Dioscorides' Plants, Then and Now
ἀκτῆ

Elder

Sambucus nigra L. · Viburnaceae
Identification: ProbableNot endemic to GreeceLC Least ConcernLow-confidence model
Risk rank
7 of 32 (5–25)
Risk score
0.39(0.37–0.40)2 · Moderate
Low-confidence modelElder (Sambucus nigra) has 213 occurrence records after cleaning; we require 30 for a reliable model. Maps are exploratory outlines only, and its rank carries a wide interval (5–25).

Then and now

2050 · moderate emissions. SSP2-4.5, 2041-2060, 3 climate models; ranges show the spread.

The plant
ἀκτῆ
Photograph of Sambucus nigra
Photo: Willow · CC BY 2.5 · Wikimedia Commons (photo of Elder)
2050 · moderate emissions
Natural Earth (PD) · model output · ~10 km cells
Loading map layers (0 of 1)
Layers
Range keptLost by 2050Gained by 2050Cultivation zoneNatura 2000Occurrence cellCells ≈ 10 × 10 km

Exploratory map (low-confidence model). Occurrences are aggregated to ~10 km cells; exact points are never published. View range data as a table

De Materia Medica · Book IV · ch. 173c. 50–70 CE
ἀκτῆ
aktē
ἀκτῆ· δισσή· ἡ μὲν γάρ τίς ἐστι δενδρώδης, κλάδους καλαμοειδεῖς ἔχουσα, στρογγύλους, ὑπολεύκους, εὐμήκεις …
Modern identification
Sambucus nigraL. · ViburnaceaeProbable

Source: Osbaldeston 2000.

Full citation and quoted evidence

Wellmann (ed.) 1906, DMM IV 173 (tree-like ἀκτῆ; RV: Ῥωμαῖοι σαμβούκουμ; second kind χαμαιάκτη = ἔβουλουμ); Osbaldeston 2000, ch. 4-174: "Sambucus nigra [Linnaeus]".

Opening words of the chapter (Wellmann numbering). Edition: Wellmann 1906-1914 (Weidmann, Berlin), public domain; digitised by First1KGreek (Harvard/Leipzig, CC BY-SA 4.0), urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0656.tlg001.1st1K-grc1. See the page scan.

Modern official status

European Medicines Agency herbal monograph

Sambuci flos · category: traditional

We report regulatory status only and make no claim about effects. Read the monograph for its exact wording.

Open the monograph on ema.europa.eu

Projected range change by 2050

2050 · moderate (SSP2-4.5)−48% (−42 to −52%)
2050 · high (SSP5-8.5)−56% (−55 to −60%)

Median and spread across 3 climate models. Whisker axis −80% to +20%, dashed tick at 0; a chevron means the value runs beyond the axis.

Suitable cultivation area, 2050 moderate0 km² (0–0 km²)

Risk score breakdown

0.39 (0.37–0.40)Moderate risk class 2
00.51.0
  • Range loss 0.19 of max 0.40 · (0.17–0.21)
  • Endemism 0.00 of max 0.20 · not endemic
  • Conservation status 0.00 of max 0.20 · LC · Least Concern
  • Harvest pressure 0.20 of max 0.20

Stays in the top 10 in 49% of 1,000 random weightings.

How the score is built, and how sensitive it is to weights

Model quality

Low grade
AUC (spatial block CV)
0.73 ± 0.02
Distance-only baseline AUC
0.67 ours is higher
Boyce index
0.12 ± 0.22
TSS
0.42 ± 0.03
Occurrence records
213 after cleaning (of 266)

5-fold spatial block cross-validation (~25 km blocks); ± is one standard deviation across folds. Null model AUC 0.47. The baseline scores each held-out point by its distance to the nearest training record, on the same folds. "Standard" grade means ≥ 30 records, AUC ≥ 0.75 and above the baseline; fewer than 10 records is a data gap; anything else is low grade.

Suggested action

Protect: no cultivation fallback

Prioritise in-situ protection and seed banking; no suitable farmland found. Resolve the data first.

Rule: Loses habitat in all 3 climate models · no 2050 cultivation zone.

See the action plan

Identification through time

Who has matched ἀκτῆ to which modern plant, from the Renaissance to today.

All names through time
Cited for the identification we modelProposed an alternativeAlternative preferred by our sourceAlternative rejected by our sourceCommonly proposed, not verified by us
Renaissance commentators
Linnaean botany & Flora Graeca
Edition
Modern
150016001700180019002000
  • ἀκτῆDMM 4.173 · ElderSambucus nigraProbable

Select a mark to read who proposed which plant, and the source we read it in.

Dates are each authority's main herbal or commentary (approximate, "c."), used to order the timeline. Claims are parsed from our curated identification table; every quote links back to a page scan or edition on the plant page.

Caveats

  • Identification is probable; results describe Sambucus nigra L., which may not be the plant Dioscorides meant.
  • Low-confidence model: 213 thinned records (we require 30) or AUC below 0.75.

Range data (map alternative)

ScenarioSuitable ~10 km cellsChangeShare in Natura 2000
Now1027—26%
2050 moderate614 (601–690)−48% (−42 to −52%)33% (31–33%)
2050 high546 (523–556)−56% (−55 to −60%)34% (34–35%)