Arbutus L.
Genus with 11 species of Holarctic distribution. In North Africa it is represented by 2 species, A. unedo, distributed through humid and subhumid mountains of the Mediterranean area (Morocco to Tunisia) and A. pavarii, endemic to NE Libya.
Kabiel, H.F., Hegazy, A.K., Lovett-Doust, L. et al., 2016. Demography of the threatened endemic shrub, Arbutus pavarii, in the Al-Akhdar mountainous landscape of Libya. J. For. Res. 27(6): 1295-1303.
Pampanini, R. 1936. Qualche altra aggiunta e correzione al prodromo della flora cirenaica Archivio Botanico 12(2): 176-180.
Key to species
1 Bark greyish-brown or blackish, rugose. Fruit 10-20 mm in diameter, globose, covered in warts with outer surface ending in obtuse or subacute tip, turning red when mature Arbutus unedo
1 Bark reddish-brown, smooth. Fruit 15-20 mm in diameter, wider than long, covered in warts with ± flat outer surface, turning crimson or scarlet when mature Arbutus pavarii
Updated by: A.V. Pérez Latorre & J. Charco.