A new species and a new record of Typhonium (Araceae) from southern Vietnam

Typhonium vietnamense is described as a new species from Vietnam. It is most similar to Typhonium varians but differs in a combination of leafy and floral characters. In addition, T. khonkaenensis is newly recorded for Vietnam, leading to exclusion of T. violifolium from the national flora. An updated key to all known species of Typhonium in Vietnam is given.

Is chiropterophily an evolutionary dead end? A phylogenetic test in the pantropical genus Parkia (Leguminosae, Caesalpinioideae, mimosoid clade)

Background and aims – Pollination systems often reflect adaptations to specific groups of pollinators, and these morphological specialisations have been important in the diversification of the angiosperms. Here, we study the evolution of the capitulum and pollination system in the pantropical genus Parkia, which comprises 35 species of trees distributed largely in the forests of South and Central America, Africa, Madagascar, and the Indo-Pacific. The flowers are grouped into capitula that are composed of one, two, or three distinct morphological types, and are principally pollinated either by insects or by bats. Material and methods – Using BEAST, we estimated the ages of nodes in a phylogeny based on four chloroplast regions (matK, trnL, psbA-trnH, and rps16-trnQ) and the nuclear region ITS/18S/26S. This analysis also enabled us to reconstruct the ancestral state of the capitulum and hence infer the ancestral pollination system. Euclidean distance-based cluster analysis was performed to determine which characters are consistently related to a specific pollination system.Key results – Our results indicate that the ancestral capitulum in the genus had three types of flowers and a morphology associated with bat-pollination in both the Paleotropics and Neotropics. In one derived Neotropical clade, the number of floral types in each capitulum was reduced to two (capitulum also bat-pollinated) or one (insect-pollinated). Thus, entomophily, as seen in some Neotropical species of Parkia, has been derived from a bat-pollinated ancestor. Cluster analysis showed that the floral characters were mostly consistent with pollination systems.Conclusion – Chiropterophily is not an evolutionary dead end in Parkia because during the evolutionary history of the genus there has been at least one transition to entomophily. Parkia provides a unique example of evolutionary transitions from chiropterophily to entomophily in a pantropical genus of trees.

The comparative study of Alkanna and Huynhia (Boraginaceae, Lithospermeae), with description of a new species in Iran

A new blue to light violet-flowered species from SW Iran is described as Alkanna semiromica. The new species is morphologically close to A. frigida and Huynhia pulchra. Floral characters suggested the affinity of the new species to Huynhia, especially the stamens inserted at different heights in the corolla tube and also the plant trichomes while the pollen characters supported its place within the genus Alkanna. A comparison with the new species and the most similar genera is presented here based on new and old morphological data, to understand the differences among the species. In addition, the diagnostic characters, description, detailed illustrations, and taxonomic comments are presented.

Systematics of Scleranthus (Caryophyllaceae)

<p>Scleranthus is a genus of about 12 species of herbaceous flowering plants or small shrubs with a disjunct Eurasian/Australasian distribution. Monophyly of the genus is supported by the close similarity of gynoecial development of all species and consistent with nuclear ITS DNA sequence analysis. Traditionally the genus had been divided into two sections, section Scleranthus and section Mniarum. Section Mniarum is exclusively Australasian while section Scleranthus has been circumscribed to contain exclusively European species or a combination of European and Australasian species. Pollen and floral characters align the species into Australasian and Eurasian groups also supported by nuclear ITS DNA sequence analysis. Section Scleranthus as more broadly defined (i.e., sensu West and Garnock-Jones, 1986) is therefore at least paraphyletic or at worst polypyhyletic. Phylogenetic reconstructions based on morphological characters differ from those based on ITS sequences in supporting different relationships within the Australasian species of Scleranthus. Hybridisation and introgression within the genus are discussed and suggested as the cause of discordance between morphology and DNA sequence based trees. Low sequence divergence among Scleranthus ITS sequences suggests that the European and Australasian clades within the genus diverged within the last l0 million years. Biogeographic implications of these dating and competing hypotheses explaining the disjunct North-South distribution of the genus are discussed. Nuclear ITS and chloroplast ndhF DNA sequences both suggest that Scleranthus belongs to a clade within the family Caryophyllaceae consisting of members of subfamilies Alsinoideae and Caryophylloideae. Phylogenetic relationships between genera belonging to the three subfamilies of Caryophyllaceae (Alsinoideae, Caryophyloideae, and Paronychioideae) are addressed in this thesis through ndhF sequence analysis, which provides no support for the monophyly of traditionally recognised groups. Morphological character data sets are likely to always encompass multiple incongruent data partitions (sensu Bull et al. 1993). It may therefore be appropriate to combine data from DNA sequence and morphology for parsimony analysis even where the two are significantly incongruent.</p>

Systematics of Scleranthus (Caryophyllaceae)

<p>Scleranthus is a genus of about 12 species of herbaceous flowering plants or small shrubs with a disjunct Eurasian/Australasian distribution. Monophyly of the genus is supported by the close similarity of gynoecial development of all species and consistent with nuclear ITS DNA sequence analysis. Traditionally the genus had been divided into two sections, section Scleranthus and section Mniarum. Section Mniarum is exclusively Australasian while section Scleranthus has been circumscribed to contain exclusively European species or a combination of European and Australasian species. Pollen and floral characters align the species into Australasian and Eurasian groups also supported by nuclear ITS DNA sequence analysis. Section Scleranthus as more broadly defined (i.e., sensu West and Garnock-Jones, 1986) is therefore at least paraphyletic or at worst polypyhyletic. Phylogenetic reconstructions based on morphological characters differ from those based on ITS sequences in supporting different relationships within the Australasian species of Scleranthus. Hybridisation and introgression within the genus are discussed and suggested as the cause of discordance between morphology and DNA sequence based trees. Low sequence divergence among Scleranthus ITS sequences suggests that the European and Australasian clades within the genus diverged within the last l0 million years. Biogeographic implications of these dating and competing hypotheses explaining the disjunct North-South distribution of the genus are discussed. Nuclear ITS and chloroplast ndhF DNA sequences both suggest that Scleranthus belongs to a clade within the family Caryophyllaceae consisting of members of subfamilies Alsinoideae and Caryophylloideae. Phylogenetic relationships between genera belonging to the three subfamilies of Caryophyllaceae (Alsinoideae, Caryophyloideae, and Paronychioideae) are addressed in this thesis through ndhF sequence analysis, which provides no support for the monophyly of traditionally recognised groups. Morphological character data sets are likely to always encompass multiple incongruent data partitions (sensu Bull et al. 1993). It may therefore be appropriate to combine data from DNA sequence and morphology for parsimony analysis even where the two are significantly incongruent.</p>

Evolution of floral characters and biogeography of Heloniadeae (Melanthiaceae): an example of breeding system shifts with inflorescence change

Heloniadeae (Melanthiaceae) presents an East Asia–North America disjunct distribution. Different molecular and morphological data nevertheless support the tribe as a monophyletic group. However, their phylogenetic relationships and biogeographic history, together with the character evolution, are not clear. Therefore, we constructed a Bayesian phylogenetic tree for Heloniadeae using cpDNA and inferred the historical biogeography and floral character evolution. The results revealed that Heloniadeae was distributed in high-latitudes of East Asia and North America, originating since 22.2 mya. The East Asia clade migrated into southwest China, and subsequently colonized the Korean Peninsula, Taiwan, the Ryukyus, and spread northward to Japan and southern Sakhalin. The evolution of the inflorescence and number of flowers were phylogenetically conserved, associated with the historical biogeography of Heloniadeae. The inflorescences transferred from raceme to sub-umbel, and the number of flowers decreased during the dispersal process, which may be accompanied by changes in the breeding system. Besides, the anthesis period was more affected by the habitat environment than phylogenetic constraints. The flowering temperature of was below 20 °C in most species, except H. kawanoi. Such a low temperature might not be conductive to pollinator activities, but it could be compensated by sustaining seed production with long-lasting flowers.

Lettuce Entertain You: Floral Agency in Ralph Knevet's Rhodon and Iris

This essay investigates the performativity of plants in Ralph Knevet’s Rhodon and Iris, a play that was written and performed for a feast held by the Norwich Society of Florists in 1631. The play explores at least two forms of performativity: the first is the act of staging plants for a theatrical performance, where vegetables present their virtues through floral allegories that are enacted by human players. The second form is the way plants affect and are affected by their environments, particularly as theorized by Michael Marder and Mel Y. Chen. In Rhodon and Iris, these two dimensions work together to produce a form of floral agency that decenters the human. The essay explores how floral agency collaborates with literary narratives when beings perform for plants (within a history of floral celebrations), as plants (embodying plants as allegorical figures), and with plants (floral characters using plants as ingredients in cosmetics, poisons, and antidotes). Knevet uses literature to articulate a unique plant philosophy that challenges divisions between art and nature and among literature, philosophy, and science. Rhodon and Iris thus illustrates the many ways that theatrical performances and printed playbooks, and even printed herbals and herbaria, responded to and shaped the performativity of plants.

Morphological method and molecular marker determine genetic diversity and population structure in Allochrusa

The Caryophyllaceae family is complex. Several attempts have been carried out in the past to study Caryophyllaceae members. This study mainly focused on Allochrusa Bunge to determine its genetic structure and used ISSR markers, ITS, and rps16 data to classify and differentiate Allochrusa species. We collected 122 Allochrusa specimens. Our analysis included morphological and molecular method approaches. Morphometry analysis indicated that floral characters could assist in the identification of Allochrusa species. A. persica (Boiss.) Boiss. and A. versicolor Fisch. & C.A.Mey. showed affinity to each other. A. bungei Boiss. formed a separate group. Analysis of molecular variance showed significant genetic differentiation in Allochrusa (p= 0.001). The majority of genetic variation was among the Allochrusa population. We recorded minimum gene flow (Nm=0.176) between Allochrusa species. Besides this, isolation by distance occurs in Allochrusa members, as shown in the Mantel test result (r = 0.01, p = 0.0002). STRUCTURE analysis revealed three genetic groups. It is evident that A. persica, A. versicolor, and A. bungei differ genetically from each other. Our current findings have implications in plant systematics and biodiversity management.

Synopsis of Habenaria s.l. (Orchidaceae) in New Guinea and adjacent islands

A taxonomic synopsis of the orchid genus Habenaria in New Guinea and adjacent islands is presented. We confirmed the occurrence of 27 Habenaria species in study area. Sixteen of these are endemic and were not so far found outside New Guinea. Morphological characteristics and illustrations of floral segments of taxa are presented. One new species of Habenaria is described. Four neotypes are selected. An updated key to species groups and species occurring in the study area is provided. The importance of diagnostic floral characters in Habenaria is discussed.