Biogeographical and evolutionary patterns in the Macaronesian shield-backed katydid genus Calliphona Krauss, 1892 (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae) and allies as inferred from phylogenetic analyses of multiple mitochondrial genes

Abstract.  We investigated the phylogenetic patterns, evolutionary processes, and their taxonomic implications, of two closely related shield-backed katydid genera endemic to the Macaronesian archipelagos: the monotypic Psalmatophanes Chopard, 1938 endemic to Madeira and Calliphona Krauss, 1892, which includes three species restricted to the Canary Islands. Two main hypotheses have been proposed to explain the origin and colonization pathways of these two genera: a single origin with subsequent sequential colonization of the islands, or three independent colonization waves from continental Africa. We used DNA sequence information from the mitochondrial genes cox1, tRNAleucine, rrnL and nad1 to infer phylogenetic relationships among Psalmatophanes and Calliphona species. Our results provide support for the independent colonization of Madeira and the Canary Islands, and suggest that Psalmatophanes is actually more closely related to the continental genus Tettigonia than to the Canarian representatives. Deep genetic divergence among Canarian species provides further support for the assignment of the Canarian species into two subgenera. Tree topology along with Bayesian-based estimates of lineage age suggest a pattern of colonization from Tenerife to La Palma, and from Tenerife to Gran Canaria with subsequent dispersal to La Gomera. We report the first collection of a Calliphona specimen in the island of El Hierro, which molecular data suggest is a recent immigrant from La Gomera. We hypothesize that the patterns of distribution and genetic divergence exhibited by Calliphona in the Canary Islands are compatible with a taxon cycle process. Our results have further implications for the higher level phylogeny of the subfamily Tettigoniinae and suggest that some of the tribes as currently delimited may not correspond to natural groups.     

Phylogenetic relationships among the Canary Island Steganacaridae (Acari, Oribatida) inferred from mitochondrial DNA sequence data

The mite genus Steganacarus is represented in the Canary Islands by three endemic species, one recently discovered species, and several morphotypes of uncertain taxonomic position. We used a fragment of the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I gene to reconstruct the phylogenetic relationships among representatives of the different taxa from the three central islands of the archipelago, Tenerife, La Gomera and Gran Canaria. Sequence data were analysed by both maximum parsimony and maximum likelihood methods. The inferred phylogenetic relationships do not correlate well with current morphological taxonomy but reveal four deeply divergent and geographically coherent lineages, one each on Gran Canaria and La Gomera and two on Tenerife. No pattern of molecular differentiation was observed among different morphotypes. Possible explanations for this incongruence are suggested in relation to the ecology and biogeography of the group. A recently discovered Steganacarus species from La Gomera, morphologically quite distinct from the other Canarian Steganacarus, is clearly identified as a taxon distantly related to all the other Canarian samples.     

Phylogeny of the Macaronesian endemic Crambe section Dendrocrambe (Brassicaceae) based on internal transcribed spacer sequences of nuclear ribosomal DNA

The 14 species of Crambe L. sect. Dendrocrambe DC. (Brassicaceae) form a monophyletic group endemic to the Canary and Madeira archipelagos. Both parsimony and maximum likelihood analyses of sequence data from the two internal transcribed spacer regions of nuclear ribosomal DNA were used to estimate phylogenetic relationships within this section. These analyses support the monophyly of three major clades. No clade is restricted to a single island, and therefore it appears that inter-island colonization has been the main avenue for speciation in these two archipelagos. The two species endemic to Fuerteventura (C. sventenii) and Madeira (C. fruticosa) comprise a clade, providing the first evidence for a floristic link between the Eastern Canary Islands and the archipelago of Madeira. Both maximum likelihood and weighted parsimony analyses show that this clade is sister to the two other clades, although bootstrap support for this relationship is weak. Parsimony optimizations of ecological zones and island distribution suggest a colonization route from the low-altitude areas of the lowland scrub toward the high-elevation areas of the laurel and pine forests. In addition, Tenerife is likely the ancestral island for species endemic to the five westernmost islands of Gran Canaria, La Gomera, El Hierro, La Palma, and Tenerife.     

Colonization and diversification of the species Brachyderes rugatus (Coleoptera) on the Canary Islands: evidence from mitochondrial DNA COII gene sequences

Abstract.— The genus Brachyderes Schönherr (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) is represented by the species B. rugatus Wollaston on the Canary Islands, with one subspecies on each of the islands of Gran Canaria, Tenerife, La Palma, and El Hierro. These four subspecies are associated with the endemic pine tree Pinus canariensis , and their distributions are broadly coincident. Eighty-eight individual Canarian Brachyderes , sampled from across the distributions of each subspecies, have been sequenced for 570 bp of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) cytochrome oxidase II gene (COII). No mitotypes are shared among islands. Both maximum-likelihood and distance-based phylogenetic analyses have shown that: Tenerife is composed of a single monophyletic clade of mitotypes, El Hierro is composed of a single monophyletic clade occurring within a larger clade comprising all the La Palma mitotypes, and the mitotypes of these three islands form a monophyletic group distinct from Gran Canaria. New methods for estimating divergence times without the assumption of rate constancy have been used to reconstruct the direction and approximate timing of colonizations among the islands. Colonization has occurred from older to progressionally younger islands, and these colonizations are estimated to have occurred less than 2.6 million years ago, although the timing of the initial colonization of the archipelago is not discernable. New methods for the estimation of diversification rates that use branching times as the analyzed variable have been applied to each island fauna. Hypothesized effects of different levels of recent volcanism among islands were not apparent. All islands exhibit a gradually decreasing rate of genetic diversification that is marked by periodic sudden changes in rate.     

Interpreting colonization of the Calathus (Coleoptera: Carabidae) on the Canary Islands and Madeira through the application of the parametric bootstrap

The Canary Islands have proven to be an interesting archipelago for the phylogeographic study of colonization and diversification with a number of recent studies reporting evolutionary patterns and processes across a diversity of floral and faunal groups. The Canary Islands differ from the Hawaiian and Galapagos Islands by their close proximity to a continental land mass, being 110 km from the northwestern coast of Africa. This close proximity to a continent obviously increases the potential for colonization, and it can be expected that at the level of the genus some groups will be the result of more than one colonization. In this study we investigate the phylogeography of a group of carabid beetles from the genus Calathus on the Canary Islands and Madeira, located 450 km to the north of the Canaries and 650 km from the continent. The Calathus are well represented on these islands with a total of 29 species, and on the continent there are many more. Mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I and II sequence data has been used to identify the phylogenetic relationships among the island species and a selection of continental species. Specific hypotheses of monophyly for the island fauna are tested with parametric bootstrap analysis. Data suggest that the Canary Islands have been colonized three times and Madeira twice. Four of these colonizations are of continental origin, but it is possible that one Madeiran clade may be monophyletic with a Canarian clade. The Calathus faunas of Tenerife and Madeira are recent in origin, similar to patterns previously reported for La Gomera, El Hierro, and Gran Canaria.     

Chemotaxonomy of Gonospermum and related genera

Aerial parts of Gonospermum fruticosum collected at several locations in the Canary Islands afforded, in addition to known compounds, four sesquiterpene alcohols related to costol and a sesquiterpene lactone, whose structures were established on the basis of their spectroscopic data and chemical transformations. Except for Gonospermum species collected on the island of Tenerife, those collected on the island of El Hierro and, in a previous study those from La Gomera, contain sesquiterpene lactones that can be used as chemotaxonomic markers confirming the inclusion of Gonospermum, Lugoa, and species of Tanacetum endemic to the Canary Islands in a genus that does not support the monophyly of Gonosperminae.     

Evolution and diversification of the forest and hypogean ground-beetle genus Trechus in the Canary Islands

The beetle genus Trechus (Carabidae) is represented in the Macaronesian Islands by 43 endemic species. The Canary Islands have 16 endemic species, with two adapted to hypogean life. Phylogenetic relationships among 177 individuals of 38 Canarian, Madeiran, Azorean and continental Trechus species were examined using mitochondrial DNA and nuclear internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) sequence data. Results show two main lineages in the Canaries: one comprising two sister groups with species from the laurel forest of La Gomera and Tenerife, and the other containing the single species from Gran Canaria and a species complex in the four western islands including two troglobites. Calibrations were applied to a linearized tree using a relaxed molecular clock method to estimate the major evolutionary divergence times of the Canarian Trechus species. Although the species assemblage in this archipelago is relatively ancient (7-8 million years), much of the species diversity is recent. Transition to the hypogean environment is more consistent with the "adaptive shift" rather than with the competing "climatic relict" hypothesis.     

Tracking colonization and diversification of insect lineages on islands: mitochondrial DNA phylogeography of Tarphius canariensis (Coleoptera: Colydiidae) on the Canary Islands.

The genus Tarphius Erichson (Coleoptera: Colydiidae) is represented by 29 species on the Canary Islands. The majority are rare, single-island endemics intimately associated with the monteverde (laurel forest and fayal-brezal). The Tarphius canariensis complex is by far the most abundant and geographically wide-spread, occurring on Gran Canaria, Tenerife and La Palma. Eighty-seven individuals from the T. canariensis complex were sequenced for 444 bp of the mitochondrial DNA cytochrome oxidase I gene (COI), 597 bp of the COII gene and the intervening tRNA(leu) gene. A neighbour-joining analysis of maximum-likelihood distances put La Palma as a single monophyletic clade of haplotypes occurring within a larger clade comprising all Tenerife haplotypes. Gran Canarian haplotypes were also monophyletic occurring on a separate lineage. Using a combination of the phylogeographic pattern for T. canariensis, geological data, biogeography of the remaining species and estimated divergence times, we proposed a Tenerifean origin in the old Teno massif and independent colonizations from here to north-eastern Tenerife (Anaga), Gran Canaria and La Palma. New methods of estimating diversification rates using branching times were applied to each island fauna. All islands exhibited a gradually decreasing rate of genetic diversification similar to that seen for Brachyderes rugatus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) from the Canary Islands.     

Genetic structure and distinctness of Apis mellifera L. populations from the Canary Islands

The genetic structure of Apis mellifera populations from the Canary Islands has been assessed by mitochondrial (restriction fragment length polymorphisms of the intergenic transfer RNAleu-COII region) and nuclear (microsatellites) studies. These populations show a low level of genetic variation in terms of average number of alleles and degree of heterozygosity. Significant differences in the distribution of alleles were found in both data sets, confirming the genetic differentiation among some of the islands but not within them. Two mitochondrial haplotypes characteristic of the Canary Islands are found at high frequencies, although populations are introgressed by imported honeybees of eastern European C lineage. This introgression is rather high on Tenerife and El Hierro and low on Gran Canaria and La Gomera, whereas on La Palma it has not been recorded. The finding of microsatellite alleles characteristic of the eastern European lineage corroborates the genetic introgression. Phylogenetic analyses indicate that the Canarian honeybees are differentiated from other lineages and provide genetic evidence of their African origin.     

Reconciling gene trees with organism history: the mtDNA phylogeography of three Nesotes species (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) on the western Canary Islands

The processes of island colonization and speciation are investigated through mtDNA studies on Canary Island beetles. The genus Nesotes (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) is represented by 19 endemic species on the Canary Islands, the majority of which are single island endemics. Nesotes conformis is the most widespread, occurring on Gran Canaria, Tenerife, La Palma and El Hierro. Nesotes conformis forms a paraphyletic assemblage, with a split between Gran Canaria and the other three islands. Nesotes conformis of the western Canary Islands cluster with Nesotes altivagans and Nesotes elliptipennis from Tenerife. Fifty‐two individuals from this western islands species complex have been sequenced for 675 base pairs of the mtDNA cytochrome oxidase II gene, representing Tenerife, La Palma and El Hierro. A neighbour joining analysis of maximum likelihood distances resulted in three distinct mtDNA lineages for N. conformis, two of which also include mitotypes of N. altivagans and N. elliptipennis. Through application of parametric bootstrap tests, we are able to reject hypotheses of monophyly for both N. conformis and N. altivagans. Nesotes altivagans and N. elliptipennis are poorly separated morphologically and mtDNA sequence data adds support to this being one species with a highly variable morphology. We propose that N. altivagans/N. elliptipennis is recently derived from two ancestral mtDNA lineages within N. conformis from the Teno region of Tenerife. We further propose colonization of the younger islands of La Palma and El Hierro by N. conformis from a mitochondrial lineage within the Teno massif (colonization; diversification; mitochondrial DNA; Canary Islands; Coleoptera).     

Mitochondrial DNA phylogeography and population history of Meladema diving beetles on the Atlantic Islands and in the Mediterranean basin (Coleoptera,Dytiscidae)

The phylogeny and population history of Meladema diving beetles (Coleoptera, Dytiscidae) were examined using mitochondrial DNA sequence from 16S ribosomal RNA and cytochrome oxidase I genes in 51 individuals from 22 populations of the three extant species (M. imbricata endemic to the western Canary Islands, M. lanio endemic to Madeira and M. coriacea widespread in the Western Mediterranean and on the western Canaries), using a combination of phylogenetic and nested clade analyses. Four main lineages are observed within Meladema, representing the three recognized species plus Corsican populations of M. coriacea. Phylogenetic analyses demonstrate the sister relationship of the two Atlantic Island taxa, and suggest the possible paraphyly of M. coriacea. A molecular clock approach reveals that speciation within the genus occurred in the Early Pleistocene, indicating that the Atlantic Island endemics are not Tertiary relict taxa as had been proposed previously. Our results point to past population bottlenecks in all four lineages, with recent (Late-Middle Pleistocene) range expansion in non-Corsican M. coriacea and M. imbricata. Within the Canary Islands, M. imbricata seems to have independently colonized La Gomera and La Palma from Tenerife (although a colonization of La Palma from La Gomera cannot be discarded), and M. coriacea has independently colonized Tenerife and Gran Canaria from separate mainland lineages. In the Mediterranean basin this species apparently colonized Corsica on a single occasion, relatively early in its evolutionary history (Early Pleistocene), and has colonized Mallorca recently on multiple occasions. On the only island where M. coriacea and M. imbricata are broadly sympatric (Tenerife), we report evidence of bidirectional hybridization between the two species.     

Phylogeography of the blue tit ( Parus teneriffae -group) on the Canary Islands based on mitochondrial DNA sequence data and morphometrics

An analysis of the sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene (1005 bp) of the Parus teneriffae-group from the Canary Islands and North Africa revealed new insights into the phylogeography of this taxon. The origin of the radiation on the Canarian Archipelago was apparently one of the central islands—Tenerife or Gran Canaria. The populations on El Hierro (P. t. ombriosus) and La Palma (P. t. palmensis) represent distinct monophyletic lineages. Blue tits from Gran Canaria are genetically distinct from those of La Gomera and Tenerife (P. t. teneriffae), which supports the results of other studies and suggests the existence of an—until now—undescribed taxon there. In contrast, the populations on the eastern islands of Fuerteventura and Lanzarote (P. t. degener) could not be distinguished from North African blue tits (P. t. ultramarinus), and these populations should be subsumed under the subspecies ultramarinus. Taxonomic recommendations based on these results include the distinction of the northern European P. caeruleus from P. teneriffae, including blue tits from North Africa and the Canary Islands, the treatment of degener and ultramarinus as synonymous (P. teneriffae ultramarinus) and a new blue tit taxon on the island of Gran Canaria (P. t. hedwigii nov. ssp.), which is formally described. The genetic results are in parts supported by bioacoustic and morphological data.     

Mitochondrial DNA phylogeny of Brimstone butterflies (genus Gonepteryx) from the Canary Islands and Madeira

Part of the mitochondrial Cytochrome Oxidase I gene was sequenced for seven species of Gonepteryx (Pieridac) butterflies. Four of the species are island endemics inhabiting the Canary Island archipelago and Madeira. The remaining three are European and African conspecifics. Sequence data were analysed phylogenetically by maximum parsimony and maximum likelihood methods. The resulting trees were used to deduce Canarian species' ancestry, sequential inter-island colonization and systematics. They suggest African ancestry for the Canary Island taxa and a colonization pattern, within the archipelago, compatible with the geological ages of the islands and other Canarian fauna: a colonization sequence from Africa to Tenerife and Gomera, followed by Tenerife to La Palma. The molecular phylogeny indicated that there are three Canarian endemics, G. cleobule, G. palmae and G. eversi from Tenerife, La Palma and Gomera, respectively.     

Pollination of Habenaria tridactylites on the Canary Islands

We investigated the pollination of Habenaria tridactylites, an endemic orchid of the Canary Islands. The entirely green, widely open flowers have a long spur containing nectar. We carried out fieldwork, a molecular clock analysis, herbarium surveys, identified pollinators by both morphology and DNA barcoding, and measured the length of floral spurs and insect tongues using a combination of traditional and innovative micro‐CT scanning methods to 1) determine the pollinator of this orchid and 2) investigate correlations between local mean spur length and age, altitude and longitude of the island. Habenaria tridactylites was found to be pollinated on Tenerife by both small and intermediate sized moth species with variable tongue lengths and mostly belonging to Geometridae and to a lesser extent Crambidae, Erebidae, Noctuidae and Tortricidae. Of the sixteen moth species identified, nine are endemic to the Canary Islands or Macaronesia. The different local populations of H. tridactylites on the islands of Gran Canaria, El Hierro, La Gomera, La Palma and Tenerife with different ages and distances from mainland Africa, did not show a significant correlation of mean spur length and altitude, but did show a significant and positive linear correlation with longitude and the geological age of the island. The latter is congruent with the evolutionary arms race theory first proposed by Darwin, suggesting that flowers gradually evolve longer spurs and pollinators longer tongues.     

Diversification of the forest beetle genus Tarphius on the Canary Islands, and the evolutionary origins of island endemics

The flightless beetle genus Tarphius Erichson (Coleoptera: Colydiidae) is a distinctive element of the beetle fauna of the Canary Islands with 29 species distributed across the five western islands. The majority of Tarphius species are rare and intimately associated with the monteverde forest and only two species occur on more than one island. In this study we investigate the phylogeography of the Canary Island Tarphius, and their relationship to Tarphius from the more northerly archipelagos of Madeira and the Azores using maximum parsimony and Bayesian inference analysis of mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I and II sequence data. We use geological datings for the Canary Islands, Azores, and Madeira to calibrate specific nodes of the tree for the estimation of divergence times using a penalized likelihood method. Data suggest that the Canary Island species assemblage is of some antiquity, however, much of this species diversity is relatively recent in origin. The phylogenetic relationships of species inhabiting the younger islands of El Hierro and La Palma indicate that colonization events between islands have probably been a significant factor in the evolutionary history of the Canary Island species assemblage. A comparison of molecular phylogenetic studies of arthropods on the Canary Islands suggests that, in the evolution of the arthropod species community of an island, the origin of endemic species is initially the result of colonizing lineages differentiating from their source populations. However, as an island matures a greater proportion of endemic species originate from intra-island speciation.     

MtDNA phylogeography and recent intra-island diversification among Canary Island Calathus beetles.

The genus Calathus Bonelli comprises 24 species on the Canary Islands. Sequences of 927 and 687 bp of the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I and II genes, respectively, as well as the intervening tRNA leu gene in 21 of the 24 species, have identified three genetically divergent and unequivocally monophyletic groupings. A phylogeographic analysis is presented for the major monophyletic group comprising all the species of Gran Canaria, La Gomera, and El Hierro, and two Tenerifean species. A distance-based phylogenetic analysis and maximum parsimony analysis have clearly shown that this clade is composed of four distinct lineages. DNA sequence data suggest a recent origin for this clade and that lineages have not evolved at the same rate. Compared with diversification patterns observed in other Coleoptera on the Canary Islands, diversification has been recent relative to the time of colonization within the islands of Gran Canaria and La Gomera. Calathus diversification on La Gomera has been greater than on Gran Canaria. The influences of geological and ecological history are discussed in relation to Calathus diversification.     

Phylogeography of the endangered darkling beetle species of Pimelia endemic to Gran Canaria (Canary Islands)

Phylogenetic and geographical nested clade analysis (NCA) methods were applied to mitochondrial DNA sequences of Pimelia darkling beetles (Coleoptera, Tenebrionidae) endemic to Gran Canaria, an island in the Canary archipelago. The three species P. granulicollis, P. estevezi and P. sparsa occur on the island, the latter with three recognized subspecies. Another species, P. fernandezlopezi (endemic to the island of La Gomera) is a close relative of P. granulicollis based on partial Cytochrome Oxidase I mtDNA sequences obtained in a previous study. Some of these beetles are endangered, so phylogeographical structure within species and populations can help to define conservation priorities. A total of about 700 bp of Cytochrome Oxidase II were examined in 18 populations and up to 75 individuals excluding outgroups. Among them, 22 haplotypes were exclusive to P. granulicollis and P. estevezi and 31 were from P. sparsa. Phylogenetic analysis points to the paraphyly of Gran Canarian Pimelia, as the La Gomera P. fernandezlopezi haplotypes are included in them, and reciprocal monophyly of two species groups: one constituted by P. granulicollis, P. estevezi and P. fernandezlopezi (subgenus Aphanaspis), and the other by P. sparsa'sensu lato'. The two species groups show a remarkably high mtDNA divergence. Within P. sparsa, different analyses all reveal a common result, i.e. conflict between current subspecific taxonomic designations and evolutionary units, while P. estevezi and P. fernandezlopezi are very close to P. granulicollis measured at the mtDNA level. Geographical NCA identifies several cases of nonrandom associations between haplotypes and geography that may be caused by allopatric fragmentation of populations with some cases of restriction of gene flow or range expansion. Analyses of molecular variance and geographical NCA allow definition of evolutionary units for conservation purposes in both species-groups and suggest scenarios in which vicariance caused by geological history of the island may have shaped the pattern of the mitochondrial genetic diversity of these beetles.     

Colonization and speciation on volcanic islands: phylogeography of the flightless grasshopper genus Arminda (Orthoptera,Acrididae) on the Canary Islands

Abstract Volcanic archipelagos represent excellent areas to study colonization and speciation processes. The grasshopper genus Arminda is one of many endemic taxa of the Canary Islands. It consists of seven wingless species, most of which are single‐island endemics. We sequenced two mitochondrial (12s rRNA, ND5) and two nuclear gene fragments (28s rRNA, ITS2) to reconstruct the colonization pattern of the genus. Our results are in accordance with a stepping‐stone colonization model from east to west, corresponding to the prevailing ocean currents, but alternative hypotheses cannot be fully rejected. The populations of A. brunneri from Tenerife belong to two different lineages (east and west) consistent with the geological history of the island. It remains to be tested whether these lineages represent different species and whether further lineages exist on this island. The five clades of the four western islands (A. brunneri group) have approximately similar branch lengths. The short internodes between these lineages resulted in a poorer phylogenetic resolution. Specimens from La Palma were genetically distinct and are subsequently described as a new species, Arminda palmae sp.n. Our results suggest in situ speciation on Gran Canaria, which was accompanied by a stronger degree of morphological diversification than the inter‐island speciation processes. The aberrant species A. canariensis has formerly been assigned to a monotypic subgenus Chopardminda, which is now synonymized with Arminda syn.n. based on its phylogenetic position. Gran Canaria seems to be the only island where Arminda species occur sympatrically, although allopatric speciation seems likely due to the long history of volcanism and erosion on the island.     

Mitochondrial DNA control region diversity in the endangered blue chaffinch, Fringilla teydea

The blue chaffinch (Fringilla teydea) is found only on the two central Canary Islands of Gran Canaria and Tenerife, where it is restricted to pine forest habitat. It is reasonably abundant on the latter island but endangered on the former. Here, sequence variation was studied in a fragment spanning domains I and II of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region. Phylogenetic analysis of all haplotypes with a F. coelebs outgroup indicated the two island populations were reciprocally monophyletic, supporting their individual conservation. Unlike in other species, most within-island haplotype diversity was due to mutations in the domain II region. Surprisingly, genetic diversity was greater in the smaller Gran Canarian population. We suggest that this is unlikely to be maintained under current population sizes although it may be mitigated by incorporating genetic information into the captive breeding programme.     

Morphological variation in the Chamaecytisus proliferus (L.f.) Link complex (Fabaceae: Genisteae) in the Canary Islands

FRANCISCO-ORTEGA, J., JACKSON, M. T., SANTOS-GUERRA, A. & FORD-LLOYD, B. V., 1993. Morphological variation in the Chamaecytisus proliferus (L.f.) Link complex (Fabaceae: Genisteae) in the Canary Islands . A multivariate study (Principal Component Analysis and Cluster Analysis, Warďs method) of 47 morphological traits from 164 populations of Chamaecytisus proliferus (L.f.) Link from the Canary Islands confirmed that this species complex is formed by seven morphological types. At least eight traits discriminated between these types. Patterns of variation follow a cline within Gran Canaria, Tenerife and La Palma. These results also show that morphological variation is greater in the eastern islands (i.e. Gran Canaria and Tenerife) than in the western islands (La Gomera, El Hierro and La Palma) and that no morphological differences are found between plants of typical tagasaste from wild and cultivated populations.