A RAPD fingerprinting of sibling species of the <Emphasis Type="Italic">Drosophila virilis</Emphasis> group

A comparative analysis of the sibling species of Drosophila virilis was performed by RAPD-PCR technique using a set of random primers. The degree of relatedness was studied by cluster analysis (UPGMA) and multidimensional scaling. The resulting pattern of species relationships contradicts the classical taxonomy. The main result of the cluster analysis is that D. virilis does not cluster with the remaining three species of its phylad, while according to multidimensional scaling, D. virilis is equidistant from all the species of its group, from both the species of its phylad and the species of the montana phylad. The montana phylad is extremely heterogeneous; moreover, the species D. littoralis, D. ezoana, and D. kanekoi appear to be closer to the virilis phylad than to the other species of the montana phylad, wherein these species are traditionally included. The phylogenetic relationships between the studied species discovered using RAPD fingerprinting comply with the results obtained using protein markers and quantitative traits.     

In Situ Hybridisation Analysis of the X-Linked Genes in the Species of the Virilis Group of Drosophila

When estimating the level of DNA sequence variation within and between populations or when planning QTL analysis, it is essential to know the location of the genes under study. In the present work, five X chromosomal genes, earlier localised in Drosophila virilis and D. littoralis, were mapped by in situ hybridisation on the larval polytene chromosomes of four other virilis group species, D. a. americana, D. flavomontana, D. lacicola and D. montana. Conjugation of X chromosomes of the most interesting species pairs was studied in interspecific hybrids. Three of the marker genes were used as RFLP markers to examine the occurrence of recombination in D. flavomontana and D. montana hybrid females. The gene arrangement of all species studied, appeared to be different at the proximal end of the X chromosome, which prevented normal conjugation along the most part of the X chromosome. The data illustrating the locations of five X chromosomal marker genes are presented for D. a. americana, D. flavomontana, D. lacicola and D. montana.     

Variation of wing shape in the Drosophila virilis species group (Diptera: Drosophilidae)

Wing shape variation was analysed with geometric morphometric methods in 17 laboratory strains, representing 11 closely related species (including two subspecies) of the Drosophila virilis group: D. virilis, D. lummei, D. novamexicana, D. americana americana, D. americana texana, D. montana, D. lacicola, D. flavomontana, D. borealis, D. littoralis, D. ezoana and D. kanekoi. Overall shape estimated using Procrustes coordinates of 14 landmarks was highly variable among strains and very similar in females and males. The landmarks in the distal part of the wing showed higher variation across strains than those in the proximal part. Procrustes distances between species were not consistent with phylogenetic distances previously suggested for the virilis group. Moreover, Procrustes distances between strains within species and within two major phylads (virilis and montana) were comparable with those between species and between phylads, respectively. The most different from other members of the group was the endemic D. kanekoi species, currently viewed as separate subphylad within the montana phylad. Allometric effects were found to be partly responsible for shape differences between the strains. Three most significant shape transformations were considered using the relative warp analysis and the strains were ordinated in accordance with transformation values. The pattern of relative warp scores could be easily interpreted only for the third warp explaining about 13% of shape variation. It separated the largest species, D. montana, D. ezoana and D. kanekoi, from other ones and was mainly associated with shape changes in the proximal region of the wing. The results of the present work suggest that wing shape in the virilis species group is not related to the speciation process. The observed proximal‐distal contrasts and allometric effects are in agreement with data of other studies, in which wing shape variation was analysed within Drosophila species.     

Isolation and characterization of microsatellites in Drosophila montana and their cross‐species amplification in D. virilis

We report the isolation of 20 microsatellite loci from Drosophila montana and their cross amplification in the relative D. virilis. All microsatellite loci were polymorphic in the focal species D. montana, with gene diversities ranging from 0.23 to 0.93. In D. virilis only eight loci (40%) amplified and two loci were polymorphic (10%). These markers represent the first report of microsatellites isolated in D. montana. They could be applied for studying population structure and phylogeography. The largest benefit, however, will be their use in studies of quantitative trait loci, such as the mapping of behavioural quantitative trait loci.     

Mitochondrial DNA Restriction site polymorphism in Drosophila montana and drosophila virilis

Mitochondrial DNA fragment patterns produced by ten restriction endonucleases have been studied for three geographically diverse Drosophila montana lines and two Drosophila virilis lines. The two species are estimated to differ at about 6% of mitochondrial DNA nucleotide sites. In both cases intraspecific genetic variation is relatively small (pairs of lines are estimated to differ at about 0.6% of mitochondrial DNA nucleotide sites). It appears that Japanese and North American D. montana populations have not been separated for an extended period. In D. virilis there is evidence for intraspecific variation in the size of the mitochondrial genome.     

湘中丘陵区南酸枣阔叶林群落特征及群落更新

南酸枣阔叶林群落是湘中丘陵区的重要的森林群落类型之一,在森林演替过程中占有重要的地位。在湘中丘陵区长沙县大山冲林场的代表性群落——南酸枣阔叶林群落(The Choerospondias axillaries broad-leaved community)设立1 hm2固定样地,对其群落学特征进行调查,分析其植物多样性和更新动态。结果表明:群落中胸径≥1cm的乔木树种共有25科42属59种。乔木层中南酸枣(Choerospondias axillaries)的重要值最大(23.57),是群落中的建群种;南酸枣胸径和树高结构均呈正态分布,南酸枣幼苗(1.0cm≤DBH1.5cm)只有6株;群落中四川山矾(Symplocos setchuensis)的重要值(10.46)排第二,但胸径小于1.5 cm的幼树数量较多(占种群数量的22.0%),格药柃(Eurya muricata)、千年桐(Aleurites montana)和毛豹皮樟(Lindera coreana)的重要值分别为7.98(幼树数占种群数量的16.8%),5.39(幼树数占种群数量的11.7%),4.17(幼树数占种群数量的11.0%),这4个乔木树种的径级结构均呈倒J型分布;林分的成层结构中,上层木主要为南酸枣,下层木主要为四川山矾、格药柃、千年桐和毛豹皮樟。林下幼苗主要为常绿阔叶树种,且更新良好,并将成为下一个演替阶段的建群种。南酸枣的幼苗更新不良情况说明其在群落中的优势地位在逐年降低,而四川山矾、格药柃、千年桐、毛豹皮樟等树种的优势地位呈上升趋势,表明湘中丘陵区的南酸枣阔叶林群落正在朝常绿阔叶林的方向演替。灌木、草本层中共有植物37种,重要值前5位的种为檵木(Loropetalum chinensis)、满山红(Rhododendron mariesii)、乌饭(Vaccinium bracteatum)、栀子(Gardenia jasminoides)、映山红(Rhododendron simsii)分别为54.59、21.85、4.98、4.63、4.53,其中,檵木和满山红在灌木层中的优势地位明显。     

Decay rate and substrate quality of fine roots and foliage of two tropical tree species in the Luquillo Experimental Forest,Puerto Rico

Decomposition rates, initial chemical composition, and the relationship between initial chemistry and mass loss of fine roots and foliage were determined for two woody tropical species, Prestoea montana and Dacryodes excelsa, over a gradient of sites in two watersheds in the Luquillo Experimental Forest, Puerto Rico. At all locations, fine roots decayed significantly more slowly than foliage during the initial 6 months.Substrate quality of the initial tissue showed marked differences between roots and foliage when using cell wall chemistry, secondary chemistry and total elemental analysis as indices. Quantity of acid detergent fiber (ADF) (non-digestible cell wall fiber) and lignin content were higher for roots than leaves: D. excelsa roots had 55.3% ADF and 28.7% lignin while leaves had 36.2% ADF and 11.8% lignin; P. montana roots had 68.0% ADF and 26.8% lignin while leaves had 48.5% ADF and 16.1% lignin. Aluminum concentrations were higher in fine roots (843 mg kg^–1 in D. excelsa, 1500 mg kg^–1 in P. montana) than leaves (244 mg kg^–1 in D. excelsa, 422 mg kg^–1 in P. montana), while calcium concentrations were higher in foliage (5.5 mg g^–1 in D. excelsa, 7.8 mg g^–1 in P. montana) than roots (3.4 mg g^–1 in D. excelsa, 3.1 mg g^–1 in P. montana). Nitrogen did not show any trend with tissue or species type. A linear model between mass remaining after 6 months and initial tissue chemistry could be developed only for calcium (r²=0.64).     

A biometric study of Fritillaria montana Hoppe ex W.D.J. Koch s.l. (Liliaceae) shows a single polymorphic species,with no infraspecific taxa

Abstract

The large amount of morphological variability within Fritillaria montana Hoppe ex W.D.J. Koch, a southeastern European species described from northeastern Italy, led to the creation of several further taxa: Fritillaria caussolensis Goaty & Pons ex Adoino from southeastern France, Fritillaria orsiniana Parl. from central Italy, Fritillaria intermedia N. Terracc. and Fritillaria pollinensis N. Terracc. from southern Italy. Aiming to test the taxonomic value of these taxa, a biometric study of both herbarium and living specimens of F. montana s.l. is carried out. A total of 22 morphological features were analysed and measured in 417 plants from 46 different localities, including loci classici of all the involved taxa. In addition, typical populations of F. montana, F. caussolensis, F. intermedia, F. orsiniana and F. pollinensis and also several other Italian populations resulted with 2n = 18 chromosomes. We also counted 2n = 27 chromosomes in endotriploid cells of plants from Abruzzo. However, there is no clear‐cut correlation between morphology and karyology. The biometric analysis, together with many observations on fresh material in the field, revealed that F. montana is a single polymorphic species with no infraspecific taxa.     

Development of EST-SSR markers and investigation of genetic relatedness in tung tree

The tung tree is an important non-edible oilseed source and consists of two species Vernicia fordii and Vernicia montana native to southern China and southeast Asia. In this study, the frequency and distribution of simple sequence repeats (SSRs) in expressed sequence tags (ESTs) of V. fordii were characterized based on 2,407 available EST sequences from the National Center for Biotechnology Information database. Twenty-two EST-SSR markers were developed by screening the genomic DNAs of six individuals of V. fordii from three accessions and 120 individuals of V. montana from 30 indigenous V. montana accessions collected from different geographic areas in southwestern China and northern Laos. The 22 EST-SSR markers exhibited a moderate level of polymorphism in V. montana with an average of 3.36 alleles per locus and PIC of 0.401. Genetic relatedness investigation showed that there was not only distinct genetic differentiation among tung trees but also a distinct geographic pattern among V. montana accessions. The current study is the first report of the development of EST-SSRs and genetic relatedness investigation in tung trees. These EST-SSR markers reported here will be valuable resources for future genetic studies, like construction of linkage maps, diversity analysis, quantitative trait locus/association mapping, and molecular breeding of the tung tree. The genetic relatedness identified in V. montana would provide potential clues in choosing germplasms in interest as progenitors for cross breeding and variety improvement of V. montana in practice.     

Strength of sexual and postmating prezygotic barriers varies between sympatric populations with different histories and species abundances

The impact of different reproductive barriers on species or population isolation may vary in different stages of speciation depending on evolutionary forces acting within species and through species’ interactions. Genetic incompatibilities between interacting species are expected to reinforce prezygotic barriers in sympatric populations and lead to cascade reinforcement between conspecific populations living within and outside the areas of sympatry. We tested these predictions and studied whether and how the strength and target of reinforcement between Drosophila montana and Drosophila flavomontana vary between sympatric populations with different histories and species abundances. All barriers between D. montana females and D. flavomontana males were nearly complete, while in the reciprocal cross strong postzygotic isolation was accompanied by prezygotic barriers whose strength varied according to population composition. Sexual isolation between D. flavomontana females and D. montana males was increased in long‐established sympatric populations, where D. flavomontana is abundant, while postmating prezygotic (PMPZ) barriers were stronger in populations where this species is a new invader and still rare and where female discrimination against heterospecific males was lower. Strengthening of sexual and PMPZ barriers in this cross also induced cascade reinforcement of respective barriers between D. flavomontana populations, which is a classic signature of reinforcement process.     

鱼藤属植物优异物种筛选及引种栽培研究

为了解粉垄“145”模式在新植蔗上的应用效果,解析其生理生态基础,该研究以桂柳05136为材料,设置常规耕作(CK)和粉垄“145”模式(FL145)2个处理,通过大田试验研究粉垄“145”模式对土壤性质以及新植蔗农艺性状、光合特性和产量品质的影响,并分析其经济效益。结果表明：(1)与CK相比,FL145的0～20 cm、20～40 cm根区,土壤容重显著降低1.25%～5.98%,土壤孔隙度显著提高1.08%～4.77%,土壤含水量显著提高1.78%～8.23%。(2)FL145促进新植蔗根系生长,出苗效果和农艺性状表现良好,株高显著增加2.20%～7.86%。(3)FL145的新植蔗单株叶面积显著增大15.88%,叶绿素含量、净光合速率、气孔导度、胞间CO₂浓度分别显著提高1.41%、6.84%、18.67%、10.06%,光合能力增强,单株干物质积累量显著增加9.26%。(4)收获时,FL145的新植蔗有效茎数、茎长、茎径显著增加,理论产量和实际产量分别显著提高5.07%和5.11%,蔗汁蔗糖分和锤度分别显著提高1.61%和1.50%,还原糖分显著下降12....     

Correllia (Compositae: Peritylinae) : A new monotypic genus from southern Chihuahua,Mexico

A new genus,Correllia, and its single species,C. montana, are described from Sierra Mohinora in southwestern Chihuahua, Mexico. The genus belongs in subtribe Peritylinae (Compositae tribe Helenieae) and appears to be most closely related toPerityle.     

Comparative polytene chromosome maps of <Emphasis Type="Italic">D. montana</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">D. virilis</Emphasis>

Chromosomal inversion polymorphism was characterized in Finnish Drosophila montana populations. A total of 14 polymorphic inversions were observed in Finnish D. montana of which nine had not been described before. The number of polymorphic inversions in each chromosome was not significantly different from that expected, assuming equal chance of occurrence in the euchromatic genome. There was, however, no correlation between the number of polymorphic inversions and that of fixed inversions in each chromosome. Therefore, a simple neutral model does not explain the evolutionary dynamics of inversions. Furthermore, in contrast to results obtained by others, no significant correlation was found between the two transposable elements (TEs) Penelope and Ulysses and inversion breakpoints in D. montana. This result suggests that these TEs were not involved in the creation of the polymorphic inversions seen in D. montana. A comparative analysis of D. montana and Drosophila virilis polytene chromosomes 4 and 5 was performed with D. virilis bacteriophage P1 clones, thus completing the comparative studies of the two species.     

A new species of Cymopterus (Umbelliferae) from southern Idaho

A new species,Cymopterus davisii, from alpine areas in the Albion Mountains of extreme south-central Idaho, is described. It has been confused withC. nivalis, with which it is compared. The fruit ofC. davisii are subterete to somewhat compressed laterally and, contrary to the literature, correspond closely to those ofC. nivalis and related species.     

Evidence for introgression in differentiated North-American and Finnish <Emphasis Type="Italic">Drosophila montana</Emphasis> populations

The virilis group species Drosophila montana is widely distributed around the northern hemisphere. Here we show that it consists of at least two well differentiated populations (Finnish and North-American populations) that have been diverging for the last 0.55–0.95 My. These populations show significant chromosomal, behavioural and morphological differences, but no apparent postzygotic isolation. Evidence for introgression is found for both Finnish and North-American populations at two out of the three X-linked genes (fused, elav and su(s)) studied here. In the light of these findings, previously reported evidence for selective sweeps in D. montana populations is re-evaluated.     

Lack of human-assisted dispersal means <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pueraria montana</Emphasis><Emphasis Type="Italic">var. lobata</Emphasis> (kudzu vine) could still be eradicated from South Africa

The legume, Pueraria montana var. lobata (kudzu vine) is one of the worst plant invaders globally. Here we present the first study of P. montana in South Africa. We found only seven P. montana populations covering an estimated condensed area of 74 hectares during the height of the growing season. Based on a species distribution model, it appears that large parts of the globe are suitable, including parts of the eastern escarpment of South Africa (where most populations occur). South African populations of P. montana appear to have a similar ecology to populations in the USA: high growth rates, low seed germination, no natural long-distance dispersal, little herbivory and vigorous post-fire resprouting. In contrast to the USA, most South African populations do flower and flowers are capable of producing seed in the absence of pollinators. However, P. montana appears to have never been widely planted in South Africa, and the incursion was for many years restricted to a single introduction site. The comparison between the invasions of P. montana in the USA and South Africa highlights the often overriding importance of human-assisted dispersal and cultivation in creating widespread invasions, and should serve as a warning to people who have proposed to utilize the species in Africa.     

Flowering cycles of woody bamboos native to southern South America

Neotropical woody bamboos range from northern Mexico to southern Argentina and Chile. The most interesting aspect of bamboo biology is their flowering habit. The species that are the most intriguing are those that manifest a cyclic pattern of gregarious flowering after long vegetative periods. The flowering cycle has been described in very few species. The goal was to identify mass flowering events of woody bamboo species native to Argentina and neighboring areas, and to estimate the flowering cycle of each species. Sixteen species were surveyed: Chusquea culeou, C. deficiens, C. lorentziana, C. montana, C. quila, C. ramosissima, C. tenella, C. valdiviensis; Colanthelia rhizantha; Guadua chacoensis, G. paraguayana, G. trinii; Merostachys clausenii, M. multiramea, Rhipidocladum neumannii and R. racemiflorum. To reconstruct flowering dates, information from literature and herbarium collections was consulted and more than 990 records were gathered. Flowering cycles were estimated by recording the intervals between reported flowering events. Evidence of regular flowering cycles of ca. 30 years was found for most of the species considered. There is a remarkable concentration of flowering cycles about multiples of 15–16 years. Flowering synchrony among different species of woody bamboos was recorded for the first time in South America.     

Erigeron salmonensis (Asteraceae), a rare new species from Idaho

Erigeron salmonensis, a diploid (n=9) species known only from one location in the Salmon River canyon of Idaho, is described and illustrated. The species appears to be most closely related toE. arenarioides, an endemic of northern Utah.Erigeron salmonensis differs in its long, naked, eglandular peduncles; longer leaves; smaller heads with fewer phyllaries; and longer, fewer ray florets. Federal Endangered or Threatened status may be warranted if additional populations are not discovered.