Plant species of conservation concern, preserved in national protected areas in the Eastern Rhodopes floristic region, Bulgaria

The floristic region of Eastern Rhodopes (ER) is situated in Rilo-Rhodopean range, Southeast Bulgaria. In the ER are designated 58 national protected areas (PAs), 19 of them with 31 plant species of conservation significance, as an object of protection. PAs are one of the most important tools for the conservation of biological diversity. It is expected that the introduced protection regimes in each of them lead to the maintenance or improvement of the state of the populations of the target species. For eight species, this is the only floristic region, in which they are found in Bulgaria. Based on the above the present study aims to review the state of the vascular plant species populations of high conservation concern. The habitats and populations of most of the studied species have not deteriorated since the declaration of the respective protected areas. The main threats are related to habitat deterioration due to changes in ecological conditions (warming, drying), or anthropogenic activities (waste dumping, rock mass mining, reduction/absence of grazing, etc.). Conclusions and recommendations are made on the status and conservation of the presented plant species. In general, it can be concluded that the protected areas in the Eastern Rhodopes guarantee the protection of plant species of high conservation concern. However, a periodic assessment of the state of their populations and adaptation of the conservation regimes is necessary.