Inventaire des orchidées de la Kabylie des Babors (Algérie) : cartographie et enjeux patrimoniaux

International audienceThe orchids of Babors Kabylia (north eastern Algeria) remain understudied despite the importance of this key area for biodiversity and the recent interest of Algerian botanists into orchids family. They were inventoried during the spring period extending from 2011 to 2014. Twenty-seven taxa (species or subspecies) were recorded (plus two others in the literature) divided into nine genera (ten with literature). The genus Ophrys is the most diverse with eight species ; genus Orchis comes in second place with five species. Four of these species are mentioned for the first time in this phytogeographical area known as "Petite Kabylie". The study area harbour twelve (46%) species which are of high patrimonial value. Among them, five are rare, four fairly rare and one extremely rare species and in parallel six species are protected by the Algerian law, while three are Algero-Tunisian endemism. This relatively high orchid diversity is due in large part to the exceptional weather conditions, combined with a relative landscape originality in the mountainous areas of Kabylia of the Babors, fairly well preserve