Hedlundia gauckleri, or Gauckler's whitebeam,Blaich, G. (n.d.). Sorbus gauckleri N.MEY. Retrieved September 29, 2026, from https://guenther-blaich.de/pflseite.php?par=Sorbus+gauckleri&abs=pflfmros&lan=x&grp=a is an apomictic speciesSorbus gauckleri N. Mey. Gauckler-Mehlbeere. (n.d.). Botanischer Informationsknoten Bayern. Retrieved September 29, 2026, from https://daten.bayernflora.de/de/info_pflanzen.php?taxnr=26248 of tree endemic to Bavaria, Germany.Hedlundia gauckleri (N.Mey.) Sennikov & Kurtto. (n.d.). Plants of the World Online. Retrieved September 29, 2026, from https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:77164918-1 It is extremely rareSorbus gauckleri N. Mey. (2026, January 14). Rote Liste Zentrum. Retrieved September 29, 2026, from https://www.rote-liste-zentrum.de/detailseite/?species_uuid=e9a44184-a8e7-41bb-a4d2-d39f42e34eb4Vielfältige Faktoren gefährden Echte Mehlbeere: Sorbus aria ist Baum des Jahres 2024 (Teil 2). (2024, August 15). Stadt und Grün. Retrieved September 29, 2026, from https://stadtundgruen.de/artikel/vielfaeltige-faktoren-gefaehrden-echte-mehlbeere-teil-2-sorbus-aria-ist-baum-des-jahres-2024-19862 and threatened by extinction.
Description Vegetative characteristics Hedlundia gauckleri is a 3–10 m tall tree. The lobed leaves have 10–12 pairs of lateral veins, which are set 5 mm apart. The lobes are much deeper towards the base of the lamina. The abaxial leaf surface is pubescent with grey hairs.Meyer, T. (n.d.). Gaucklers Mehlbeere (Sorbus gauckleri N. Meyer). Blumen in Schwaben. Retrieved September 29, 2026, from https://www.blumeninschwaben.de/Zweikeimblaettrige/Rosengewaechse/lappen_spitz.htm#Gaucklers%20Mehlbeere Generative characteristics The round fruit exceeds 1 cm in size. Cytology The chromosome count is 2n = 3x = 51.Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung. (n.d.). Sorbus gauckleri N. Mey. Chromosomenzahlen Zur Flora Von Deutschland. Retrieved September 29, 2026, from https://chromosomes.senckenberg.de/item/20978
Taxonomy It first described as Sorbus gauckleri by Norbert Meyer in 2005.Sorbus gauckleri N.Mey. (n.d.). International Plant Names Index. Retrieved September 29, 2026, from https://www.ipni.org/n/77070656-1 It was moved to the genus Hedlundia as Hedlundia gauckleri by Alexander Nikolaevitsch Sennikov and Arto Kurtto in 2017.Sennikov, A. N., & Kurtto, A. (2017). A phylogenetic checklist of Sorbus s.l. (Rosaceae) in Europe. Memoranda Societatis pro Fauna et Flora Fennica, 93, 1-78.Hedlundia gauckleri (N.Mey.) Sennikov & Kurtto. (n.d.-b). International Plant Names Index. Retrieved September 29, 2026, from https://www.ipni.org/n/77164918-1 The type specimen was collected by N. Meyer and O. Angerer on the 1. of July 2001 in pine forest at the Houbirg in Bavaria, Germany.Holotype of Sorbus gauckleri N.Mey. [family ROSACEAE]. (n.d.). JSTOR. Retrieved September 29, 2026, from https://plants.jstor.org/stable/10.5555/al.ap.specimen.m0213761 Etymology The specific epithet gauckleri honours the German botanist Konrad Gauckler.
Distribution and habitat It is endemic to Bavaria, Germany, where it occurs in a small area of only 4 km2 southeast of Hersbruck in open pine forest, rocky outcrops, and on the edges of deciduous forest at an elevation of 500 m above sea level.
Conservation It is a critically endangered species with a small population of only 41 saplings and 28 mature trees. It doesn't have special legal protection.BfN - Bundesamt für Naturschutz. (n.d.). Sorbus gauckleri N. Mey. (Gauckler-Mehlbeere). FloraWeb. Retrieved September 29, 2026, from https://www.floraweb.de/php/artenhome.php?name-use-id=26248 It is cultivated in one ex situ conservation collection in the Botanical Garden Erlangen.Botanische Gärten und andere Halter. (n.d.). Verband Botanischer Gärten. Retrieved September 29, 2026, from https://www.verband-botanischer-gaerten.de/Arbeitsgruppen/Botanischer_Artenschutz/Botanische_Gaerten_und_andere_Halter.html
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