0000000000420070
AUTHOR
G. Clausing
Historical biogeography of Melastomataceae: the roles of Tertiary migration and long-distance dispersal
Melastomataceae and Memecylaceae are pantropically distributed sister groups for which an ndhF gene phylogeny for 91 species in 59 genera is here linked with Eurasian and North American fossils in a molecular clock approach to biogeographical reconstruction. Nine species from the eight next-closest families are used to root phylogenetic trees obtained under maximum likelihood criteria. Melastomataceae comprise â¼3000 species in the neotropics, â¼1000 in tropical Asia, 240 in Africa, and 225 in Madagascar in 150-166 genera, and the taxa sampled come from throughout this geographic range. Based on fossils, ranges of closest relatives, tree topology, and calibrated molecular divergences, Mel…
Historical biogeography in a linear system: genetic variation of Sea Rocket (Cakile maritima) and Sea Holly (Eryngium maritimum) along European coasts
The exclusively coastal Cakile maritima and Eryngium maritimum represent a linear biogeographical system. Genetic variation among 25 individuals of C. maritima and 16 individuals of E. maritimum, from the coasts of Europe, North Africa and the Canary Islands, was analysed using random amplified polymorphic DNAs (RAPDs) and intersimple sequence repeats (ISSRs). Genetic distances (Dice) were calculated and used to investigate the correlation between genetic and geographical distances, to construct Neighbour Joining (NJ) trees, and to compare mean genetic distances between areas within and across species. Genetic distances and geographical distances measured along the coast are well correlated…
Observations on ant-plant interactions in Pachycentria and other genera of the Dissochaeteae (Melastomataceae) in Sabah and Sarawak
Summary In Sabah and Sarawak (Malaysia) ant-plant interactions of Dissochaeteae were studied in the field. Whereas some species of Dissochaeteae show only loose and fortuitous interactions with ants as the result of the provision of pearl bodies and nesting places which are used by ants facultatively, Pachycentria constricta and P. glauca show a complex relationship with ants mediated by other ant plants. Both species provide pearl bodies and potential nesting space or shelter for ants in dried out and hollow root swellings. The main characteristic which differentiates them from all other Melastomataceae interacting with ants are their particular seeds which are attractive to ants and carri…
Evolution of growth form in epiphytic Dissochaeteae (Melastomataceae)
Abstract We trace the evolution of root climbing and scrambling in Dissochaeteae and Sonerileae, two closely related groups that comprise the majority of Old World climbing Melastomataceae. The morphological and anatomical adaptations of the different climbers are interpreted in the context of a phylogeny based on chloroplast (cp) DNA sequences of the ndhF gene, generated for 31 representatives of Dissochaeteae and Sonerileae/Oxysporeae plus nine outgroups. For 20 of these taxa, the ndhF sequences were combined with cpDNA rpl16 intron sequences to obtain higher statistical support. Parsimony, minimum evolution, and maximum likelihood approaches yield congruent topologies that imply that scr…
Correlations among fruit traits and evolution of different fruits within Melastomataceae
Abstract The anatomy and morphology of nearly mature fruits in 85 mainly palaeotropical species of Melastomataceae were examined using microtome- and hand-sectioning, and differential staining. Much structural heterogeneity was observed in both capsules and berries. Multivariate analyses of 31 of the 52 characters recorded for each species, revealed that indehiscence is associated with fusion of ovary and hypanthium tissues, placenta persistence, lack of a persistent endocarp, and a dearth of sclereids in these tissues, while dehiscence is correlated with the opposite states and a persistent exocarp. Other fruit characters such as lignification or fleshiness of tissues do not show a consist…
Molecular phylogenetics of Melastomataceae and Memecylaceae: implications for character evolution
Melastomataceae are among the most abundant and diversified groups of plants throughout the tropics, but their intrafamily relationships and morphological evolution are poorly understood. Here we report the results of parsimony and maximum likelihood (ML) analyses of cpDNA sequences from the rbcL and ndhF genes and the rpl16 intron, generated for eight outgroups (Crypteroniaceae, Alzateaceae, Rhynchocalycaceae, Oliniaceae, Penaeaceae, Myrtaceae, and Onagraceae) and 54 species of melastomes. The sample represents 42 of the family’s currently recognized ~150 genera, the 13 traditional tribes, and the three subfamilies, Astronioideae, Melastomatoideae, and Memecyloideae (= Memecylaceae DC.). P…