# Tulipa agenensis
**Tulipa agenensis** Redouté is a bulbous geophyte (plant surviving bad seasons via underground bulbs) in the lily family ([Liliaceae](https://www.edgepedia.org/liliaceae)), a wild tulip native to the eastern Mediterranean region from [Cyprus](https://www.edgepedia.org/cyprus) and the East Aegean Islands through Lebanon-Syria, Palestine, and Türkiye to Jordan, and widely naturalized elsewhere in the Mediterranean basin.[1](https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn%3Alsid%3Aipni.org%3Anames%3A542811-1) The species was first published in 1804 in the addenda and corrigenda of volume 1 of Redouté's *Liliacées*, and it grows primarily in the subtropical biome.[1](https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn%3Alsid%3Aipni.org%3Anames%3A542811-1)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Scientific name | *Tulipa agenensis* Redouté, first published in Liliac. 1: add. & corr. (1804); accepted by Plants of the World Online and World Flora Online[1](https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn%3Alsid%3Aipni.org%3Anames%3A542811-1) • [2](https://wfoplantlist.org/taxon/wfo-0000744285-2023-06) |
| Habit | Bulbous geophyte growing primarily in the subtropical biome[1](https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn%3Alsid%3Aipni.org%3Anames%3A542811-1) |
| Native range | Eastern Mediterranean to Jordan: Cyprus, East Aegean Islands, Lebanon-Syria, Palestine, Türkiye[1](https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn%3Alsid%3Aipni.org%3Anames%3A542811-1) |
| Introduced range | Bulgaria, France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Tunisia, and Türkiye-in-Europe; recorded in error in Iran[1](https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn%3Alsid%3Aipni.org%3Anames%3A542811-1) |
| Synonyms | 43 synonyms, including *Tulipa oculus-solis* St.-Amans, *T. praecox* Ten., *T. acuminata* Vahl ex Hornem., and *T. sharonensis* Dinsm.[1](https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn%3Alsid%3Aipni.org%3Anames%3A542811-1) |
| Ploidy | Diploid (2n = 24) and triploid (2n = 36) cytotypes[3](https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/15/12/1817) |
| Conservation | Listed in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (Mediterranean assessment, errata version published in 2018)[3](https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/15/12/1817) |
## Distribution and status
The native range recorded by Kew extends from the eastern Mediterranean to Jordan, with the species native to Cyprus, the East Aegean Islands, Lebanon-Syria, Palestine, and Türkiye.[1](https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn%3Alsid%3Aipni.org%3Anames%3A542811-1) A broader compilation of accepted species ranges lists it across many Mediterranean and southern European territories, including Algeria, Corsica, Croatia, France, [Greece](https://www.edgepedia.org/greece), Israel/Palestine, Italy, Morocco, Portugal, Romania, Sardinia, Malta, Sicily, Switzerland, and Tunisia.[3](https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/15/12/1817) Kew treats the species as introduced in Bulgaria, France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Tunisia, and Türkiye-in-Europe, and as recorded in error in Iran.[1](https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn%3Alsid%3Aipni.org%3Anames%3A542811-1)
In Greece, *T. agenensis* is one of two tulip species (with *T. bithynica*) considered fully naturalized, having escaped from cultivation in the past; Greece otherwise hosts nine native tulip species and is regarded as an important secondary center of tulip diversity.[4](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13306400/) A review of the genus classifies *T. agenensis* among the widely distributed species covering transcontinental regions, a category that includes only 7.6 percent of *Tulipa* taxa, against 66.9 percent that are range-restricted.[4](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13306400/) • [5](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42357136/)
## Taxonomy and nomenclature
The name *Tulipa agenensis* carries 43 synonyms, a reflection of the morphological variability and taxonomic complexity that characterize the genus *Tulipa* as a whole.[1](https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn%3Alsid%3Aipni.org%3Anames%3A542811-1) • [4](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13306400/) Two nomenclatural decisions fixed the current name. *Tulipa oculus-solis* Saint-Amans (1804) was published invalidly because Saint-Amans himself concluded the plant was a variety of *T. gesneriana* and did not accept the species combination; when de Candolle validated the name in 1805, he cited the older *T. agenensis* in its synonymy, making *T. oculus-solis* an illegitimate name.[6](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00606-011-0525-0) Separately, *Tulipa praecox* Tenore (1811) is a later homonym of *T. praecox* Cavanilles (1803); since the plant is considered not different from *T. agenensis*, the correct name is *T. agenensis* DC. (1804).[6](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00606-011-0525-0) Kew notes that Zonneveld's 2009 genome-size-based classification is an alternative taxonomy that cites this taxon as *Tulipa praecox*.[1](https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn%3Alsid%3Aipni.org%3Anames%3A542811-1)
Among the synonyms, *Tulipa sharonensis* Dinsmore (1933) was described from populations in Israel as *T. agenensis* subsp. *sharonensis*; the Flora of Israel account reports that continuous intermediates occur between these plants and the typical subspecies.[1](https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn%3Alsid%3Aipni.org%3Anames%3A542811-1) • [7](https://flora.org.il/en/plants/tulage/) The species was presented in the 1948 Analytical Flora of Palestine as *Tulipa systola*.[7](https://flora.org.il/en/plants/tulage/)
## Phylogeny and genetics
Molecular phylogenies of *Tulipa* divide the genus into clades corresponding to subgenera; in one analysis of three main clades, *T. agenensis* grouped with *T. scardica*, *T. undulatifolia*, *T. rhodopea*, and *T. raddii* within the subgenus *Tulipa*.[4](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13306400/) A 2025 phylogenomic study found that *T. agenensis* shows apparently relatively high intraspecific sequence diversity, indicated by relatively long branch lengths between specimens, although only two accessions were sampled; the authors list it, alongside *T. scardica*, *T. suaveolens*, and *T. hungarica*, as warranting further investigation.[8](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13496073/) Comparison of nuclear ITS sequences found differences between a wild-growing Greek specimen and a Turkish specimen of *T. agenensis* of 6 SNPs, 7 gaps, and a 7 bp insertion.[9](https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13102818.2024.2337694)
Cytogenetically, the species occurs in diploid (24 chromosomes) and triploid (36) forms.[3](https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/15/12/1817) In breeding work, crosses of *T. gesneriana* with *T. agenensis* are reported among the successful interspecific hybridizations in the genus.[10](https://edepot.wur.nl/202206)
## Conservation
A review of the genus notes that *T. agenensis* is listed in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (Mediterranean assessment, errata version published in 2018) and remains subject to ongoing taxonomic uncertainty and revision.[4](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13306400/) • [3](https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/15/12/1817) Kew's Angiosperm Extinction Risk Predictions also cover the species.[1](https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn%3Alsid%3Aipni.org%3Anames%3A542811-1)
## References
1. [Tulipa agenensis Redouté, Plants of the World Online, Kew Science](https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn%3Alsid%3Aipni.org%3Anames%3A542811-1)
2. [Tulipa agenensis Redouté, WFO Plant List, World Flora Online](https://wfoplantlist.org/taxon/wfo-0000744285-2023-06)
3. [Morphology, Taxonomy, Geographic Distribution, Genetic Diversity, and Phylogenomics of the Genus Tulipa L.: A Comprehensive Review, Plants (MDPI, 2025)](https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/15/12/1817)
4. [Morphology, Taxonomy, Geographic Distribution, Genetic Diversity, and Phylogenomics of the Genus Tulipa L.: A Comprehensive Review, PMC](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13306400/)
5. [Morphology, Taxonomy, Geographic Distribution, Genetic Diversity, and Phylogenomics of the Genus Tulipa L., PubMed abstract](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42357136/)
6. [Veldkamp, J. F. & Zonneveld, B. J. M. (2012). The infrageneric nomenclature of Tulipa (Liliaceae), Plant Systematics and Evolution 298: 87-92](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00606-011-0525-0)
7. [Tulipa agenensis Redouté, Flora of Israel and adjacent areas](https://flora.org.il/en/plants/tulage/)
8. [Phylogenomic insights into the genus Tulipa (Liliaceae): Taxonomy, evolution, and biogeography, PMC (2025)](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13496073/)
9. [Taxonomic and molecular characterization of 15 wild-growing tulip species of Greece using ITS, psbA-trnH and trnL/trnF markers, Biotechnology & Biotechnological Equipment (2024)](https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13102818.2024.2337694)
10. [Interspecific hybridization in the genus Tulipa L., Wageningen (WUR)](https://edepot.wur.nl/202206)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Life and health › Plants and algae › Seed plants › Monocots › Lilioid monocots and Asparagales › Tulipa (tulip genus) › Wild tulip species (subgenus Tulipa)*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license