Morphological variation of the Oncocyclus irises (Iris: Iridaceae) in the southern Levant
Morphological traits of Iris section Oncocyclus (Siems.) Baker in the southern Levant (Israel, Jordan, The Palestinian Authority and Sinai/Egypt) were analysed in order to clarify taxonomic relationships among taxa and the validity of diagnostic characters. Floral and vegetative characters were measured in 42 populations belonging to nine species during the peak of the flowering season in 1998‐2000. Pearson’s Coefficient of Racial Likelihood (CRL) was used to calculate morphological distances between populations. Twelve of the measured populations, distributed along the north-south aridity gradient in Israel, were further explored for morphological changes along the gradient. Cluster analys…
Patterns of genetic and phenotypic variation in Iris haynei and I. atrofusca (Iris sect. Oncocyclus = the royal irises) along an ecogeographical gradient in Israel and the West Bank.
Iris haynei and I. atrofusca are two closely related narrow endemics distributed vicariously along an ecogeographical north-south gradient in Israel and the West Bank. To obtain baseline information of the taxonomic status, conservation and population history of these taxa, we investigated patterns of phenotypic variation and the partitioning of genetic variation within and among populations using dominant random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. Multivariate (principal components analysis) and taxonomic distance analyses based on morphometric traits from eight populations revealed no unambiguous separation into two distinct groups. Results of genetic analyses for nine populations d…
Iris bismarckiana in Israel and Jordan—New findings and taxonomic remarks
Iris bismarckiana (Iris section Oncocyclus) was found for the first time in the west Gilead in Jordan. This discovery was utilized to shed some light on the taxonomic relationships among the light-colored irises in the Levant. Morphometric quantitative analysis of the Jordanian population compared to I. bismarckiana allies in Israel (I. bismarckiana in the Galilee and I. hermona in the Golan) suggests that the Jordanian population is I. bismarckiana, despite the large distance from the main distribution area. Cluster analysis, based on the morphology, revealed that some of the populations of I. bismarckiana have closer affinities to I. hermona than to each other. Populations of I. hermona a…