seas.[12] The distribution also extends northwards into Denmark, Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Lativa, and Estonia, along the Skagerrak and the Swedish islands of Gotland and Oland.[17] The Scandinavian distribution is relatively southerly, extending only as far north as southern Norway and Sweden [18]

Sea holly has been introduced to parts of eastern North America, where it was once valued as an ornamental plant for seashore restoration.[19] It has also been introduced to Australia with plantings of marram grass.[20]
Habitat and Ecology

Sea holly characteristically grows on the well-drained substrates of sand dunes and shingles confined to regions with mild winters.[12] More rarely, it may be found growing on rocky coasts featuring patches of sand between artificial hard coastal protection features with a similar structure to shingle. In northern Britain, its distribution is limited by the lack of suitable dune systems to grow on[21] It withstands the harsh environmental conditions typical of beaches and coastal dune habitats worldwide; namely low soil nutrient levels, frost, strong salty winds, high temperatures and insolation, and periodic sand burial.[12]

Sea holly is associated with various shingle and strandline communities, where it may be scattered within the vegetation. On shingles, sea holly occurs within Honckenya peploides-Cakile maritima strandline community above the tidal limit [22] On dunes, sea holly may be found growing in the Elymus farctus ssp. boreali-atlanticus foredune community,[22] the pioneer vegetation on foredunes, with Elytrigia juncea (E. farctus) as a dominant species.

Sea holly is a poor competitor that generally thrives in open areas,[23] declining when habitats are invaded by shrubby species such as Rosa rugosa, Hippophae rhamnoides, Elaeagnus commutata and Salix repens due to substantial shading effects[12] This is because sea holly is a light-demanding plant,[24] although it is protected against water stress through excessive insolation thanks to its succulent equifacial leaves.[25]

Sea holly has deep, well-developed taproots for water storage, allowing the plant to survive long dry periods that may occur in its habitat. The root system also shows a high degree of plasticity in response to the dynamics of coastal ecosystems and may consequently develop a rhizome-like structure. For example, in response to permanent sand burial, the root internodes gradually lengthen in such a way that the perennating buds are brought closer to the ground surface for ensuring the plants’ survival throughout the growing seasons.[26]
Status

Despite a widespread native European distribution, populations of this species have been declining substantially in the northern parts of its range, with some of these already having become extinct. It is now threatened or endangered in most European countries and included in endangered plant lists and Red Data Books of several of these countries[27] In Britain, its historic decline may be at least partly attributable to being dug up from the wild on account of its popularity as an ornamental plant in gardens on dry soils.[28]
In culture, use and relationship with humans

Like other species in the genus, E. maritimum has been traditionally consumed to combat various ailments, especially thanks to the plant’s high antioxidant activity and content of phenolic and flavonoid compounds.[29] It has been utilised for its diuretic, stimulant, cystotonic, stone inhibitor, aphrodisiac, expectorant and anthelmintic properties[30] Moreover, essential oils, extracted by hydro-distillation, from the aerial parts of the plant have been found to contain oxygenated sesquiterpenes with antimicrobial activity against E. coli and L. monocytogenes.[31]

The roots of E. maritimum were formerly candied as a sweetmeat and recommended by Dioscorides as a remedy for flatulence. The young shoots may also be eaten like asparagus.[8]

Sea holly has often been represented in paintings and other artwork, such as in works by Irish artist Patrick O’Hara and on postage stamp prints such as the 1967 one-franc stamp in Belgium,[32] and the 25-pfennig stamp in Germany[12] The plant has also been mentioned in various plays and poems, most notably in the Merry Wives of Windsor by Shakespeare[33] and in the Italian Journey by Goethe.[34]

They are named in a speech by Falstaff:

"Let the sky rain potatoes;
let it thunder to the tune of Green-sleeves,
hail kissing-comfits and snow eringoes [sea-holly],
let there come a tempest of provocation..."
— Falstaff, Act 5, scene v, "The Merry Wives of Windsor", William Shakespeare

Sea holly was nominated the 2002 County flower for the city of Liverpool.[35] Asteroid 199194 Calcatreppola was named after this plant.[36] The official naming citation was published by the Minor Planet Center on 25 September 2018 (M.P.C. 111803).[37]

In Aggelohori, Greece

References

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Huxley A, Taylor W. 1989. Flowers of Greece and the Aegean. Hogarth Press, London, UK.
Jaeger EC. 1959. A Source Book of Biological Names and Terms. Springfield, Ill: Thomas. ISBN 0-398-06179-3
Grigson G. 1974. A Dictionary of English Plant Names. Allen Lane. pg. 192
Stace CA. 1975. Hybridization and the Flora of the British Isles. Academic Press, London, UK.
Wörz A. 1999. A taxonomic index of the species of Eryngium L. (Apiaceae: Saniculoideae). Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde. Serie A (Biologie), 5.
Aparicio Rojo JM. 2002. Aportaciones a la flora de la comunidad Valenciana, I. Flora Montiberica 22: 48–74.
Tutin TG. 1980. Umbellifers of the British Isles. Botanical Society of the British Isles Handbook No. 2, London. ISBN 0-901158-02-X.
Poland J, Clement EJ. 2009. The Vegetative Key to the British Flora. Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. ISBN 978-0-9560144-0-5
Streeter D, Hart-Davies C, Hardcastle A, Cole F, Harper H. 2006. Collins Wildflower Guide. Harper Collins. ISBN 978-0-00-718389-0
Stace CA. 1991. New Flora of the British Isles. St Edmundsbury Press Ltd. ISBN 0-521-42793-2
Isermann M, Rooney P. 2014. Biological Flora of the British Isles: Eryngium maritimum. Journal of Ecology 102: 789 – 821.
Scott W, Palmer RC. 1987. The Flowering Plants and Ferns of the Shetland Islands. The Shetland Times Limited. ISBN 0-900662-56-5
Hegi G. 1975. Illustrierte Flora von Mitteleuropa. V.2, Parey, Berlin, Germany
Hultén E, Fries M. 1986. Atlas of North European Vascular Plants (North of the Tropic of Cancer). Koeltz Scientific Books, Königstein, Germany
Fitter AH, Peat HJ. 1994. The ecological flora database. Journal of Ecology 82: 415 – 42
Fröman, I. 1930. Phyllitis, Helichrysum och Eryngium på Gotland. Botaniska Notiser 1930: 225 – 232
Fremstad E, Moen A. 2001. Truete vegetasjonstyper i Norge, pp. 1–231. Norges teknisk-naturvitenskapelige universitet, Vitenskapsmuseet, Trondheim, Norway
Lieberman AS, O’Neill CR. 1988. Vegetation use in coastal ecosystems. Information Bulletin (Cornell Cooperative Extension Publication), 198: 1 – 31.
Weeda EJ. 1987. Nederlandse oecologische flora. Wilde planten en hun relaties. IVN, Haarlem, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Doody JP. 2008. Sand Dune Inventory of Europe. National Coastal Consultants, EUCC - The Coastal Union, in association with the IGU Coastal Commission, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Rodwell JS (ed.). 2000. British Plant Communities. Vol. 5. Maritime Communities and Vegetation of Open Habitats. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK
Stasiak J. 1986. The population size of Eryngium maritimum L. on the Polish Baltic Sea coast. Biologia 7: 65–75.
Ćwikliński E. 1972. Rozmieszczenie mikołajka nadmorskiego Eryngium maritimum na wybrzeźu szczecińskim. Chronmy Przyrode Ojczysta 28: 21 – 29.
Eberle G. 1979. Unsere Stranddistel (Eryngium maritimum). Zur Lebensgeschichte einer stark gefährdeten Pflanze. Verhandlungen Natur und Heimat und Naturhistorisches Museum 16: 73–94.
Burmester, A. 2008. Beiträge zur Biologie und Anatomie ausgewählter Pflanzenarten (Angiospermae) der zentraleuropäischen Küstenflora. Doctoral dissertation, Christian-Albrechts Universität Kiel.
Ievina B, Rostocks N, Syed N, Flavell A, Ievinsh G. 2019. Genetic diversity and structure of northern populations of the declining coastal plant Eryngium maritimum. Proceedings of the Latvian Academy of Sciences. Section B. Natural, Exact, and Applied Sciences. ISSN 1407-009X.
Mabey R. 1996. Flora Britannica. Random House
Rjeibi I, Saad AB, Ncib S, Souid S. 2017. Phenolic composition and antioxidant properties of Eryngium maritimum (sea holly). Journal of Coastal Life Medicine 5 (5):212-215.
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Erdem SA, Nabavi SF, Orhan IE, Daglia M, Izadi M, Nabavi SM. 2015. Blessings in disguise: a review of phytochemical composition and antimicrobial activity of plants belonging to the genus Eryngium. DARU Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences 25: 53 DOI 10.1186/s40199-015-0136-3
Robyns A. 1976. Eryngium maritimum en het domaniaal natuurreservaat van de Westhoek. Dumortiera 4: 16 – 17.
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Plantlife. Sea Holly. Available at https://www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/discover-wild-plants-nature/plant-fungi-species/sea-holly (accessed 03/10/2022)
"199194 Calcatreppola (2006 AO)". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
"MPC/MPO/MPS Archive". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 17 October 2018.