Preliminary insights into the molecular barcoding data of Turraea socotrana (Meliaceae) from Socotra (Yemen)

The relationship of two geographically and ecologically separated populations of Turraea socotrana Styles and F. White (Meliaceae), a vulnerable and scattered shrub from the island of Socotra (Yemen), was explored using preliminary molecular data. The nuclear ribosomal ITS region was used to screen the level of genetic divergence of T. socotrana from ecologically distant localities in comparison to a few other species of Turraea and closely related genera. The individuals from the inland (Diksam) differed from the western coastal ones (Ma’alah) by vegetative characters and by the rbcL gene. This may be due to the fact that the population from Ma’alah grows on lithosoil slopes directly expos…