DNA ploidy levels and intraspecific DNA content variability in Romanian fescues (Festuca, Poaceae) measured in fresh and herbarium material

DNA ploidy level estimates are presented for 11 species and two natural hybrids ofFestuca sampled from 39 locations in Romania. Altogether 48 living samples (22 of them also as one-year-old herbarium specimens) and additional 65 one-year-old herbarium specimens were analyzed using flow cytometry with DAPI staining. The following DNA ploidy levels were assessed:F. callieri (4x),F. ovina (2x),F. pallens (2x),F. polesica (2x),F. pseudodalmatica (2x, 4x, 5x),F. pseudovaginata (2x),F. pseudovina (2x),F. pseudovina ×F. rupicola (4x),F. rupicola (6x),F. vaginata (2x),F. vaginata ×F. valesiaca (2x),F. valesiaca (2x) andF. xanthina (2x).Festuca pseudovaginata is reported for the flora of Romania for the first time. Measurements of one-year-old herbarium specimens produced significantly smaller sample/standard ratios (P<0.001) and higher coefficients of variance (P < 0.001) when compared with fresh plant samples. Several species exhibited marked intraspecific nuclear DNA content variability, documented by non-overlapping double-peaks or bimodal peaks in simultaneous measurements. A maximum difference of about 9.2% in relative DNA contents was observed inF. pallens, 5.5% inF. polesica, 4.2% inF. vaginata, and 3.8% inF. rupicola. DiploidF. xanhina (Festuca sect.Eskia) had 1.39–1.58 times higher monoploid relative DNA content in relation to the species of sectionFestuca.     

Drei neue Arten desFestuca ovina-Formenkreises (Poaceae) aus dem Osten Österreichs

WithinFestuca ovina agg. two hexaploid taxa:F. brevipila andF. carnuntina, and one tetraploid:F. eggleri, are described as new species.F. pseudovina Hack. exWiesb. is better treated asF. valesiaca Schleich. exGaudin subsp.parviflora (Hack.), comb. nova.

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Drei neue Arten desFestuca ovina-Formenkreises (Poaceae) aus dem Osten Österreichs

     

Hibiscus section Furcaria (Malvaceae) in islands of the Pacific Basin

Hibiscus sectionFurcaria includes more than 60 known taxa. The section has a mainly tropical distribution, but a few species penetrate subtropical and temperate regions. Seven taxa are recognized that occur in the islands of the Pacific Basin, five of which are endemic.Hibiscus fijiensis is described and a new combination,Hibiscus brackenridgei subsp.molokaianus, is proposed.     

Novelties in the Festuca valesiaca group (Poaceae) from the central Alps

Due to their ploidy levels, their morphological and anatomical characters and their distribution the central alpine Festuca stricta subsp. bauzanina (2n = 8x = 56) and Festuca ovina var. guinochetii (2n = 10x = 70), both belonging to the Festuca valesiaca group, are raised to the specific level. As a new subspecies Festuca bauzanina subsp. rhaetica is described here. The taxa of the polyploid Festuca valesiaca group are morphologically, anatomically and chorologically characterised and an identification key for these taxa in the central Alps is presented.     

Novelties in Festuca (Gramineae-Poeae) from southern Bolivia

A new species,Festuca samensis, belonging to theF. lilloi group (subgen.Festuca), is described from the Tarija region in southern Bolivia. The limits of theFestuca lilloi group are revised andF. setifolia, which is here lectotypified, is excluded from this group. Additionally, the first Bolivian record of the Tucuman floristic elementFestuca parodiana of subgen.Subulatae is reported.     

Species relationships inFestuca (sect.Ovinae,Poaceae)

Morphological and seed protein studies of selected species ofFestuca were performed to elucidate the relationships between species of sect.Ovinae and their affinity with other fescues.Festuca rubra andF. heterophylla (extravaginale group) had higher phenetic affinity with taxa of sect.Scariosae, Montanae andBovinae than with members of their own section. 5 species of the intravaginale group (F. ovina, F. capillata, F. valesiaca, F. sulcata, F. trachyphylla) were fairly uniform and well defined by protein and morphological data. This supports current systematic thinking and does not agree withHackel's (1882) classification of this group.     

LEAF CROSS SECTIONS AND PHYTOGEOGRAPHY: A POTENT COMBINATION FOR IDENTIFYING MEMBERS OF FESTUCA SUBGG. FESTUCA AND LEUCOPOA (POACEAE), OCCURRING IN NORTH AMERICA

Icon-like diagrams are used to summarize the anatomical patterns observed in leaf cross sections of 30 taxa of Festuca subgg. Festuca and Leucopoa occurring in western North America. Measurements of four variables, notes on the degree of development and the position of sclerenchyma, along with distribution maps of 24 native taxa, are presented. Twenty-nine diagrams were created from the synthesis of at least ten leaf-section drawings based on five plants chosen from across the geographic range of each taxon (fewer suitable specimens were obtained for two taxa). A key based on data collected in this study allows identification of species in subg. Festuca. Geographic distribution is more reliable than leaf anatomy for separating taxa in subg. Leucopoa.     

Chromosome banding and pairing behaviour inFestuca andVulpia (Poaceae,Pooideae)

Giemsa C-banding patterns of the grassesFestuca rubra (2n = 6x = 42),Vulpia fasciculata (2n = 4x = 28) and their wild F1 hybrid ×Festulpia hubbardii (2n = 5x = 35) show marked differences between the chromosomes of the two parents that enable unequivocal identification ofFestuca andVulpia chromosomes in the hybrid. Moreover, meiotic banding patterns reveal that both homogenetic (Festuca-Festuca andVulpia-Vulpia) and heterogenetic (Festuca-Vulpia) pairing occurs in the F1. The significance of this in relation to the formation of backcrosses to theFestuca parent and to the evolution of theFestuca polyploid complex in general is discussed.     

Variability of perigynium morphology of Central European members of Carex sect. Phaestoglochin (Cyperaceae) from variable plant communities

The number and range of taxa belonging to the Central European section Phaestoglochin (Carex L.) differ significantly among systematic classifications. Our study revealed that all of the quantitative morphological features of perigynia of Carex spicata Huds., Carex muricata subsp. muricata L., Carex muricata subsp. lamprocarpa ?elak., Carex divulsa subsp. divulsa Stokes, and Carex divulsa subsp. leersii Koch., had statistically significant differences among taxa. However, this differentiation did not reflect the known taxonomic divisions of the group and therefore, it did not represent a determining criterion for distinguishing the particular taxa. It also did not confirm the close and significant connections between subspecies within the species studied. Based on morphological features of perigynia, we showed that C. divulsa is a well-distinguished taxon, while the other taxa form a complex group. Analysis of the differentiation of perigynium features among the taxa studied against the background of the plant communities where the plants were grown indicated a distinct effect of the habitat conditions on the morphological features of perigynia.     

Revision of Central European taxa of Festuca ser. Psammophilae Pawlus: morphometrical, karyological and AFLP analysis

The taxonomic status of Central European taxa Festuca pallens s.l., F. psammophila, F. polesica, and F. vaginata was revised using the multivariate morphological analysis of well karyologically documented plants, and AFLP analysis. Six species were recognised: F. pallens Host (relict rocky habitats; diploid); F. csikhegyensis Simonk. (base-rich rocks; tetraploid); F. psammophila (?elak.) Fritsch (acidic sands) with two subspecies, F. p. subsp. psammophila (E Germany, Poland, Bohemia) and F. p. subsp. dominii (Krajina) P. ?marda (SW Moravia, NE Austria, SW Slovakia, C and E Poland); F. vaginata Willd. (base-rich sands mainly in the Pannonian Lowland); F. polesica Zapa?. (seaside and inland sand dunes); and F. pseudovaginata Penksza (base-rich sands in the Pannonian Lowland). Identification key and distribution maps as well as informations about type specimens, exsiccata collections, synonyms, and hybrids are provided. Evolutionary relationships with the assumed putative ancestor F. pallens and the rather isolated position of F. polesica are discussed.     

The acidophilous taxa of thefestuca varia group in the alps: New studies on taxonomy and phytosociology

The acidophilous taxa of theFestuca varia group appearing in the Alps (F. varia Haenke s.str.,F. scabriculmis (Hack.)K. Richt. subsp.scabriculmis, F. scabriculmis subsp.luedii Markgr.-Dann., andF. acuminata Gaudin) have been investigated with regard to their taxonomy, phytosociology and ecology. Morphometrical analyses of the different taxa confirm that the division of the species group is justified. Moreover three varieties ofFestuca varia s.str. can clearly be distinguished. Apart from the already knownF. varia var.varia and var.handel-mazzettii Krajina a newF. varia var.winnebachensis Wallossek etMarkgr.-Dann. is described. The ploidy levels of 30 samples from all taxa have been determined by means of flow cytometry.Festuca acuminata is diploid (2n=14), although this taxon occurs in ecologically different habitats within an altitudinal range between 200 and 3100 m.Festuca varia var.varia is tetraploid whereas the other varieties occur in hexaploid populations, which can be associated with inter- or post-glacial migration stages. Hexaploidy was also determined for both subspecies ofF. scabriculmis. The phylogenesis of these taxa by allopolyploidy seems possible, as they show a morphologically intermediate position betweenF. acuminata and the basiphilousF. quadriflora Honck. The spatial distribution and separation of the taxa is shown by means of precise area maps. As a result of a numerical classification of 534 relevés, the Alpine variegated fescue grasslands can be subdivided into six independent phytosociological associations of theFestucion variae: the East AlpinePulsatillo albae-Festucetum variae, Gentianello anisodontae-Festucetum variae ass. nov. andSeslerio-Festucetum variae ass. nov. as well as the West AlpineFestucetum scabriculmis, Euphorbio cyparissiae-Festucetum luedii ass. nov. andFestuco scabriculmis-Potentilletum valderiae. The mixture of basiphilous and acidophilous species in theSeslerio-Festucetum variae can be explained by soil heterogeneity with acid and alkaline conditions alternating within a very small space.Festuca acuminata can rather be regarded as a rock plant as it preferably occurs in associations of the allianceAndrosacion multiflorae.     

AFLP-based differentiation of tropical African Festuca species compared to the European Festuca complex

For the first time amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) fingerprinting is applied to classify tropical African Festuca species. Five afro-alpine narrow- and two afro-montane broad-leaved species from Uganda and Ethiopia are compared to ten European grass species. A principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) accounts for 62.5% with its first three coordinates. The PCoA and the neighbor-joining (NJ) distinguish the five narrow-leaved African Festuca species from all other species. The broad-leaved African Festuca africana and Festuca simensis are linked to the broad-leaved European species through Festuca altissima and Festuca gigantea, respectively. The narrow- and broad-leaved European species are separated as expected in the NJ. One narrow-leaved African alpine species recently described appears merged (i.e. Festuca richardii with Festuca abyssinica). We provide chromosome numbers for all seven Ugandan species and compare taxonomy and AFLP classification. Our most striking result is that the narrow-leaved African Festuca species are unique and not clustering with the narrow-leaved European species.     

DasFestuca vivipara-Problem in den Alpen

The differences betweenFestuca vivipara (tetraploid) andF. ovina subsp.supina (diploid), two often confused taxa, are demonstrated in regard to morphology, leaf anatomy, ecology and distribution. New maps illustrate the distribution ofF. vivipara in the Alps and the Northern Hemisphere. The development of different polyploidy levels withinF. vivipara as a consequence of occasional sexual processes is discussed. (English Summary on p. 39.)

     

Festuca karadagensis,a New Grass from Iraq

A new fescue (Festuca karadagensis) has been described from Iraq. It differs from other taxa of the sect.Ovinae, especially by its big spikelets, very rough leaves and hirtulous rhachila.     

Festuca alpestris R. et S. nelle Prealpi bellunesi

Abstract

Festuca alpestris R. et S. in the Alps near Belluno.—Some populations of Festuca from the F. varia aggr. occurring in the south-eastern Alps near Belluno have been recognized as belonging to F. alpestris R. et S. The relationships between this species and F. calva (Hackel) Richter from the Julian Alps are discussed and the diacritic characters are newly defined.