Biological Flora of Central Europe: Euphorbia palustris L.

Euphorbia palustris L. (Euphorbiaceae) is a tall perennial hemicryptophyte, native to Europe and small parts of adjacent Western Asia. It is considered a so-called river corridor plant that is exclusively or predominantly confined to the basins of large rivers. As most natural habitats along European rivers have been destroyed and the remaining habitats fragmented and degraded by the regulation of watercourses, land reclamation, and agricultural intensification, E. palustris is now endangered in most of Central Europe. To enhance its conservation, to give scientific advice for its management and to supplement the scarce information about the species available from the literature, this paper reviews its taxonomy, morphology, distribution, habitat requirements, life cycle, population biology and genetics as well as the conservation status across its distribution range.