Taxonomic significance of variation in sexual condition in Pelekium Mitt. and related genera (Thuidiaceae) |
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| Authors: | Nik Norhazrina Jairo Patiño Lars Hedenäs Jian Wang |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Institute of Botany, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium;2. School of Environmental and Natural Resource Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, National University of Malaysia, Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia;3. Azorean Biodiversity Group (GBA, CITA-A) and Platform for Enhancing Ecological Research &4. Sustainability (PEERS), Universidade dos A?ores, Departamento de Ciências Agrárias, Rua Capit?o Jo?o d’ávila, 9700-042 Angra do Heroísmo, Azores, Portugal;5. Island Ecology and Evolution Research Group, Instituto de Productos Naturales y Agrobiología (IPNA-CSIC), Laguna, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain;6. Department of Botany, Swedish Museum of Natural History, Stockholm, Sweden;7. Bryology Laboratory, School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China |
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| Abstract: | Sexual condition has been employed as a key character within the moss family Thuidiaceae to discriminate the dioicous genera Aequatoriella and Thuidiopsis from the monoicous Pelekium. Here, we implemented phylogenetic analyses of the chloroplast trnL-F region and two unicopy nuclear regions to test the monophyly of Pelekium, and hence, the taxonomic significance of the variation in sexual systems. Aequatoriella was deeply nested within Pelekium, suggesting that the sexual condition is not a fixed character state that can be used to circumscribe genera in the Thuidiaceae and, therefore, that Aequatoriella should be sunk. Incongruence among loci rendered the interpretation of the position of Thuidiopsis challenging, and we suggest maintaining it as a separate genus pending further evidence. |
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| Keywords: | Aequatoriella Pelekium Phylogeny Sexual systems Thuidiopsis |
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