A new species of (Plantaginaceae) from Western Iran.

A new species, (Plantaginaceae), is described and illustrated. It grows on limestone cliffs in mountainous alpine areas of western Iran (Kurdistan province). The new species belongs to the species group of and is considered to be closely related to , and , with which the new species is compared.

Phylogeny and Historical Biogeography of Subgenus (Plantaginaceae): Evidence for Its Origin and Subsequent Dispersal.

subgenus is the largest subgenus of in the Northern Hemisphere with approximately 80 species mainly from Southwest Asia. In order to reconstruct the phylogenetic relationships among the members of . subgenus and to test the "out of the Iranian plateau" hypothesis, we applied thorough taxonomic sampling, employing nuclear DNA (ITS) sequence data complimented with morphological studies and chromosome number counts.

Endemic diversity and distribution of the Iranian vascular flora across phytogeographical regions, biodiversity hotspots and areas of endemism.

Endemism is one of the most important concepts in biogeography and is of high relevance for conservation biology. Nevertheless, our understanding of patterns of endemism is still limited in many regions of high biodiversity. This is also the case for Iran, which is rich in biodiversity and endemism, but there is no up-to-date account of diversity and distribution of its endemic species.

Hotspots within a global biodiversity hotspot - areas of endemism are associated with high mountain ranges.

Conservation biology aims at identifying areas of rich biodiversity. Currently recognized global biodiversity hotspots are spatially too coarse for conservation management and identification of hotspots at a finer scale is needed. This might be achieved by identification of areas of endemism.