The searush (Juncus maritimus Lam.) is a coastal halophyte of Eurasia, with a few isolated interior occurrences in Europe. In the Pannonian Basin, the species was found in the 1920s on the shores of Balaton and Fertő Lakes. In one of its distribution hotspots, the Balaton region, the rapid wetland deterioration calls for an up-to-date assessment of its existing populations. In this study, we document the coenological relations of J. maritimus stands based on recent relevés, assess the state of its popula­tions, and evaluate their vegetation changes between 2015 and 2024. We confirmed the occurrence of J. maritimus in eight localities. The majority of relevés with J. maritimus correspond with the Scorzonero parviflorae-Juncetum gerardii association, sporadically with the Astereto pannonici-Schoenetum nigri­canti. Our phytosociological survey repeated after a decade revealed a lower number of wetland and halophyt­ic specialists, together with J. maritimus, and an expansion of Cladium mariscus and Solidago gigantea. The fragmented salt marshes and fen meadows where searush occurs are more threatened than the species itself, thanks to its ability to establish on new sites. Nevertheless, the po­tential habitats are con­stantly diminishing by construction, massive tourism development and second­ary succession. Moreover, increasing droughts in recent years have even more accelerated the desicca­tion of wet habi­tats.

Before the nineteenth century, a substantial portion of the Hungarian Great Plain consisted of seasonally or permanently waterlogged habitats, which underwent radical transformation following large-scale water regulation interventions in the Tisza Valley. As a result, extensive wetlands were converted into arable land, causing a major loss of natural vegetation. We surveyed the Eastern (Ke­leti), Western (Nyugati), and Nagykunság Irrigation Main Canals and selected tributaries to map the distribution of six native wetland species (Carex pseudocyperus, Nymphaea alba, Nymphoides peltata, Trapa natans, Salvinia natans, and Stratiotes aloides). Field surveys were conducted in summer 2022 along the full length of the main canals using 50-m transects spaced ~300–900 m apart (depending on accessibility and vegetation visibility); all sampling locations were recorded in WGS84. To evaluate the potential contribution of water flow to dispersal, we (i) counted drifting individuals of three predomi­nantly free-floating species (S. natans, T. natans and S. aloides) during 60-min observation periods at 26 sites, and (ii) measured surface drift velocity at 24 bridges using 20-cm Phragmites stem fragments (10 replicates per site). All six target species occurred along the Western Main Canal, five along the Eastern Main Canal and three along the Nagykunság Canal. Salvinia natans was the most widespread species, whereas Nymphaea alba was recorded only rarely; Nymphoides peltata was detected exclusively along the Western Main Canal. Surface drift velocity differed markedly among canals, with the highest mean values in the Eastern Main Canal (0.34 ± 0.18 m/s) compared with the Western (0.17 ± 0.03 m/s) and Nagykunság (0.15 ± 0.03 m/s) canals. During drift counts, S. natans was observed at all sites (often >1,000 individuals per hour), T. natans at eight sites (118 individuals in total), and S. aloides as a single drifting specimen. Based on measured drift speeds, a small free-floating macrophyte could be trans­ported up to ~29 km per day in the Eastern Main Canal; order-of-magnitude extrapolations from hour­ly counts suggest that millions of individuals, particularly S. natans, may be dispersed downstream during the summer vegetation period. Our results indicate that irrigation canals can support native aquatic plant populations and may facilitate downstream dispersal in the Great Plain, highlighting their potential conservation value in an otherwise habitat-poor agricultural landscape.

In this paper, we present plant occurrence data from ancient burial mounds, located in the Danube–Tisza Interfluve (Praematricum and Colocense) and in the Trans-Tisza region (Crisicum), Hungary. We report data on 45 vascular plant species and one fungus (Morchella steppicola) from a total of 109 mounds. Of the species presented, 13 taxa are protected in Hungary, some of which are not rare in the study region (e.g. Aster sedifolius, Astragalus asper, Linaria biebersteinii, and Ornithogalum brevistylum). We present new occurrence records of some spreading annual species (e.g. Aegilops cylindrica, Crepis pulchra, and Trifolium diffusum), as well as data on some species that have not been previously reported from mounds (e.g. Agrostemma githago, Chaerophyllum bulbosum, and Dryopteris filix-mas), and we also publish the occurrences of an alien species (Lolium multiflorum) on burial mounds. In terms of plant biogeography, the occurrence of Orobanche reticulata in Kengyel and Oxytro­pis pilosa in Tömörkény is considered an especially important data.