The Mediterranean climate in Chile is characterised by having mild, wet winters and very dry, long hot summers. The name comes from a similar type of climate occurring in Europe’s Mediterranean Basin; Australia, California and South Africa also have comparable climates and vegetation types. In Chile, the Mediterranean climate and vegetation is confined to narrow band on the western side of the Andes extending for about 1000 km between the Valparaíso and Biobío regions. The sclerophyllous native woody vegetation has mostly evergreen, hard and leathery leaves making them well-adapted to drought. Other strategies for drought resistance include having fleshy leaves such as in Cistanthe and Oxalis species and cacti with stems acting as effective water storage organs. Since the rainy season is in winter and of short duration, these species may have at least seven months without any rainfall. This habitat type is notable for its high levels of plant species endemism and because of this and the associated threats of urbanisation and land clearance for agriculture, it has been identified as one of the global ‘biodiversity hotspots’.
Endemic Taxa in Mediterranean
- Abrotanella linearifolia A.Gray
- Abrotanella pupurea Swenson
- Abrotanella submarginata A.Gray
- Acaena trifida Ruiz & Pav. var. trifida
- Acmispon subpinnatus (Lag.) D.D.Sokoloff
- Adesmia argentea Meyen
- Adesmia balsamica Bertero ex Colla
- Adesmia bedwellii Skottsb.
- Adesmia bijuga Phil.
- Adesmia viscosa Gillies ex Hook. & Arn.
- Alstroemeria garaventae Ehr. Bayer
- Alstroemeria pulchra Sims ssp. pulchra
- Alstroemeria pulchra Sims var. maxima Phil.
- Alstroemeria revoluta Ruiz & Pav.
- Archidasyphyllum excelsum (D.Don) Cabrera
- Austrocactus spiniflorus (Phil.) F.Ritter
- Bahia ambrosioides Lag.
- Berberis actinacantha Mart. ex Schult. & Schult.f.
- Berberis chilensis Gillies ex Hook. & Arn. var. chilensis
- Berberis congestiflora Gay
- Berberis horrida Gay
- Berberis negeriana Tischler
- Berberis rotundifolia Poepp. & Endl.
- Berberis valdiviana Phil.
- Calceolaria aiseniana C.Ehrh.
- Calceolaria alba Ruiz & Pav.
- Calceolaria ascendens Lindl. ssp. exigua (Witasek) Nic.García
- Calceolaria campanae Phil.
- Calceolaria flavida Lavandero & Santilli
- Chaetanthera flabellifolia Cabrera
- Chaetanthera incana Poepp. ex Less.
- Chaetanthera multicaulis DC.
- Colliguaja odorifera Molina
- Conanthera campanulata Lindl.
- Cordia decandra Hook. & Arn.
- Corynabutilon ochsenii (Phil.) Kearney
- Corynabutilon vitifolium (Cav.) Kearney
- Drimys andina (Reiche) R. Rodr. & Quezada
- Eriosyce aspillagae (Söhrens) Katt.
- Eriosyce aurata (Pfeiff.) Backeb. var. aurata
- Eriosyce chilensis (Hildm. ex K. Schum.) Katt.
- Eriosyce curvispina (Bertero ex Colla) Katt. subsp. armata (F.Ritter) Katt.
- Eriosyce curvispina (Bertero ex Colla) Katt. subsp. curvispina
- Eriosyce curvispina (Bertero ex Colla) Katt. subsp. marksiana (F.Ritter) Ferryman
- Eriosyce eriosyzoides (F.Ritter) Ferryman subsp. eriosyzoides
- Eriosyce senilis (Backeb.) Katt. ssp. senilis
- Eriosyce senilis (Backeb.) Katt. subsp. coimasensis (F.Ritter) Katt.
- Eriosyce subgibbosa (Haw.) Katt. subsp. subgibbosa
- Eulychnia acida Phil.
- Eulychnia breviflora Phil.
- Eulychnia castanea Phil.
- Haplopappus integerrimus (Hook. & Arn.) H.M.Hall
- Jubaea chilensis (Molina) Baill.
- Kageneckia angustifolia D. Don
- Kageneckia oblonga Ruiz & Pav.
- Lardizabala biternata Ruiz & Pav.
- Leucostele chiloensis (Colla) Schlumpb.
- Leucostele litoralis (Johow) P. C. Guerrero & Helmut Walter
- Leucostele nigripilis (Phil.) P.C. Guerrero & Helmut Walter
- Leucostele skottsbergii (Backeb. ex Skottsb.) P.C. Guerrero & Helmut Walter
- Libertia sessiliflora (Poepp.) Skottsb.
- Loasa mollensis Muñoz-Schick & Trenqualye
- Maihueniopsis archiconoidea F. Ritter
- Maihueniopsis atacamensis (Phil.) F.Ritter
- Maihueniopsis camachoi (Espinosa) F.Ritter
- Maihueniopsis conoidea (Backeb.) F.Ritter
- Malesherbia fasciculata D. Don var. fasciculata
- Malesherbia linearifolia (Cav.) Pers.
- Miersia putaendensis A. Cádiz-Véliz
- Neobartsia chilensis (Benth.) Uribe-Convers & Tank
- Oxalis novemfoliolata Heibl & Martic.
- Oxalis ranchillos J.M. Watson & A.R. Flores
- Plantago hispidula Ruiz & Pav.
- Solenomelus pedunculatus (Gillies ex Hook.) Hochr.
Endemic taxa only occurring in Mediterranean
- Adesmia bedwellii Skottsb.
- Austrocactus spiniflorus (Phil.) F.Ritter
- Chaetanthera flabellifolia Cabrera
- Chaetanthera incana Poepp. ex Less.
- Eriosyce curvispina (Bertero ex Colla) Katt. subsp. armata (F.Ritter) Katt.
- Eriosyce curvispina (Bertero ex Colla) Katt. subsp. marksiana (F.Ritter) Ferryman
- Eriosyce eriosyzoides (F.Ritter) Ferryman subsp. eriosyzoides
- Eriosyce senilis (Backeb.) Katt. ssp. senilis
- Eriosyce senilis (Backeb.) Katt. subsp. coimasensis (F.Ritter) Katt.