Abstract Detail

Systematics Section/ASPT

Abbott, J. Richard [1], Neubig, Kurt [2], Carlsward, Barbara [3].

Synopsis of Badiera (Polygalaceae), a Caribbean clade of shrubs.

There has long been disagreement about generic delimitation within the Polygaleae (Polygalaceae), especially with respect to the circumscription of traditional Polygala s.l. Recent phylogenetic analyses have demonstrated the polyphyly of Polygala, as broadly circumscribed, and have shed some light on which traditional names correspond to clades. One of those clades is Badiera, a group of 9 species of shrubs (to small trees) in the Caribbean, with one species also in Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala. Morphological synapomorphies uniting the species of Badiera are reduced lateral sepals (wings) and thick-walled fruits that retain the seeds, which are bluish-black and associated with a fleshy orange aril, presumably involved in dispersal by birds. Other features traditionally used to delimit the Badiera clade, such as being shrubs greater than 1 m tall and having flowers lacking a crest on the keel petal, are now best understood as retained plesiomorphies. The most likely sister group to Badiera is Hebecarpa, 20+ species of herbs (often suffrutescent) widespread in Latin America although most speciose in Mexico. Preliminary anatomical work has shown the leaves of all Badiera species to be dorsiventral (with stomates only on the lower surface), while leaves of all studied species of Hebecarpa are isobilateral. Having dorsiventral leaves is likely the ancestral state, but taxon sampling to date is inadequate to fully address the level of universality of anatomical features. Palynological data also support the distinctiveness of Badiera, with this genus, once again, appearing to have retained the plesiomorphic character state, i.e., 8-10 colpi per grain vs. 17-22 in Hebecarpa.

Broader Impacts:

1 - Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
2 - University of Florida, Florida Museum of Natural History, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
3 - Eastern Illinois University, Department of Botany, Life Sciences Bldg. 2070, 600 Lincoln Ave., Charleston, IL, 61920, USA

Keywords:
Badiera
Caribbean
phylogeny
Polygalaceae.

Presentation Type: Oral Paper:Papers for Sections
Session: 5
Location: Rosedown/Riverside Hilton
Date: Monday, July 29th, 2013
Time: 9:30 AM
Number: 5005
Abstract ID:662
Candidate for Awards:None